Scrap Happy in April

 I've got another little book to share with you. This may have been my very first attempt at a fabric book, inspired by Susan Taylor Brown's "just because" books. Other books have been started and finished since I embarked on this one.   

 This book is about 3.25" wide and 5" tall. I only used things I found in my stash. The challenge was to see what I could do in a black and white palette. The 'Liberty' tag was cut from a silk tie. The buttons are vintage. I had fun playing with my buttons in this book. 

 I tried to use a variety of fabric types. The eyelet on page 2 is a little pocket. The black flower next to it is a crochet piece as is the white flower on the next page. 

 More labels from neckties on page four. The number 2 and the spiffy fella on page 5 were cut from quilting cottons. I used this book as an opportunity to feature some laces along with everything else.  

 After I'd added the mouse (from another quilter's cotton), the strip of crochet and the fibers I couldn't bring myself to do any additional stitching on this center spread. I really like being able to read the words that were printed on the cotton along with the images of cookie dough on the cookie sheets. 

 More labels. Then I fell into spooky mode. 

 On the upper left of the back cover is a waterfall of scrap patches. 

 I used this book as a learning experience. That's one reason it has taken so long to get it to a finished state. I'd get stuck, not knowing what to do next. Then I'd come across someone else's approach or technique and give it a try. I've learned what I enjoy doing and what doesn't appeal to me so much. 

Here are the links for other bloggers who generally participate in this blog hop.  😊

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie  

 

Scrap Happy in Febrruary

I have been following Rachel and her sister Sarah of Roxy's Creations on YouTube since they instituted the first Journal of Stitchery project. I don't think I've ever actually started and finished any volume of the projects they proposed but I found them inspiring. They introduced volume nine in December and stitching began in January. It's looking like I will come closer to fulfilling their briefs this time around than any previous version. 

The suggestion was to choose six books - fiction or non-fiction - to inspire the creation of six textile books, one per month. We are free to make the books any size we like, as many pages as we want, any techniques, etc. I thought long and hard about the books I might use for inspiration. In the end it's looking like I will be more inspired by the idea of a book, the subject matter, rather than any specific title. For example, in January I knew I wanted to use the scraps of feed sack fabrics I still have in my possession. I feel like I used to have a book about feed sacks, or the quilts made during the Great Depression using feed and flour and grain sacks, but I can't find any such title on my shelves. (I have had to weed out books that are too toxic for me to peruse safely.) Nevertheless, I know such books exist.

I confess to buying a piece of vintage feed sack off a vendor on eBay. Otherwise I used only the scraps and remnants I had on hand. I also tried to incorporate buttons and rick rack that seemed of the era.

 My book measures roughly 3.5" wide by 4" tall closed as in the photo above. The flower on the cover is what most folks consider the back side of a yo-yo or Suffolk Puff (which I personally prefer to the gathered side) on top of a rescued crochet medallion with rick rack for stem and leaves. I outlined the yo-yo with perle cotton.  All the edges of the pages have been blanket stitched with 3 strands of embroidery floss. 

Inside the front cover I fussy cut and raw-edge appliqued the rose from one feed sack print. On the opposite page I appliqued a crocheted Colonial Lady that I liberated from a vintage handkerchief. There are scattered single chain stitches in the background around her. 

 

This spread features just about the last pieces I have of the white with the pink rosebud print and the yellow patch with the two young ladies doing housework. I scattered pink Colonial knots on the pink patch. There are red upright crosses on the turquoise patch. The other patches have been seed stitched. 

This is my center spread. Those are vintage buttons on the yellow patch. There are blue stars embroidered above the little girl on her vehicle but the rest of the stitching is all straight stitches done to blend into the backgrounds.

 More simple straight stitches on these two pages and one vintage red button. I really wanted to showcase the prints so I have not added a lot of embroidery or other embellishments. I used the letter buttons in place of a title or a reference to a specific book.

