Star Wars Babies

Creative Patching Front

I haven’t always had the best of luck with my Steam-A-Seam adventures, but I was determined to make it work for the sake of Star Wars, and the fact that I would be giving them away therefore not have to deal with the aftermath of failure. Wait….they know where I live…damn!

Out of that first disaster applique craft, I did have one survive without me having to stitch it down. It happens to be the Star Wars onesie. Coincidence? I think NOT!

Star Wars Baby
Star Wars Baby

It’s a bit bubbly and would be better stitched down, but that’s 1 out of 4…that’s a 25% success rate…whatever…look, CUTE BABY!!!

Moving Model
Moving Model

I’m just following modern business culture – when there’s failure, distract!

Not to disappoint you, as per usual, I do everything in Costco amounts – including onesies:

Pile'o'onesies
Pile’o’onesies

One of the new onesies was pre-ruined out of the package! Someone at Target was a little too excited to restock shelves. I can’t get upset about it, though, when I’m technically planning to patch perfectly good onesies.

Box Knife Bastards - My New Band Name
Box Knife Bastards – My New Band Name

My, how my art board has changed over the years. I cut out the images I wanted from the fabric with great meticulous detail. No, not really. I just cut them out, stuck them to one side of the Steam-A-Seam2 in the most efficient arrangement I could take the time to bother with, and cut them out.

Art
Art

Being that my “canvas” is a 12 or 18 month sized onesie, I did check to make sure my images would fit.

My Artboard Circa 2013
My Artboard Circa 2013

I spent more time making sure I really pressed these down. The Steam-A-Seam2 is this layer of gel-like plastic that takes effort to melt between the layers. I did much better this time. This is a picture of covering the box knife slash that went through the back of the onesie too. The selvage is just too funny not to use.

Creative Patching Back
Creative Patching Back

And the Death Star right on the Juice Belly? Yes please.

Creative Patching Front
Creative Patching Front

I ironed all the fronts and backs on, then piled them up to Ms. Viking and zig-zag stitched them all down just to keep them extra, extra secure.

Batch Sewing Onesies
Batch Sewing Onesies

Hopefully you have a nice, narrow free-arm option. The onesie is already sewn together, so moving around the knit fabric without tweaking it too bad and getting the woven fabric stitched down one a baby onesie takes some manipulation. My machine is a ‘little bit of everything’ kind of machine, so works great for this, but your mileage may vary.

finagle
finagle

Tomorrow I will post photos of the whole thing – pants, onsies, Star Wars cute overload!

DIY Cheap Babies Clothes Series – Minky!

Brody Lounge Set

In the middle of my Star Wars Series for Brody and Jack, I have a little something to add to the DIY cheap baby clothes series!

As you know, I just make a habit of checking the remnant bins at fabric stores. Joann’s is at minimum 1/2 off the remnant price. So this 3/4 yard of super soft, pinstriped texture minky was maximum $5.83. I’m already ahead.

Remnant
Remnant

I also have a serger – this helps maximize the fabric in that I can fudge seams on patterns to 1/4″ and adjust pattern sizes that I cut to that amount – therefore I get more out of a smaller cut. This piece, folded in half here, is going to be 1 pair of infant pants ~12 month size, and the backs of 4 bibs.

Maximize Fabric
Maximize Fabric

This minky was SOOOOOO linty….serging may have been the only option for it…but it’s also some of the softest minky I’ve ever felt.

Lint Everywhere
Lint Everywhere

Batman and Superman Flannel! This photo is so blurry because Superman is faster than a speeding bullet….

4 Bibs
4 Bibs

Those are both Camelot Fabrics’ flannels I had leftover from some baby gifts last fall that made 2 pairs of pants, so those are zeroed-out money-wise. This photo above is after serging the bibs and turned right side out, pinned on the opening to be top-stitched – there’s more detail to my obsession with bib perfection here.

Here are the finished pants – I’m kinda jealous. After my serger, lint roller and I were done…they look really good. I want a pair…Dear Brody lives in Colorado (brrrrr!) so I think he needs them more than I do right now.

Brody Lounge Pants
Brody Lounge Pants

The bibs are beyond adorable. I’m only sending 2 to Brody, I know some twins that make me swoon that get the other two.

Brody Lounge Set
Brody Lounge Set

I’m really into this variegated thread – it’s functional and cute. What do you think? Is it too wacky or is it cute?

