Sew and Tell - I made it!

This is the pair of spring themed placemats that I made for my boyfriend and me. They don't match, I know, and it is on purpose. Actually, I selected a bunch of fabrics that I thought could express some spring elements. I showed them to my boyfriend and he chose what he liked best (green flowers and elves). Mine was a no brainer, I knew I had to have lovebirds and those gorgeous Nicey Jane flowers.

I have to admit that I had doubts that I would finish them in time to use before spring turned to summer, though, even if there are still a few months ahead. My challenge resided in hand quilting, which I had never done before. The least I can say is that I am not a natural, and some of my stitches on the reverse look pretty bad. But it was a first experience, and I am glad only that I made it through. I really like the more handmade look of my own stitches.

For the border on my placemat, I used some pink fabric that I don't particularly like, but I think it makes good bias tape. On my boyfriend's, I used some orange bias tape that I had around, and it matches the orange thread that I used in the quilting.

This is only my second time around playing Sew and Tell, but it really gave me a motivation to finish those placemats on Wednesday (my day off from work), so I could join in the fun today! There are lots of other great projects to see on Amy's blog, and some happy news to share. Make sure you go visit!

My Creative Space

There was a lot going on in my creative space today, thanks to a day off from work. I finally completed my spring placemats, that I will be able to show later this week, and I got all the pieces ready for a new project. Can you guess what it might be?

I also received in the mail some fabrics that I had ordered a couple of weeks ago, see the neat little pile in the background. By the way, that is about the only thing that is nicely piled in my entire studio, which is why I will avoid taking pictures of a larger view for the moment...

Please join in the fun at Kootoyoo's, there are lots of lovely spaces to visit again this week!

Sylvie

No Sewing Required

Don't get me wrong, I did get some sewing done this weekend, but nothing finished, just ongoing hand quilting on a pair of placemats. However, I finally decided to make this fabric-covered memo board for my soon-to-be made-over studio.

I've had this fabric for a while and wanted to display it because I find it so pretty and soothing. The colors match those I chose for my studio, so turning it into a memo board became the obvious project for it.

I have not yet hung the memo board on the wall, but I'll have it right next to my craft table, so I can look at it while working, and keep in mind what I have ongoing, like these cross-stitched motifs waiting to be used in some new project.

The rooster design is what I find most attractive in this fabric, and so I have deliberately avoided to have ribbon crossing over it!

My new memo board will probably be used a lot to display little knick-knacks that I find inspiring, like this tiny yummy heart. This strawberry fabric is to die for!

Now, back to the (never ending) hand quilting, which I try very hard to find pleasure in doing...

Have a great week!

Sew and Tell - A small debut!

This is my first time at Sew and Tell Friday, but I think it is a great forum and it may motivate me to actually finish each project that I start.

This little project is one that I've wanted to make for a while, ever since I learned that the fabric shop in town was turning green and not giving plastic bags anymore to pack our goodies.

I totally agree with this and was interested in buying the bag that they offer, with the store's logo on it... That is, until I saw the so-called bag. You would think that a fabric shop would make them out of, well, fabric, but no, they are made of some kind of plastic, like a grocery bag.

This seemed incongruous to me, so I did not buy their bag and decided instead that I would make my own shopping bag to take with me when I go fabric shopping.

Here it is:

and it is reversible, so depending on my mood or the season, I can use the spring side, above, with butterflies and colorful ferns, or the automn side, below, with fallen leaves and squirrels.

The fabric I used is made of bamboo and is lighter than quilting cotton, so that I can fold the bag pretty small and put it in my coat pocket or handbag - although it might still be too big for any of my handbags, since they tend to be tiny things, unless, of course, I got myself a new bag. Not that I want one, but if I HAVE to...

I think it is a pretty simple pattern to come up with, but I used Indygo Junction's Building Block Bags IJ771.

Please head on to Amylouwho to check out all the other great finished projects of the week!

My own little success, and a winner

I've been done with this pillowcase for a few days, but haven't been able to post it before today. This is what I did following the Pillowcase Crochet Along hosted by Cassie. I was pretty scared of doing the crochet border when my experience of crochet was very basic and so far away in the past. To tell the truth, I did not remember anything about crochet, except the fact that I once loved it, when I was 10 or 12 years old. I actually had to watch crochet videos on the internet to understand how to do it. Pathetic, I know, but I was determined to learn it by myself, even though my sister offered to help me. It was part of the challenge. The result is far from perfection, but I am very pleased with it. And the great thing is that now I want to try other crochet projects. I've been eyeing some very tempting granny squares lately, here and there. We'll see where that leads me.

And now, time to announce the winner of my giveaway. I've put the names in a bag, and had my boyfriend pick one.

The lucky winner is:

Henria O.

My favorite sign of spring is when I can finally stop worrying about whether my kids are underdressed for the weather and start worrying if they are overdressed! In addition to that, I love the longer days....waking up to a sunny morning instead of a cold, dark one!

Thanks to all for participating and writing such nice comments on spring and fall. They were really cool to read, and they are linked to something I did over the last week. More on this tomorrow!