This final page features two more patches that are the last of their kind: the white with the flowers and the blue floral print. Inside the back cover I used rick rack again to frame the motto of the era I was trying to honor. I simply wrote with a Micron pen on a square of muslin for that. There's another bit of crochet secured with a button to dress that up a bit.

This is the back cover. A little bit of feather stitching on either side of another "upside down" yo-yo, a vintage laundry label, and a strip of rick rack. The initials on the laundry label are not exact but they remind me of the name of one of my great-grandmothers. 

 Finally, in lieu of the title of a book on the spine and as a way to document what this project was I cut a piece of cardstock, punched a hole in it, wrote on it and stitched it in place, leaving the thread long enough to make a bow. 😊  

Thus my entry for February's Scrap Happy Day, which is hosted by Kate over at Tall Tales from Chiconia on the 15th of each month. To see what other participants have done with their scraps or leftover materials recently just click on the links below.   

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie

 

No Kings Since 1776

 I've been using my needle and thread to help me cope with what's been going on in the United States of America. I shared this little book a few months ago, when it was still in the works. It is now complete.

 I have ancestors who participated in the original American Revolution. 

Most of the men in my family have served in the military through the generations. 

I firmly believe in the principles that were the foundation of this nation.

I wish I could do more to fight in this new American revolution.

So I turn to fabric, needle, and thread.

Coping in October

 Living in the United States of America has become exceedingly stressful. If you care about our Constitution and Bill of Rights anyway. And I do care. Deeply. Which has made it hard to make time to create but at the same time makes it more important that I do take the time to be creative. Factor in my advancing age and chronic disability on top of it all and the result is fewer and fewer blog posts!

Over the years I acquired a scrap of what I assume was a curtain fabric and a scarf that both feature images from the Revolutionary War period of the USA. They've been languishing in my stash since the beginning of time - or at least, the beginning of my quilt making career. This is the year they've been waiting for. Not the 250th anniversary of the founding of this nation but one year shy of it. 🫤

 

The curtain scrap has been virtually used up. (I can't find what was left of it.) This is what's left of the scarf. I cut one square from it for a page in the little book I've been making and two more squares for what will likely become the inside of the cover. I didn't know I would be making a separate cover when I began this project. I thought this would be the front cover:

That's the piece of curtain fabric that was most appropriate for my purposes. On top of a navy blue cotton printed with tiny stars. Turn that page to reveal...

 I've discovered I really enjoy raw edge applique. Who knew? I've avoided applique like the plague up 'til now. Still not interested in turning edges under or cutting layers to create an image. But let me fussy cut words and phrases or images out of fabric and I'm on my way!

 The little wooden sign on the right hand page of this spread reads 'Home Sweet Home.' I've also found some freedom in working at not trying to make everything perfect. 

 

 

The more I worked on this little book the more the beads and sequins and buttons came into play. Behind the statue of Liberty I tried to indicate the various people that have contributed to the building of this nation.

 This is the first image I cut from the scarf. The pages of this book are roughly 3.5" square.

 This is what I have laid out for the back cover. Originally I thought it would be on the outside but now I'm thinking the inside. I have an idea for the exterior of the cover... we shall see what transpires. 

 

Scrappy Remixed Geese

 For Scrap Happy Day back in May I shared the progress I'd made on a scrappy version of the Remixed Geese pattern (free from Robert Kaufman Fabrics). This is what it looked like then:

 It would have finished at 54" x 72." I could have stopped there but I prefer the slightly larger size of 60" x 80" for unknown recipients. There would inevitably be more scraps to cut into geese and background patches so I put it away for a while. 

 I was able to get another ten or so flights of geese made recently. They've been added to the flimsy to make this quilt top:

 Now it will finish at 60" x 80." 😊 

 

Scrap Happy in July

The 15th of each month is Scrap Happy Day as declared by our hostess Kate. Once a month we show and share something we've made from scraps or leftovers. If you've been here recently you'll know I've been working to empty the tin of 2.5" patches that I've cut from scrap or leftover fabrics.