Brody Tag
Brody Tag
Back of Tag
Back of Tag

Alright! Brass Tax!

$5.83 in new fabric. The patterns and the flannel are a wash. I did use $1 in elastic and about another $1 in velcro. 4 bibs+1 pair of pants into $7.83=$1.57 a piece. Even if I added in the cost of the entire spool of thread, I’d be under $2 a piece.

If I were to factor in my time for labor and design and sell these on Etsy, yeah…sure, I think they’re being sold at fair prices, but if you want to take the time yourself to do it…it’s more than worth it.

Star Wars Mania – The Bag

Finished Bag

I have put off making a bag for….well, I bought this Valori Wells book in, I think, 2008. I actually bought it AT the Stitching Post in Sisters, Oregon. I <heart> Valori Wells. The fact that she’s an Oregon native too is an added bonus.

OhSewEasyLifeStyleBk
OhSewEasyLifeStyleBk

I bought a TON of Star Wars fabric to ‘make something,’ when I came across this Farmer’s Market tote from one of my favorite blogs, Fresh Lemons. The Valori Wells bag and the FL bag are similar in pattern, but the FL version is a bit smaller, and, HELLO, a fabulous tutorial will get me out of procrastination mode. You know those projects you mean to do, but get caught up in everything else? Yeah. It’s 2013 and I just now got around to my first bag.

This is a really cool Star Wars green schematic fabric from Camelot Fabrics. I can’t find it online anymore!!! I think if you find some of their licensed fabric that you like, you have to get it – it goes so fast!!! I wish I had more of this one, in fact.

Star Wars Green Fabric - full
Star Wars Green Fabric – full

That’s a full shot so you can see the print block in full, albeit a bit blurry.

Here’s a close up:

Star Wars Green Fabric
Star Wars Green Fabric

I don’t think it gets cooler than that – and the green makes it look like it came from an old school plotter. I love it.

I’m not going to reinvent Faith’s tutorial here for you, but just give you a few shots and my notes as I used a single outside fabric.

I cut out all of the pieces – I love the Fresh Lemon’s spreadsheet section with the quantities of each piece and size.

Cut Pattern Pieces
Cut Pattern Pieces

I’m a fan of using the first cut as the template – so I did that instead of measuring every time. Fewer opportunities for ‘user error.’

Template
Template

I went to The Mill End store for the Pellon stabilizer Faith listed, but had to get a substitute. The Mill End on 99E in PDX has ladies/gents that are very experienced and I trust their judgement. I’ve read scathing reviews of the store, but I assure you, a little bit of manners go a long way and they are a treasure of tips and help.

Pellon 809
Pellon 809

The label makes it sound like it’s super stiff, but it was just fine. I kinda suck at iron-on stabilizers – iron on too long, or not long enough, but I did pretty good. I just used a damp kitchen towel for my ‘ironing cloth.’

Damp Dish Towel
Damp Dish Towel

As mentioned, I used all one fabric for the outside….which makes the pocket hard to see and not very interesting.

Pocket No Trim
Pocket No Trim

So, I added a little trim in Kona Bone that I had leftover from labels and quilts, and it looks much better.

Pocket With Trim
Pocket With Trim

This is me getting too distracted with the dang camera while I’m sewing and just NOW realizing I sewed the liner to the wrong side….

Wrong
Wrong

And this is me having sewed it to the correct side. I took a photo because I wanted to show you that instead of leaving a hole in the bottom of the lining as in Faith’s post to turn it all right side out, I prefer to leave it at the top where I’m going to top-stitch it back down anyway. Your mileage may vary, but that is my preference.

Right
Right

I just want to point out here that I prefer the Fresh Lemons method of sewing the gusset to the Valori Wells method – I just prefer the pattern already cut. Again, less room for ‘user error’ on my part.

Valori Wells version:

Valori Wells Gusset
Valori Wells Gusset

Fresh Lemons version:

Fresh Lemons Gusset
Fresh Lemons Gusset

The pre-cut corner is just easier for me to visualize when I’m there to sew the gusset closed.

All of that said, it was a very easy tutorial. VERY easy. And how cute is this?

