Sewing Project - Scrappy Fabric

I tried my hand at creating fabric from scraps again.  I found a video on Patchwork Crafts on line that documented the process I was thinking would work. 

1. I cut an 11.25 by 11.25 inch of poly cotton for a foundation layer - give it room to be trimmed.
2. Collected a harmonious collection of scraps from my small fabric scraps bin.
3. Start in the middle. Lay another piece on top, stitch, iron open, and top stitch.  Keep doing this in a circular fashion. This is the point I missed so I ended up with the problem corner.  I had to then switch to applique to put pieces in that corner.
4. Trim the finished piece into the shape you need for whatever project you are working on.  I trimmed my piece to 2 pieces for fabric fold over card wallets. Other ideas are bags, quilt squares, accent panel on a tote, a wall hanging, and much more.

I am looking forward to making another piece of the collage fabric.

Sewing Project - Fabric Cheque Book Covers

I find myself the owner of 2 chequing accounts.  It happened back in November when I had to write my annual cheques and had a limited supply because the rest were packed in a box.

I have had a chequing account which allowed me all I wanted as long as I kept a certain balance. 

I was convinced to apply a plan to my account so the cost of my cheques would be covered.  If I maintain a certain balance the cost of the plan will be reversed automatically every month.  I have had to go to the branch every month and have the charge reversed manually.  The issue was escalated to the tech team and the second time the answer was found.  I had the wrong type of account.  So a few weeks ago I went and opened another chequing account and applied the plan to that account which allows me to have 20 accounts under the plan. Who needs that many accounts?

I have not tested the theory yet as the end of the month has not arrived but soon we shall see.

Since I have all those cheques I wanted to keep that old account for my regular chequing activities and use the new one for my online and debit transactions.

I went to the pay my bills and realized that I need a cheque register for this new account so I headed to the bank and asked a young teller for one.  She was perplexed.  I asked the young man who had helped to open my new chequing account and he was perplexed.  I dug the one I had from my purse and off he went to the back room and returned with 4. I was very happy but they don't have any plastic cheque book covers.

I decided that I needed to make my own and here we are.

An online source suggested cutting the fabric 7x13 inches. I added the grey patterned fabric to add some interest.  I chose poly cotton fabric so it will wear well. The grey one was a bit too narrow at 7 inches so I had to cobble an additional strip.  It has plastic inserts on each pocket to keep it stiff.  The knots on the front and back keep them in place.

When checking condition of the plastic cover on my old cheque book it was obvious that I needed another. I cut the fabric 8x13 for this cover and that worked out well. 

Again, I chose poly cotton fabric red on the outside and yellow as the lining. I added a few accents on this one as well. Added top stitching to close the opening and add a bit of structure.

This one is big enough for me to tuck the book of cheques in one of the pockets. Happy with these.

Slow Stitching - No. 039 - Monochrome

Another piece for K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge 2024.

Week 39 - Monochrome - Pick a Color any Color - Green - House Top.

I decided to do my layout based on K3N's Wonky Wednesday last week of House Top.

I chose my bright piece in the center and then hand stitched my strips around till I had covered my foundation piece.  I trimmed all sides when I was done. 

I then top stitched in green thread along the inside edge of each strip. Going around the perimeter of the center green square. 

Slow Stitching - No. 013 - Friendship Star

The prompt for week 13 of the slow stitch challenge 2024 at K3N Cloth Tales was  Friendship with a nine patch square as the technique hence a Friendship Star.

I am not a traditional quilter so nine patch is something I have not done before. Then to make on a small scale and hand stitch it was another level of challenge.

I started with 2 inch squares but somewhere along the way I ended up with extra fabric I had to cut off the the center square was a bit too big.  Math is not my strong point.

Friends are important.

I chose to put the print on the star and the aqua on the surrounding squares. I then added the yellow and teal strips around the square to make it work better when I put these squares into a project at the end of the year.  Once the nine patch was done, I added a white cotton layer on the back and id the top stitching.  Really happy with this piece.

More Sewing - Pot Holders

I worked on some more pot holders as gifts this year as aprons were not in much demand among my siblings.

I love the soft muted tones of the fabric in the center of this set.  The 5 inches squares were given to me by a quilter friend. I added 100% cotton black borders around the square and the back is solid black.  

The stuffing/batting is 100% cotton.

The top stitching is around the center square and well as very close to the edge to close the space where I turned them good side out.

The loop was placed in the center of the square.

I paired an olive green/khaki green organic print with an olive green solid on the back. 

This is a 8.5 inch square which brings it down to 8 inches when completed. 

The stuffing is 100% cotton.

I used my quarter circle template again this time for this set. 

I just pinned the paper to the corner and then sewed following the curved edge.  Repeated for all 4 corners.

There was just enough burgundy fabric to complete this set of flat potholders.  I have enough floral to make another set.

This was left over fabric from the shirt smock apron I made earlier.

The stuffing is 100% cotton.

I chose the half circle template for the top stitching on this set.

It was nice to use up some smaller pieces of fabric.

All wrapped up for Christmas gifts.

Apron - Adjustable with Casing

I made another apron today so now I have a sample of the three designs I have researched.

This is an adjustable apron with the tied going through a casing along the curve of the bib.  This is the style of my current apron.

I chose this bold striped cotton fabric in red, ivory and white stripes for this side and a black poly cotton for the reverse side.   I placed a seam offset to the left of center and ensured the stripes were maintained across the apron. I chose to top stitch the seam and the outer edge of the apron in black thread.

I added black patch pockets, a towel loop in the center between the pockets and a hanging loop on the accent at the top of the bib. 

The corners of the pockets are well reinforced with a triangle of stitching.


I will have to decide which design I will use for my new apron.  I have not yet decided the fabric yet.