Farmer's Wife Blocks - 73 Rainbow Flowers - 76 Sawtooth - 84 Spool

• Block 84 - Spool

Just felt like it needed a red center amid all that blue.  Maybe I'm looking ahead to the Train Signal block next week? 

• Block 76 - Sawtooth

I made this one with leftover half-square triangles  cut down to 1-1/2-inch squares from other blocks in this quilt.  I didn't have to make any of them this time.   No paper piecing either.   

 

 

 

• Block 73 - Rainbow Flowers

Using up nearly the last bit of that lovely leafy green fabric.  I had a darker patch of leafy blue in the blue layer, but that wound up feeling too much the same, so I swapped it out for a lighter blue batik.  I think this works out very nicely -- It "lifts" the whole block. 

Tutorials from Handmade Karma for Week 37

See Handmade Karma's full set of Farmer's Wife blocks and tutorials.

 

Midnight Blues Backpack Upcycled from Old Jeans

Midnight Blue Backpack (with a little starlight bling)

 

Starlight Bling 

 

Back View showing Straps 

 

Diamond Quilting on the back

 

Side view, showing the zipper and more quilting. 

 

Bottom -- also quilted.

Ok-- I saw the 17-minute video from Ezi2Make and was determined to try this out.   Just because.  It is a very well-done DIY video, without words.  Very clear and easy to DIY.    Even the zippers seemed easy and straight forward.  The pattern pieces fit together well, using the given measurements.

A few modifications:

• I quilted most of the denim with a batting (recycled / repurposed mattress pad) and lining.  What can I say?  I'm currently under the influence of Vera Bradley!  It gives it a little more body and stability--It can actually stand up on its own. And I love the quilted look.  Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.  
• This also means that the lining was quilted with the exterior fabrics.  So I had to take the extra step of covering the the seams with binding. Not a big deal for a quilter. ;-)  This binding style helped to lay the seams flat, rather than having them stick out into the back pack inside.  For the double-fold binding, I started with 3-inch strips of the lining fabric.  It needed to be a littlr bit wider than you'd use for a regular quilt binding because the seams are 3/8-inch vs the standard 1/4 inch in quilting.
  
• I made some padded straps, rather than the flat leather strips used in the video.  Although-- I could have used that pleather from the first Sling bag I made a few weeks ago.  I have a lot of that left!  I made straps very similar to that Sling bag -- although it could have used another layer of batting.  One layer of the mattress pad in this context seems too flat.  I think I might have used wool batting on the Sling bag-- but the pleather was also "cushy."
  
• I added zipper pulls at the ends of the zipper tracks.  This helped to keep them contained after I trimmed them down to size. 

 

Inside pocket

• I added an inside pocket, recycling one of the back pockets from the jeans. Its actually 2 pockets in one.  

How did it all begin?  Step 1: I watched the 17-minute video above, took copious notes.

Step 2: Draft the pattern.  I used the measurements given in the video.  It's a good sized backpack!   I used a brown paper shopping bag to map out my pattern pieces, staying in the mode of recycling.  It's good sturdy paper that can be used multiple times vs delicate tissue paper.

Step 3: Find some suitable jeans.  Most of mine fit at the moment.  So I trekked off to St Vinny's to see what I could find ...   Jackpot!  Jeans on sale for $3.  I was looking for a dark blue (indigo) with faint darker lines in it, and I found it!  and a second pair that was a lighter blue, which added some nice contrast to the final backpack.

The fabric section at STV didn't have much on offer that day, so I ventured over to the men's shirts, and found 3 that would do nicely for the bags I have on deck.  Who-hooh!  $3 each-- That's way cheaper than the fabric store!  [It turns out the shirt was a little too flimsy in contrast to the heavier denim to serve as the lining for this backpack, so I did not wind up using it in the end.  I could have added a stabilizer, but didn't think it would wear as well as the tougher denim.  Maybe for another project down the road?]

The light blue calico curtains that became the lining of the backpack.

I also found a set of curtains -- 4 panels (homemade from a blue calico cotton fabric) for $6.  Score! Even with a half-price coupon, you'd never get that much fabric so cheap!  This is what I wound up using -- remember I like to have light fabrics for the inside of a bag, since it helps to see into your bag, and not lose things.    Go home and wash all the thrift shop fabric.