Finished Bag
Finished Bag
Finished Bag -Top
Finished Bag -Top

Here’s a photo of it next to a Krogers/QFC bag so you can get some perspective. I think they look a little small in Faith’s much prettier shots….I don’t think you can quite tell how substantial it is…so I put it next to a typical bag:

Perspective Shot
Perspective Shot

Here’s a shot of the inside with a bit of a teaser of more to come! Sure, the birthday boy is a bit small to carry around his new bag for now, but I happen to know his mom goes to the farmer’s market in the summer, so in the end it will benefit him!

Inside Bag
Inside Bag

So, that’s it! My first bag! AND it is now a rare Star Wars fabric bag! That totally ups the geek cred.

DIY Labels

Jack Pressed and Rolled

I’ve been thinking for some time about labels for things I sew. I’ve been putting cut-out sock monkey tags in the backs of pants or a piece of grosgrain ribbon…but I need something more…permanent.

While I love the name of my little bloggerverse – it’s very me: a little snarky, a little punny, a little goofy and an acquired taste at times, it’s not necessarily something I want to put on kids’ clothes. So, until I come up with that epiphany (or if you give me some genius idea), it dawned on me that I can embroider custom tags. I have the thread and the machine, as proven. So, theoretically, I can do this.

Enter, Signature Cotton in “Variegated Island Waters.” It’s M18 on this page of Redrock Threads. Kinda blurry there so here’s my photo.

Signature Cotton M18
Signature Cotton M18

I am a sucker for Tiffany and tropical blues. No, not that Tiffany, this Tiffany.

I have some Kona Bone that I had already cut into 2″ strips thinking I’d use it for the Pixar pillows, but decided against it….after I cut it (Murphy’s Law), so what a perfect excuse to turn it into tags. I ironed it like I was making open bias-tape…folded the tops to the center to halve it, but did not press in again to quarters.

Then tested the thread…

Thread Test
Thread Test

I thought it turned out really nice and soooooo….

I was in the middle of making two very large gift packages…one for Brody:

Brody Ribbon
Brody Ribbon
Brody Label
Brody Label

And one large pack for Jack…Jack will continue to get items from me throughout his life, so I made a large roll for Jack:

Jack Roll Pre-Press
Jack Roll Pre-Press

That was before I took an iron to it. Here’s the back so you can see the embroidery ‘seals’ the label together.

Back Jack
Back Jack

The tension wasn’t perfect, but it looks fabulous on top so it’s good enough for my purposes.

Here’s Jack’s labels pressed and rolled:

Jack Pressed and Rolled
Jack Pressed and Rolled

Pretty cool, huh? How neat would some be tied around a present? Okay, when I have that kind of time, how neat would that be???

What Kind Of Batting To Use?

poly batting

When I was a little girl in the 70s, my mom made a basic patchwork quilt that she tie-quilted with polyester batting. It was fluffy and squooshy and great until I wore it out by the early 80s. I wish I had a photo of it – matching burgundy and cream calicos. The poly batting was just kind of weird and it wasn’t really mendable. My mom made me a second quilt in 1989/90 and it’s a double Irish chain in solids of lavender and white.

Double Irish Chain Quilt
Double Irish Chain Quilt

It was hand-quilted with a cotton batting.

80s Lavender
80s Lavender

It is soooo beat up. I feel like such a little sh*t looking at it now. Of course my mom wanted me to use it, but now that I appreciate these things so much more, maybe I wouldn’t have spilled black candle wax on it (no, not on Halloween…I was a teen in the 90s, every day was Halloween, boppy-bop-bop).

Black Spot
Black Spot

I used the paper towel/iron method to get that wax up, but it still stained. I’m such a bastard. It’s so worn out that anymore I just keep it folded and out of harm’s way.

Worn Out Quilt
Worn Out Quilt

I’ve used poly batting for a dragon tail & spines, for a furry bat costume, to save a cuddley here and there and for the Christmas stockings.

Baby's Stocking
Baby’s Stocking

For a craft here and there, I’m ok with it, but it hasn’t been my favorite to work with.

As I was finishing up the pillows for Liam’s chevron bed set, I thought I’d test it out to see if I really didn’t like it or if it was my imagination. Time to set up sewing area as test lab again!

I really don’t like it.

