Fixing my (sewing) mistakes

When I was in JoAnn's to purchase the backing fabric, I noticed a pretty linen print that was in a "today's special" bin for 50% off.  Not sure what I was going to make out of it didn't stop me from purchasing two yards of the fabric.  Once I got it home and pre-washed, I started browsing through patterns.  I didn't have anything I really liked, so I went back to JoAnn's to buy a pattern.  Fortunately, the pattern only required 1 7/8ths of a yard.  I was good to go.

Or, so I thought.  Apparently, I've gained more weight than I realized.  I should have gotten the next set of sizes.  However, I've run into this with several of my existing patterns (which really meant that I should have known better), and so I decided to just add a bit here and there.

It turned out fairly well.

Almost finished blouse

It fit in all the places that it needed to fit, with one minor exception.  I hadn't taken the neckline into consideration when I added to the pattern.  The hole was definitely just a tad bit bigger than it should have been.  Perhaps by an inch on either side.  The question was, what to do about it?

Last night, I had an idea.  I went into my stash and found a lace that could be doubled over.

Sewing the lace in half

Next, I pinned a piece on each side, with the sewn side toward the seam line.

Pinning the lace in place

It is on, even, and closes up the hole by the perfect amount.

Problem solved!

I wore it to work today.  I think I actually like it better with the lace.  Not bad for making a mistake!

Finished the patriotic wall hanging

I have to admit that I had a lot of fun with this one.  Here is the finished wall hanging:

Finished Patriotic Wall Hanging

I tried something new--for me--while quilting this one.  On the left side, I quilted the words:  "Let Freedom Ring."

Let Freedom Ring

And, on the right side "The Land of the Free, Because of the Brave."

The Land of the Free, Because of the Brave.

I definitely will be quilting more text as time goes on.  It was much easier than I though it would be.

Finished the applique on the patriotic wall hanging

Tonight, I finished the applique on the patriotic wall hanging.  Geff enlarged a silhouette of the flag raising at Iwo Jima for me. 

And, this afternoon, I got it cut out and sewn onto the wall hanging.  I decided not to add an extra border.  Anything else seemed to be a little distracting.

Next up:  buy the backing fabric and start the machine quilting.

A little bit of filet crochet

When I was in my 20s, I discovered filet crochet.  Filet crochet uses the concept of open meshes and closed meshes to create a design.  And, typically, instead of yarn, a heavy thread is used.  I think this form of crochet appeals to my geekier side--it reminds me of the basic on or off state.

I subscribed to a couple of crochet magazines at the time, and several of them had patterns in them.  Some were bird patterns; some were floral; some were geometric.  I made five or six table runners before my wrist started acting up.

Several years ago when I was traveling a lot for work, I ran across one of the old magazines and decided to pick it up again.  The pattern I chose was a horse and carriage, and I decided to use a denim blue thread.  Unfortunately, it is still a work in progress.

Tonight, I was feeling very tired, so I decided to make some progress:

In progress filet crochet project

While I'm currently working on row 40, it is still difficult to see the image at this point.  The horse is facing toward the left of the image, with one of the front legs up.  The crochet hook is laying on the wheel of the carriage.  Several years into the project, and I still have a long way to go.

A patriotic wall hanging

A little over a month ago, I got a call asking if I'd be willing to create a wall hanging to be raffled off to raise money for a veterans group.  What could I say?

"Um, how big are you thinking?"
"Oh, approximately 3 by 5."
"Any theme?"
"Could you make it patriotic?"

Naturally, I said I would create one.

I've been thinking about it quite a bit, and on Saturday, I finally came up with an idea that I like.

Over the weekend, I bought some fabric and pre-washed it.  Last night, I started off with a stack of fabric and a vague idea:

Stack of fabric for a patriotic wall hanging

I started by cutting the various red and white fabrics into 2.5" strips.  Next, it was time to sew them together.

Two panels of red and white stripes

Tonight, I added some gold fabric to the top and bottom, and then sewed some stripes on to a piece of blue fabric.  Next, it was time to cut the strips into vertical strips with variable widths.  Then, I laid the strips out.

The original lay-out

The strips are now all sewn together.

The strips sewn together

Next up, I need to level out the top and bottom, and then add a slim border to the two ends.  After that, I'll add a border, and then it will be time to applique the center design.  So far, I'm happy with it.

Sofa pillows

A couple of weeks ago, I found this great fabric at our neighbor's garage sale:

Even though I'm trying really hard not to buy any more fabric, the fabric kept calling to me until I decided to go ahead and buy it.  Saturday, I bought two pillow forms.

Both pillow forms are 16" square.  Now that the charity quilt is finished, I decided it was time to finish up a project!

And, I decided for a change to not over-complicate the project.  The fabric is great as it is.  Plain squares with no embellishment will look fantastic on the sofa.  After cutting out four 17"x17" squares, it was time to pin them together and start sewing.

Soon, one more finished project.

Although, there is still plenty of fabric left...

The 2013 charity quilt is finished!

Tonight, I finished the 2013 charity quilt!  For starting on it later than I did the past two years, I still managed to finish it with over a month to spare.

The finished 2013 charity quilt

The back of the quilt turned out well, also.

A marbled fabric is on the back

This one is a little harder to give away than the other charity quilts--it would look great on the bed in the spare bedroom.  The spare bedroom quilt is definitely another story.  I started one for that bed several years ago.  I really need to finish that one some day.

Until then, I have another project in mind.  One that can be finished quickly:  pillows for the living room sofa.  A couple of weeks ago, I spotted this fabric at the neighbor's rummage sale:

Fabric to make pillows for the couch

Yesterday, I purchased two pillow forms from Hancock Fabrics while they were 30% off.  The next project will definitely be the pillows.