PHOTO

Step 4: Next is to see how the pattern pieces will fit on the particular jeans I purchased.  I'd come across some interesting placements that took advantage of pockets.  I didn't go too crazy with that, but I did add an inside pocket

It was very satisfying to cut into the jeans, cutting up the seams to make wider expanses of the fabric to cut my backpack pattern pieces.

There were still a few pieces that I had to piece together to make it long enough -- though if I had planned better, I might have been able to make it fit down a pant leg.

 

Step 5: By then I'd decided to quilt the pieces, so I chalked a line at a 45 degree angle to the edges, stitched along that line, and then used the walking foot and the bar to continue stitching lines in a 1-inch grid.  I used a lighter blue thread that coordinates nicely with the denim. The thread has a slight shine to it, meant for embroidery, but strong!

 

  I had to cut larger pieces to quilt first and then cut out the pieces for the backpack.   I don't regret that.  Just making a statement about the economy of using jeans vs. yardage.  Only the outside pocket is not quilted, though I did use stabilizer /interfacing on the lining for the outer pocket.

You can see the recycled mattress pad that I used for the batting.

 

Then it was just a matter of working through all the remaining steps to piece it together.  Taking time with each step to understand how it was coming together ...  and it did!   Very satisfying to see it done.  Makes me wish I had somewhere to go with it!

 Outside pocket, zippered and boxed. Topstitched onto the front of backpack.

What would I do different next time?

• The outside pocket was the trickiest part of this project.  I sewed it down once, but it was flat, even though I'd boxed the corners.  I ripped it off and re-did it.  It's better now, but still flat at the top.   So I might find a better way to add that pocket with a sewing ridge or maybe chalking the outline to follow for sewing the top stitching, because I seemed to loose the trail when doing it freehand. 
  
• The quilting made sewing the zipper down too bulky, so I think next time, I would stitch a facing onto fabric pieces before attaching the zipper, so that it minimized the quilting layers under the zipper.
• I would try harder to locate a zipper with 2 zipper heads.  This one only has 1.  The two-headed kind seem a little harder to come by.
• Next time, I think I would just use yardage -- esp. if I were going to quilt it again.  It would be easier to quilt  larger square or rectangular quilt sandwich, rather than the disparate pieces that fit onto the pieces of jeans.

 

I am so pleased with it--a good size and a decent pattern for a DIY video from You Tube.  Thank you Ezi2Make!   I love the diamond quilting, and the indigo denim blues.   It needed a final touch--a little bit of bling and sparkle, so a diamond zipper pull.

I also put the Le Bouton sparkly flower button in the front -- because that needed a little sparkle too.

 

Farmer's Wife Blocks - 52 Hovering Hawks - 71 Puss in the Corner - 72 Railroad

  Block 71 - Puss in the Corner

No paper piecing again this week.  Hurray!  All three of these blocks came together rather quickly one evening after work.  There are only 3 weeks left to go.  Another Hurray!

 

 

Block 52 - Hovering Hawks 

This one is similar to one from last week.  The only difference is the color placement.

 

 Block 72 - Railroad 

Not sure the blue rice print and the batik go together so well, but we're gonna go with it.  

3 more weeks to go!

 

Tutorials from Handmade Karma for Week 36

See Handmade Karma's full set of Farmer's Wife blocks and tutorials.

 

Farmer's Wife Blocks - 48 Homeward Bound - 50 Honey's Choice - 51 Hovering Birds

Block 48 - Homeward Bound

 The spiral willow in my yard is starting to leaf out for spring.  I guess that put me in mind to use this spiral willow fabric leftover from a quilt a few years ago.  I still love that fabric!

The blue is leftover from another quilt back along the way.

 

 Block 51 - Hovering Birds

This one looks harder than it is.  Not bad to do at all.

Here again I am using the wrong side of that spotted background neutral fabric.  It's more subtle than the front side. 

 

 

 Block 50 - Honey's Choice

 Had to get some purple in the mix!

Only a few more weeks to go.  The end is in sight!

 

Tutorials from Handmade Karma for Week 35.

See Handmade Karma's full set of Farmer's Wife blocks and tutorials.