Here is a pillow top pieced, basted with batting and backing, and quilted with the Sulky thread.

poly batting
poly batting
poly batting testing
poly batting testing

Here’s a close up of those stars – do you see how wonky they got? Ms. Viking Did Not Like. I tried and tried, but she was not having anything to do with it.

embroidery w poly
embroidery w poly

Compared to how the cotton batting turned out, I think it’s a safe bet to say I’m sticking with cotton batting or bust.

top finished
top finished

Now, I do mention using an organic bamboo/cotton blend here in the baby quilt and in the Liam quilt. If you can afford that every time, more power to you. It is very, very nice to work with and is my favorite so far. I haven’t tried wool yet. If you can’t afford bamboo/cotton every time or just don’t want to, the Warm and Natural cotton works just fine for me and Ms. Viking. You won’t be seeing me buy poly batting again any time soon….well, until I need to make another dragon tail.

Star Wars – The Next Episode

Empire Strikes Back

That’s right. We are having Star Wars mania over here. We have Star Wars Lunch Boxes, we have Star Wars – The Clone Wars books, we have Star Wars coffee mugs (all got for a song on a zulily.com sale), and most importantly we have this:

Star Wars Mania
Star Wars Mania

That’s right, people. There are over a half-dozen yards of Star Wars right there by Camelot fabrics. Oh, and that Pellon?

Bwahahahaha! You don’t know the power of the dark side! Er, sticky side…of Pellon…nevermind. Wait and see.

Last Pixar Post – Chevron Pillows

finished corners

When all was said and done with Liam’s Cars quilt, this is what I had left…about a yard of the blue Cars fabric in pieces, less than a 1/4 yard of the black Cars 2 fabric, 3 chevron blocks and a lot of embroidery thread! Listing it all makes me think there’s a missing character in the Clue game…It was Ms. Saffron the seamstress in the craft room with the glue gun! 

Leftovers
Leftovers

I decided 2 throw pillows in the 18×18″ range ought to do it.

Pillow Tops
Pillow Tops

Here are 3 pillow tops ready to go – 1 extra just in case. I’ll get to that later….yeah….

Anyway, here is the Sulky thread on top and I used a cream Gutterman in the bobbin. This made the tension a lot easier to tweak and adjust for a smoother look. It still got a bit of pull-through here and there, but what are you gonna do? We’re not entering this into the Smithsonian, we’re just having fun.

close up embroidery stitch
close up embroidery stitch

It also makes the inside look cleaner to have a solid cream thread in the bobbin.

squaring up
squaring up

I squared it all up, and added the back. I decided against a button closure or zippers in favor of an envelope style…it’s for a kid. Kids roll around and smoosh pillows and my Alex has complained about buttons on bedding before, so I thought it would be best to leave them off.

I embroidered the back to match the front.

front and back embroidery
front and back embroidery

Here’s a close up of the Sulky thread on top and the bobbing thread on the bottom against the blue so you can see it.

close up
close up

I layered the back on the front so that the shorter part of the envelope would be on top when turned right side out.

layering back
layering back

I decided to serge it together. It’s super thick with the batting and again with the idea that a boy is going to be rolling around on it, even though my sewing machine would easily sew it together….I want it to be sturdy and hold up to big squoooshing and smooooshing and many story times and wrestle matches.

Here’s a finished right-side-out top on a finished inside-out top to see how it looks.

finished corners
finished corners

Here’s the finished back.

Pillow Back
Pillow Back

I made a fairly deep overlap for the envelope – again, with the idea of them being play objects…I know if it’s not deep enough, the pillows will squish out the back.

pillow overlap
pillow overlap

And….the finished top!

top finished
top finished

They’re about 19″x19″, which, with the quilting and seams, should comfortably fit 18″x18″ inserts. I used, as you can see, a star embroidery stitch. I have the Viking Sapphire 835 which is pretty awesome but she’s not a full-on embroidery machine, she’s more of a little-bit-of-everything machine, so corners were a bit tricky but I’m still very happy with it. I went for a simple Cars-LIAM-Cars embroidery motif in the center.

Liam’s Chevron Quilt – Fini

Top In Full

Liam’s Disney Cars themed chevron quilt is finally done and will travel up to Seattle this weekend.

I did the final quilting and binding after the kids went to bed during the week.

I had a little extra batting to trim off of the 90″ length, but not too much. If you do this and you’re using the wrap-around-binding as I’m fond of, be sure you do not stab your scissors through the backing.

Yeah. I did that. Twice. I made a patch. Twice.