This is the tin when I began:

The stacks of patches reached up to the rim of the tin. Now the tin looks like this:

 All those patches were sewn into 16 patch blocks that finish at eight inches each. I ended up with something like 67. Obviously I could make a few more... and there will be new patches added as I work on new projects. 

Sixty-three of those blocks were put together to create this quilt top:

With all that variety in prints I used the dominant color that ran diagonally as the criteria for placing the blocks.  There were a few outliers but that helped a lot to organize the chaos. The print I used for the borders is black with tiny multi-color hashtags. Two inches down the long sides and 4" across the top and bottom brought the top up to my standard 60" x 80." 😊

You may remember that I was working on a scrappy version of the Remixed Geese pattern back in May. I  have added to that in the last week too but I'll talk about that in another post. In the meantime, here's the list of links to others who usually join us in scrappy goodness each month with out hostess at the top of the list. Enjoy!

Kate, Eva, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Tracy, Jan, 
Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, 
Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Viv, Karrin,  Alissa,
Hannah and Maggie

 

 

Scrap Happy Follow-up

 I've continued to sew my 2.5" scrap squares into sixteen patch blocks. My tin looked like this when I began:

And this is what it looks like today:

 The stacks at the top had four or more patches of a single print in them. The stacks in the middle were two or three of a print, and the bottom stacks were single squares. 

And now this is what my design wall currently looks like:

That's fifty blocks that will finish at eight inches each. They are on the wall in the order in which they were made, not arranged in any specific way yet. I want to see how many more blocks I can get out of the patches that are left in the tin. After that we'll make a decision about how to use them in a quilt top. 😊

Some of the blocks are very controlled while others have a wide variety of prints in them. Mostly I let color drive my placement decisions. The two blocks below have a variety of prints but read and red, white, and blue on top and black drives the lower block. 

This pair of blocks are more controlled: blue and yellow, then green and yellow. 

 

This may or may not make assigning block placement a challenge. That remains to be seen!

It's Time for Teal

Teal is the color used for the Trudy Crowley Ovarian Cancer Foundation in Australia. For the last twelve years Kate at talltalesfromchiconia (and our hostess for Scrap Happy Day each month) has been assembling a quilt to be raffled off to raise funds for this organization. She always comes up with a pun for the title of the quilts. This year the quilt is called Tealing All Our Stories. To illustrate that theme she asked for contributions of bookshelf blocks. 

I've made blocks for several of Kate's ovarian cancer quilts and have always been happy to do so. This year was more of a challenge for me. I've never made a bookshelf block. To an experienced quilt maker it shouldn't appear all that difficult. Mostly the books are spines represented by strips of different prints. However, I found this year's brief intimidating. I wandered around online - mostly on Pinterest - to see what other makers had created. For those who applique or paper piece there are a lot of really cool things you can add to your bookshelf. That didn't necessarily help mitigate my intimidation! 

I committed to making two blocks for Kate. I began with something I'm familiar with and that I thought would lighten up a bookshelf: a cat.  

 I was able to fussy-cut the word Friends out of one print to use as a title on one spine. The word London was already on the fabric I cut that spine from. (I did not do a good job photographing these blocks.)

One of the things I like to do with the prints I buy is to fuss-cut bits out of them for specific purposes. In this case, I used portions of prints as the whole spine.

 Kate said she would add titles (names of the makers or people they would like to dedicate their blocks to) on some of the books so I left a couple of blank spaces for that on two of these books. 

Now that I was in the appropriate mindset I decided to try for a couple more blocks. I found a small panel - the interior of each block is only ten inches square - that I thought could either be a framed sign in the shelf or even the very tin standing on it's side on top of a couple of books.

 

 

One final block involved appliqueing labels onto the spines, just to prove I could do it.