 

Luxurious Messenger Bag in Gray Wool and Purple Ultra Suede

I've been in search of the perfect messenger bag for quite some time now.  Ever since my Cal Pak crapped out.   It was more vertical than horizontal, and had lots of pockets.   

The first messenger bag I ever had was one I made from an old sugar sack back in high school.  This Feed Sack Messenger Bag tutorial  (not mine) shows how.   I wish I would kept the printed part, or put that inside the bag to prove it was upcycled from such a utility fabric.

But I also like the look of this one.    She used waxed fabric -- I found tutorials to DIY, which will require going to St Vinny's in search of a mini crock pot that can be dedicated to melting beeswax.   I have some experiments planned. [I did do some experiments with this, but I did not like the results enough to make an entire messenger bag out of it.]

She used this pattern (which I purchased from Michelle Patterns), and used to make the messenger bag at the top of this post.   It's a decent pattern.  Some patterns do goofy things with the flap, and it looks oversize or too floppy, or not right in other ways.  This one has a really nice cut to it.   The pattern was well done, and easy to follow.  My only advice is to take your time, and go through each step ... 

I used purple ultra suede from my stash and gray/purple wool from St Vinny's, dirt cheap!

I also thought it might be a good one to try in wool with a little ultra suede.

 

Here's a detail shot of the proposed fabrics.  If I still had a sample book, I'd have tucked this away in that scrapbook.   The ticking is repurposed from something else, and is used for the lining.  

The pattern recommended fusible fleece for additional interfacing for some pieces.  That seemed to work up too stiff.  I wound up using some scraps of silk batting and stitch wichery, along with the Pellon SF 101 for other pieces, and that combination worked out just fine.  The bag is solid enough to stand on it's own, but not so stiff as to be hard to work with.   With using wool for the body of the bag, it seemed more appropriate to use the silk batting instead of fleece. 

The pattern called for a strap and buckle closure, but I went with a button and loop closure instead. 

The loop is made from leftover fabric from the sling backpack from last weekend.  That woven rayon skirt from India.    Though I could have used more of the purple ultra suede. 

 

The button is from my friend Karla, who collects buttons.  She could say more about it -- bakelite and shell, or whatever.  I auditioned a few other buttons, even purchased a fancy new button (just because almost everything else from this project except hardware came out of my stash).  The gold in Karla's vintage button just worked better than the new metal button, or anything else I had.  

 

Looking down into the outside pocket. That little bit of thread tangle is where the button was sewn on for the outside closure.

Here's a shot of the lining, using the re-purposed ticking. It has an inside pocket that mirrors the one on the front of the bag.   2 pockets in total.  Though when a project like this is all done, my mind churns through how I could add more pockets next time around ...      

There is also an extra piece of fleece quilted to the bottom of the bag to give some support to the bottom.  That is the one place I did use fleece, not batting.

It's so nice to have smaller projects that can be finished in a weekend, or two, vs the quilts that can take years to complete!  Here's to another bag completed!

Farmer's Wife Blocks - 41 Friendship Star - 42 Fruit Basket - 45 Grape Basket

Block 41 - Friendship Star

No paper piecing this week.  Hurray!  Just lost of little half-square triangles.  This one was nice and simple -- Easy to do after work.  In fact, I might make up a few more of these, just because they are so satisfying to see come together.    I was able to mix the current color pallet on this one of blue, green, orange and purple.

 

Block 45 - Grape Basket

 Officially, this one is called "Grape Basket,"  but I'm going to refer to it as Blueberry Basket, due to my color choices.  And I like Blueberries. 

2 things about this block:  I did not make the 2 flying geese at the edges, instead opting for additional half-square triangles, since I was in that mode anyway.     

The other thing is that the "new" background fabric has these "spots" on it.  From the front side they are quite "showy."  The paint (or whatever they used to print the fabric) is thick, and the sewing machine needle has a tougher time getting through that -- like it sticks, or something.  I should probably be using a special needle (teflon?) for that fabric?  Anyway, I realized (after using the backside by mistake in some earlier blocks), that I could consciously CHOOSE to use the back side for the front of my blocks, and it would tone down the brightness and ferocity of those spots.    