Trimming
Trimming

Then I just trimmed the fabric down to an inch beyond the edge, folded in half and then folded over, put in about 8 pins, and started sewing.

I find that if I pin the whole thing, I feel like I’m in a Hellraiser movie getting poked by needles constantly. Eh, not my thing. If I try to just roll and hold the binding as I go, I’m likely to either get sloppy or pull the bias and it will get stretchy/puckery. So, as I get to the last pin, I pause…

Wrap Binding
Wrap Binding

…fold and insert 6-8 more pins…

Pin As I Go
Pin As I Go

and the quilt ends up blood free.

I tried to get final shots with some daylight on the quilt to share. That probably seems like a simple task IF YOU DON’T LIVE IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. It has been gray for so long that I am starting to feel gray. I emote gray. hahahaha.

Here’s the top of the twin quilt laid out on a queen-size bed.

Top In Full
Top In Full

Here’s Zoe’s view:

Top from baby view
Top from baby view

It’s all business on the top with its formal pattern, and crazy party patchwork on the back:

Back in Full
Back in Full

I love how the embroidery thread as quilt thread did exactly what I wanted. It contrasts and pops out on the front, and completely blends away on the back.

Oh, sorry, and here’s Zoe’s view of the back:

Embroidery Trick
Embroidery Trick

Again, with this close up, the thread shows up ever so slightly. The shot above probably has the most contrast on the entire quilt back.

Here it is against each of the back colors and in 2 lines to show the variegated thread.

Close Up On Black
Close Up On Black
Close Up On Blue
Close Up On Blue
Close Up On Tan
Close Up On Tan

I really really really love it.

Here are some close ups of the top’s echo stitching to show the variation in contrast.

Close Up Blue
Close Up Blue
Close Up Red
Close Up Red
Close Up Yellow
Close Up Yellow

And…Against the binding…

Close Up On Binding
Close Up On Binding

Yes indeed. I’m quite happy. I didn’t even go through ONE of those spools of Sulky thread on this….ooopsie, there I go again, buying too much. In fact, if it wasn’t for my testing, I probably could have made it with one bobbin, but I did put on a second bobbin. However I do have very little of the Disney Cars fabric left, so I estimated that just about perfectly.

I have 2 of the Chevron blocks left – and that one I sewed upside down! haha. I don’t want to stall the quilt going up to Seattle, so I’ll have to send along the accessories later. Throw pillows? I was thinking of using the Liam+cars embroidery programming I did in the tester post? Or…wall panel?? I don’t know how much boys are into wall panels or throw pillows for that matter….

Materials, if you’re interested:

Gutermann thread for piecing; Sulky thread for quilting. I used the same organic bamboo/cotton batting I used on the baby chevron quilt – Ms. Viking really likes sewing through it, it has a great feel and weight and after I coat it with Tailor Basting spray, it’s not nearly as hippy as it once was….heh heh, I crack myself up. I got 4 yards each of the Disney Cars tan and blue fabrics, and 2 yards of the Cars 2 fabric….there’s barely any left – maybe a quarter yard in pieces…a bit more of the blue is left I think. I could use that in the extras? I got the Cars fabric at Fabric.com. For this and the VIP Liam flannel pjs, they had the variety I wanted and I was pleased with the service. I used about 4 yards, give or take, of Kona in Bone. I got that at Joann’s with a 40% off coupon as it’s almost never on sale – which is great, because then it’s always 40% off! Ha! Joann’s does have a tendency to run low on the commonly used Kona cottons, so keep that in mind if you want a lot. I finished off the bolt with that purchase and I think I only got about 7 or 8 yards. They were completely out of most bright whites at the time of that purchase.

Ok! That’s it! Whew! Give me ideas for the Liam accessories if you think of some….meanwhile, I have a list of spring outfits to make!

Embroidery Thread For Quilting

Embroidery Thread Spools

I have the top and back of the VIP Liam quilt basted and ready for actual quilting. The top chevrons and the large block patchwork back intentionally don’t match up other than the Disney Cars theme. The top was more for the aesthetic of grown-ups, while the back is just for Liam to enjoy.

My thought process for the quilting was that I didn’t want to use my usual cream Gutermann thread and just quilt the top like I normally would. This has to be special. That and the cream thread would look silly on the colorful back. So the obvious choice would be to use a colored thread, right? That would still cause really obvious lines in the crazy patterned back….so, I decided to take advantage of having embroidery functions on my machine, the variegated threads at the store and see what happens.