 The idea was to use a dark teal for the back of our shelves and as much teal as we could manage for the books. Every block is framed in cream so the quilt top will look something like this (only much better!):

 I encourage you to hop over to Kate's blog to see some of the other blocks she has made or received pictures of so far. They are impressive. 😊 

Welcome Blanket Quilt

 I admit that I composed the layout for the Welcome Blanket in haste and not at the top of my game.This is what I put up for Scrap Happy Day:

Since then I have tweaked the block placements just a bit.

And today I have added the border that will finish at two inches, making the quilt top 40" square.

 

It's kind of busy but I think it works. Not only has this small quilt given me the opportunity to use blocks from the Parts Department and some scrap batting, I was able to use another remnant for the border strips. It's been fun to complete a quilt top so quickly. That's all kinds of success! 😁
 

Huswif Book of Treasures

 Historically a huswif - or hussif or housewife - would take the form of a long narrow rectangle that could be rolled up and secured with a tie or button closure. It was essentially a portable sewing kit. There would be one or more pockets, a place for needles and pins and scissors to be stored, and possibly a pin cushion. During WWI soldiers were required to have one in their pack to keep their uniforms in good repair. 

A more familiar item might be a needle book. I've recently been inspired by a fairly new YouTube creator, Bec at sewbecurated. She has expanded the concept of a needle book to include vintage textiles as a place to store or preserve them. I have combined the utility of a huswif with Bec's approach to needle books in my version of a huswif. 

This is the cover of my book. I've stitched on a few of my favorite mother of pearl buttons, strips of vintage lace, and a square of needlepoint I stitched in the 1970's. I've used a hand dyed seam binding to tie the book closed.

I think the crochet trim I've used at the bottom of my huswif probably came off a pillowcase.

This is the back of my book. More laces, vintage buttons and a corner from a handkerchief. I've seed stitched the covers with tiny cross stitches in a variegated perle cotton (size 12).

The inside front cover has a pocket and a stamped image. I was very purposeful about using things I've been collecting for the last year or more. The stamped image and the rose fabric both came from Tilly at Tilly Rose Vintage in the UK.

Next is a sheer little doily.

Under that is a page made from fabric I pulled out of my mother's rag bag as a newly married woman.

The little square of white with the rosebud and butterfly is a feed sack scrap. 

Next is another purchase from Tilly. I've trimmed the linen panel with more strips of vintage trims I've collected. The panel is a reproduction of a French label. It felt too fragile to make into a pocket so it's stitched down on all four sides.

Under the wide lace is this denim page embellished with a couple of vintage appliques and another bit of crochet. The heart was cut from a quilt by Lauretta at Sparrowhawker Designs.

Turning the page you come to the utility spread of my huswif. 

On the left side are two pieces of felted wool for needles. Below that is more wool, lightly stuffed to be a pin cushion. On the right I put a doily from my grandmother's household over the pink felt that backs the denim. On top of the doily I have the triangular pocket for my embroidery scissors. They have to be tied in place or they will fall out if I transport the book anywhere. 

Next is a stamped image from Pamela the Hippie Gypsy and a collar piece I bought from one of Dawn Stephan's sales.

Flipping over the lace reveals the bottom of a vintage appliqued tea towel. Just so pretty!

This is the inside of the back cover. At the bottom is another small pocket. It started out as a corner from an embroidered linen Rachel Roxburgh included in a packet I purchased from her. I've added the eyelet down one side and more vintage lace across the top. At the top of the page I stitched on a piece of crocheted doily. 

Opposite the inside back cover we have Jack Skellington.

He's been hanging on my bulletin board for I don't know how many years. I was thrilled to discover that he would fit perfectly in my huswif. I added a braid down the left edge - this screen print was done on something that ravels fairly easily. The best part is that I was able to make him into a pocket that opens on that side with the braid.

While this was a slow growing project it has been a lot of fun. I'm already thinking about making something similar. This one has turned out to be a bit too large for me to use daily. Most of my tools are on my work table right at hand anyway. The idea of showcasing treasured textiles in book form really appeals to me. Maybe this will be a way for me to pass bits of family history treasures down to our children and grandchildren. 😊