Take a look at the background spots in the Friendship Star block above and compare it to the Grape Basket here.  Much more subdued and calming.   I like this much better.  ;-)

 

Block 42 - Fruit Basket

This one is very  similar to The Grape Basket.  The only difference is the foot of the basket.  For color choices, I went with the current pallet again, including some orange, purple blue and green.  I think that might be it for the oranges ...  

Only a few blocks left to go!

 

Tutorials from Handmade Karma for Week 34.

See Handmade Karma's full set of Farmer's Wife blocks and tutorials.

 

Something Blue

 

Starting the Blue Circles Scarf

I finished weaving the green circles scarf -- No broken strings in a few weeks (Fingers crossed!) so I decided to keep going.  When I put the warp on months ago, the intention was to do 2 of these scarves.  Now that the warp is behaving -- or maybe I've learned to work with it -- I can continue.  ;-)

 The beads you see above as a space holder in the Schacht shuttles when using LeClerc bobbins.  It keeps the bobbin a little more stable, with less back and forth in the empty space.  I picked up that tip in one of the weaving groups on Facebook.  

I dyed this ball of yarn last week with the intention of making is a deeper purple.  I was being careful in not wanting it to turn fushia, So I only added Wilton's Royal Blue cake dye to the crock pot, with a little vinegar.  This gorgeous blue is the result.  I'm going with it ... ;-)

 

This is what I started with, hoping the blue would deepen the bluer tendencies in this purple.  The blue is not what I expected, but I'm happy with it.  ;-)

The yarn is Knit Picks Gloss Fingering at 70% merino and 30% silk.  Though I have to say, it's hard to tell it's got any silk.  It just doesn't shine like I would have expected.

 I filled enough bobbins for what I thought I might need for this project.  The blue yarn is at least twice as thick as the black used for warp and tabby.     Let's see how much warp is left?  Did I estimate the loom waste accurately?

And away we go!

Sling Backpack

It's done!  The Sling backpack I was thinking about last weekend came together and is done now!

The pattern is from Life Sew Savory.  The pattern and tutorial is free, but it may be worth purchasing the $2 printable pattern pdf.  Something was funny about the formatting, and many of the photos were missing and did not line up with the text, when I printed it from the webpage.  It would be worth the $2 to make sure everything was there in a pdf -- unless you're just going to work from her webpage. 

After gathering the supplies, and assessing my stash for possible fabrics, I settled on this woven rayon fabric from an old skirt made in India.  I must have acquired it in the mid-1990s or so.    I knew this would be too flimsy and delicate on it's own, so I layered it onto a piece of clean up-cycled mattress padding (after the fitted corners crap out and they no longer stay on the beds) and started quilting it in a 1-inch grid with the walking foot.  I used a tangerine thread to play off the rich purples in the fabric.

 

Once I had the fabric, I could start cutting out the pieces.  

3 fabrics in all: The main fabric (remarkably soft and supple faux leather from Hobby Lobby) - the quilted rayon - and a lighter lining fabric for inside.   I added a stabilizer / interfacing to the lining fabric, to give it a little more body.

 

Here's the backside, showing the strap and swivel hook.  The strap is padded with more of the mattress pad, instead of foam as recommended in the pattern.  

 

The faux leather was remarkably easy to sew through.  The buckle also came from Hobby Lobby. 

 

The buckle opens to reveal a front pocket behind the pleather.

 

The woven rayon is mostly covered up by the outer main fabric.  That makes me a little sad that I can't see more of it.  But perhaps I need to make another bag where more of that woven fabric is visible?

I was a little worried about putting in the zipper, but with a little patience, and a zipper foot, it was not a problem.  

 

The zipper opens to reveal the main part of the bag, the main compartment.  I like to use a lighter fabric for the lining because it's easier NOT to lose stuff in a light colored bag, rather than a dark cavern.  Inside is another pocket made from the rayon fabric [not quilted]. 

All the seams are covered with 1/2-inch double fold binding, so it's all clean and tidy inside. 

Zipper Action -- Up and Down -- Nice and smooth, no catches.

It's a nice roomy bag. Big enough for my George Costanza wallet, my Kindle, and a water bottle--and possibly a camera, too.   

Now if I only had some place to go!