I did some Google searching (that’s like soul searching, right?), but couldn’t find satisfactory answers to my thread question: Can machine embroidery thread by used for machine quilting? I get the weight, ply, strength blah blah blah issues that MAY occur, but can it be done?? The only thing to do is just try it myself and figure it out by making my own sewing lab.

Enter a $45 dollar receipt for thread. That’s with sales and coupons. Keep that in mind if this whim bites you in the…yeah.

Embroidery Thread Spools
Embroidery Thread Spools

The Signature Cotton thread is a 40 wt thread and the display said it’s ideal for machine quilting. The Sulky is a rayon and I read a LOT of contradictory statements about rayon embroidery thread. Some love it. Some say it bleeds, snaps and isn’t ideal – and that was just for embroidery. I’m going to put this through layers of cotton and batting. I read all kinds of business about bobbin tension issues, using the wrong needle will make embroidery thread snap, etc. I’m a little headstrong and don’t like coulda/shoulda crap. I just decided to find out for myself.

Both A&E Thread, makers of Signature, and Sulky have horrible websites. Just horrible.

A&E Thread has built their website for resellers, not you, the consumer. So, if you can move through a reseller site with ease, you’ll be ok and I will admit they have really thorough specs on their site. If it’s too confusing, hopefully you can find a fully trained reseller (that’s like a flying pig sometimes.) A&E’s site is also built with way too much old-skool coding crap like javascript that I can’t even link you directly to the thread. I have to tell you it’s here and go to “Signature Quilters’ Threads Cotton Variegated Assortment” – not really consumer or reseller friendly.

The Sulky site isn’t much better, but it is built more for consumers. It’s just really messy and looks like a school kid did it. However, you can find Products listed in the mess on the side and you can get to your thread. I can say I have #2240 in 40 wt. listed on this page. Looking at the site, 30 wt. would have been preferred it seems, but life goes on. Their specs are pretty good but you HAVE to read the first paragraph of the answer to poly vs. rayon thread here.  I don’t know who at Sulky wrote that, but I love them. That is a fantastic answer with solid reasoning and a bit of a back-slap thrown in. They get my respect for that and I did read exactly who they’re talking about….what a perfect response. Here’s my love, mwah! They didn’t mention one other bad point about polyester, which is it will eventually cut through cotton. Just nature of the beast. Anywho…

I made some practice pieces of cotton and batting, and loaded up a fun program to practice with. I’m not going to embroider the quilt, but just quilt with embroidery thread, so this is more testing than necessary but more fun too! Plus, I kill two birds with one stone knowing what I can and can’t do down the road.

Liam Program
Liam Program

These first tests weren’t for tension adjustment, but instead just to see if the thread would go through the Viking ok, and the batting and a 90 universal needle and…you get the idea.

I tested the Sulky rayon thread first.

Rayon On Machine
Rayon On Machine

 

Rayon In Bobbin
Rayon In Bobbin

I’m happy with it. It feels flexible through the fabric and really as soft/silky as you think rayon would. It obviously needs tension adjustment, but this was just a machine and material test.

Embroidery Thread Test On
Embroidery Thread Test On

Next, the Signature Cotton.

Cotton On Machine
Cotton On Machine

 

Cotton In Bobbin
Cotton In Bobbin

Again, overall I like it. It’s not as silky as the rayon and the colors come across more…Crayola if you know what I mean. I think if I wanted my thread color to be true to what it looks like on the spool, cotton is a sure bet. It is also easier to adjust for tension.

Cotton Embroidery Test
Cotton Embroidery Test

After some deliberation and input from “Uncle R” I decided to go with the rayon as long as it passed the colorfast test. I read that rayon thread had problems with this, even though the Sulky spool does read “silky, shiny, strong, washable & dry cleanable.” I’m too well-versed in marketing to believe labels!

Here is the rayon thread after cold water, hot water, rubbing, soap and just about everything else I could think of to do to it.

Colorfast Testing Rayon
Colorfast Testing Rayon

Alright! We have success! Good on Sulky!

To get the tension adjusted…or rather to see if it was even possible with the lower 40 wt. through the batting, I tested again.

Tension Setting Rayon
Tension Setting Rayon

I just ran the machine and made little tweaks until it was where I liked it and it has worked fine. No breakage, no snaggle-messes, no cussing like a sailor.

So, for me and the Viking, embroidery thread is working just great as a quilting thread. I have about 1/3 of the quilt done in simple echo-lines on the chevron, and it it looks really cute and fun. I did experiment with a little FMQ and it held up just as well.

If you’re ignoring the extra functions on your machine, this, like FMQ, is another “just dig in and do it” thing. It’s totally worth it…maybe just don’t buy so much at once like I did!

Other details: Kona cotton, Warm & Natural batting…I mentioned above it’s just a 90 universal needle. Get on it!

Baby Blocking AKA Disney Cars Chevron Quilt Part Deux

Sewing Anon

No babies were hurt in the making of this quilt. All characters appearing in this work are real. Any resemblance to fictitious persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

The journey of the Liam Quilt Top and Back was arduous for all involved. We almost didn’t make it.

There were some white-knuckle moments.

Action Rotary Cutter
Action Rotary Cutter

So many white-knuckle moments…

Rotary Macro Shot
Rotary Macro Shot

Lessons in repetition.

So
So
Many
Many

 

Squares
Squares

I had to bring in help.

Mama's Helper
Mama’s Helper

We almost ran out of thread.

Cutting Chains
Cutting Chains

My partner had to take a break. The pressure was getting to her.

Seal Does Not Sew
Seal Does Not Sew

I carried on.

No Finger Sewing
No Finger Sewing

The ironing was intense.

Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden

We had a break down.

No More Ironing
No More Ironing

I prayed for matching seams.

Praying for Points To Line Up
Praying for Points To Line Up

There may be need for an intervention.

Sewing Anon
Sewing Anon

Queue inspirational music from the orchestra!

We have a quilt top…

Quilt Top Finished
Quilt Top Finished

AND ladies and gentlemen, a quilt back!

Quilt Back Finished
Quilt Back Finished

Director, photographer, therapist: Robert Wagner

Guest appearance made by: Zoe Wagner

Disney Cars Chevron Quilt Part 1

Sorted Into Blocks

The Chevron Baby Quilt and headboard piece were so easy and so malleable for my needs, I decided to go ahead with making VIP Nephew Liam a twin size in the same pattern. I bought the fabric already, and just had to commit to how it was going to go together.

Here are some close ups of the fabric with the 9.5 inch square ruler laying on top.

Liam’s mom mentioned she liked the tan fabric best, and from an “OMG that thing is going to be in my house” stand-point, I gotta agree with her. That’s also some of my reasoning behind the chevron pattern – breaks-up the crazy Disney a bit for the adults and leaves a bit of room-to-grow for Liam.

Tan Cars
Tan Cars

That, and the blue cars print is just too big to be cut up. By the time it’s in a 9 inch right triangle, the cars will be too cut up to tell what it is.

Blue Disney Cars Fabric
Blue Disney Cars Fabric

This will leave me with 4 yards of the blue Cars fabric, and I have 2 yards of Cars 2 fabric. I will use these to make the backing to the quilt. I think it will make for a fun, reversible look.

Black & Blue Cars Prints
Black & Blue Cars Prints

For me, it’s easier to do things in batches. I cut aaaalllll the squares from both fabrics first. I pressed and stacked aaaallll the squares. I marked my centerlines on aaaalll my Kona Bone contrast fabric. Is it important to use REAL Kona solids? YES. I promise a rant on that…probably coupled with ‘why you press to the dark side, Luke’ reasoning and all that. But for now: pressing, stacking, marking, matching right sides, pressing, pinning, stacking….

Cut, Pressed, Stacked, Marked, Stacked, Pressed
Cut, Pressed, Stacked, Marked, Stacked, Pressed

Pin, pin, pin…stack, stack, stack. This fabric is not prewashed since I knew I would be using it for a quilt, and when you press fabric with the ‘sizing’ still in it, they stick together a smidge which is helpful.

Stacked Squares
Stacked Squares

See….here it is. My stack of marked and pinned making its first go-through the machine. Sewn 1/4 inch on each side of that line. I just used a #2 pencil that I stole out of the pencil jar off of the big kids’ desk. It’s going to be cut, pressed towards the darker fabric and it’s done with such a light hand it will wash out the first time. No one will ever be the wiser. Except you.

Chain/Batch Sewing
Chain/Batch Sewing

I don’t normally pin, but this is for VIP Liam! I want to minimize the potential wonky quotient a bit and I’m not in a hurry – it’s not like there’s an impending baby as with the last one (I type that like babies don’t cook for 9 months.)

After being sewn, each square is cut apart and pressed open.

Batch Cutting
Batch Cutting

I cut them all first, then pressed them all. I’m fascinated by this batch method. Growing up (and still), my mom will generally make a few blocks at a time…tinkering with color and so forth. Of course, she’s making things like double wedding rings, bear paws, double Irish chains – I have two separate appliqué quilts from her on my walls alone! So…yeah. I have BIG shoes to fill some day.

Okay, back to topic. Pressed open and ready to make blocks.

Pressed Open
Pressed Open

Everyone has their preferred method, but I’m not so hot at doing long strips and piecing the strips together – I prefer the traditional method of increasingly larger blocks. So, I set my squares into the block shape. This is going on a batting that is a 72″x90″ twin – that doesn’t quite divide out into squares so I figure I’ll make an 8×8 large 4-square and have to add top/bottom boarders.

Yes, I figure out the correct math right at this interval. No, I’m not going pro this month.

Sorted Into Blocks
Sorted Into Blocks

Sewn tops….

Sew Top Together
Sew Top Together

Sewn bottoms…

Sew Bottoms
Sew Bottoms

Press and stack, press and stack, press and stack…

Okay, now a little time consuming part. This is the point where I attached the top and the bottom and took extra care to nest the seams – making sure they’re perfectly lined up and the seams were going the opposite direction. Yes, I had to visualize this when pressing my stacks to know before hand and press opposite ways.

Nesting the seams
Nesting the seams

I also took this point to trim all the dog ears or long points from the seams. It seemed inefficient to do it any earlier and to wait any longer would make for yucky chunky wonky nasty seams.

Trim Dog Ears
Trim Dog Ears

Stacked, pinned, and ready to make blocks.

Trimmed, Pinned and Stacked
Trimmed, Pinned and Stacked

and….REVEAL

Squares complete
Squares complete

Oh yeah. Not bad for a President’s Day afternoon.

AND….here is one of the many reasons I always make extra…I know I’m going to screw up.

I wonder how many quilt blocks were invented this way….

Oh Crap!
Oh Crap!

I knew I pinned a center with 2 seams going the same way and I assumed I screwed up ironing. Ugh. Luckily, it’s only one and I have something like 5 more extra.

I mean, I meant to do that for a throw pillow. Yeah! That’s it!

To be continued….

Fabric Junky

Trouble With Tribbles

I don’t have a problem. Really. Like any good junky would say, I’m fine with my addiction; it’s you that has the problem. I could be doing worse. At least I don’t (fill in the blank) anymore.

My fabric stash reminds me of the Star Trek episode “Trouble With Tribbles.” Am I showing my age? I think I’m actually just showing my weird, nerdy step-dad’s influence.

Trouble With Tribbles
Trouble With Tribbles

Of course as I was cropping that photo to square, I stopped and marveled at the gold rick rack for 5 minutes.

My fabric just keeps multiplying. It’s not my fault! My friend, Jennifer, said to me, “My mom has som….” and I said, “YES!!!” before she even finished the sentence about her mom’s old fabric. See. She pushed it on me.

70s & 80s Yellow Calico
70s & 80s Yellow Calico

It’s not my fault…but look how pretty those fabrics are! So easily lends itself to French Provençal, doesn’t it? There’s some mauve and purple calicos that would be ultra modern with some gray or taupe Kona cotton.

That’s my fashion prediction by the way. 80s country drab colors mixed with modern design. Mark my words.

Melons!
Melons!

Oh, look at that melon color….melon colored tribbles! My mom gave me these in a bag last weekend. I love her. She’s my best dealer. We’re going to the Sew Expo in Puyallup. It will be fine. Really.

Blues
Blues

Blues….blues are my weakness.

Kid Projects
Kid Projects

And kids. Kids are my weakness.

MOAR!
MOAR!

Um…and…um, ok. You got me.

No one send me any more sales or coupons or mom’s stashes (except that last one, you can still give me free fabric) because I’m not buying anymore!

Except some Kona solids…because THAT is a LOT of pattern!

And maybe except at the Sew Expo…I’ll need a souvenir!

And…maybe…if…um…look! Tribbles!