Our Just Jude designer collaboration is well underway! (You can read all about this new initiative here.)
For our first week we have been making Svetlana’s Lola Pouch (there are 2 sizes to choose from).
I had the privilege of pattern testing the Lola Pouch for Svetlana so I’m familiar with this gorgeous pattern and have enjoyed making several more pouches since.
I decided to make 3 small Lola pouches as gifts for 3 sewing friends.
This time I teamed up some medium grain cork with sumptuous ‘Roads to Flowerhouse’ by Bari J for Art Gallery Fabrics. I just love the rich colours in this print.
Svetlana is a fellow stripey binding fan, so the Michael Miller narrow black and white stripe was the perfect choice here.
When I first made the Lola pouch, I feel in love with Svetlana’s cool technique for recessing the zipper underneath the binding, with the option of tucking in or leaving out the zipper tab! Genuis!
I couldn’t resist finishing these cuties with a little leather detail.
So all that’s left to do is fill up these little pouches with sewing treats and get them posted off!
(All materials used in these pouches are available in our shop.)
And if you are following along with our collaboration on Instagram, you can check out the other Lola Pouches (& future collaborative projects) by searching #justjudecollaborates
By Judith on June 27, 2020 8 Comments (Leave comment)
The last of my recent run on gift making is this plush velvet tote bag for my youngest daughter.
She requested an everyday sizeable, soft tote bag, especially when she’s too-ing and fro-ing to lectures at Uni.
Now this girl of mine is super tactile! I gave her a choice between 2 different lightweight upholstery bolts I had been donated, knowing full well she would choose the sumptuously soft velvet over a paler linen look fabric.
I also gave her a choice of lining fabrics and she choose the one I had my fingers crossed on! That’s my girl!
At 5’11” I knew she would need long length handles. I made a feature of them with a few repurposed denim loops and tabs. A little scrap of leather denotes the front of the bag.
A simple phone pocket on the inside is all this bag needed to make it fully functional.
I’m happy to report the birthday girl loved her new bag and has been using it ever since!
By Judith on June 21, 2020 0 Comments (Leave comment)
Hi everyone,
I hope you are keeping safe and well and keeping the creativity flowing!
Yesterday I hosted my first socially distanced afternoon tea party in my garden, to celebrate my cousin’s birthday!
I’m happy to report that the sun shone all afternoon and a wonderful time was had by all! It was so lovely socialising again and catching up with sewing friends face to face!
My ‘make’ for the birthday girl was this denim planter, a multi-functional basket for her sewing or living room.
Lining – Tilda, Bon Voyage Lilit Blue
Working with denim is always ‘play time’ for me and I thought I would make a larger version of the selvedge basket I designed and taught at our quilting retreat last year.
First I sewed the denim strips onto heavy sew-in vilene using the ‘quilt as you go’ method of piecing. I quickly realised this wasn’t going to be sturdy enough to allow the basket to retain its shape.
So I quilted the panel onto flex foam using orange Aurifil 12wt wool thread. Much better! And just look at that gorgeous texture!
The lining was inserted before adding the binding and pinching in the sides to give the boxy shape to the basket.
I definitely needed my heavy jeans needle for that part!!
And last but not least, some leather handles secured with bronze rivets, to bring a little rustic colour and texture to the basket.
At this juncture I didn’t know what I was going to put in the basket, or how to ‘prop’ it for photographing. I grabbed a couple of my artificial plants and set them in and immediately fell in love with the contrasting greenery and inventive use of the basket!
And so my denim planter was born! I loved making it and will definitely be making one for my own home!
By Judith on March 30, 2020 2 Comments (Leave comment)
My daughter has recently been serving with a Missions organisation called YWAM (Youth With A Mission).
As a team leader she has had the privilege of nurturing 5 students through a Discipleship Training Programme, 4 months in the UK and 2 in Japan.
At the end of the programme the students have a graduation ceremony, and I had the privilege of making little graduation gifts!
Sadly because of Corona Virus, the graduation ceremony couldn’t take place, but the gifts were handed out none-the-less and well received (I also made gifts for the other team and programme leaders).
For the Girls:
My evenings spent basting hexies meant I had a little collection built up! So I put them to good use and turned them into zippy pouches.
I had no idea what the girls’ colour preferences were, and even though they were individually wrapped and handed out separately, my daughter said that each person got exactly the right one for their particular style and colour choice! Yay!
All the hexie panels are made from scraps, leftovers from other projects. The bases are either Irish Linen or Essex Yarn Dyed Linen and the exteriors finished off with little leather tabs.
I put some scented hand creams inside the pouches! An extra little surprise when they were opened!
For the Boys:
These are A5 journal covers, made in Irish linen and cork.
The exteriors are identical, with little scraps of navy leather riveted onto the cork pockets, which also have a handy pen slot!
The cover is held closed by wrapping a leather cord around a duffle button.
The linings are suitably masculine, and I even included a notebook! So these journals are ready for immediate use!
I was so pleased I was able to post these over to the graduates and leaders, before they all quickly dispersed to different countries, before borders and flights were closed to them.
My classroom is currently closed because of the pandemic, so during this lockdown I hope to make more gifts, as well as trying my hand at video tutorials and classes.
You can check out my first video announcement today on FB and IG, and a mini tour of my little sewing room here!
By Judith on December 26, 2019 1 Comment (Leave comment)
Happy Boxing Day!
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas Day with your loved ones, enjoying great food and timely rest and relaxtion.
Now that all my handmade presents have been gifted and opened, I can show you 3 more!
3 more Juniper baskets in fact!
You may remember my first Juniper basket here. I enjoyed Svetlana’s pattern so much I thought these would make the perfect presents for 3 more friends.
Juniper Basket no.2:
Juniper Basket no.3:
Juniper Basket No.4:
And that brings to an end my run of Juniper Basket present making!!
By Judith on December 22, 2019 1 Comment (Leave comment)
I’ve recently gifted a selection of ‘cork pouches’.
I love working with cork! It goes with just about everything, comes in lots of different colours (including sparkly!) can be rotary cut, pieced, quilted, ironed (medium-cool heat setting) and is 3d friendly! Did you know it’s vegan too (though I don’t recommend eating it!).
Here’s the first cork pouch:
This was made for a friend of my daughter who has been through a tough time lately.
I had a very small offcut of this gorgeous animal fabric (Echino, I think!) and managed (just about) to fussy cut the animals. I particularly like the zebras as my daughter’s friend is a young mum and it reminded me of the lovely bond she has with her son.
The pouch was sent off with an inspirational notebook and lots of love!
Pouch no. 2 was made as an ‘end of year’ thank you gift.
As with most of my pouches, I make them up as I go along! I’d seen some lovely curved pouches on Pinterest and thought I’d have a go!
The 2nd side of the zipper is a little tricky as you are sewing against the curve, but completely manageable with patience and deft fingers!
All of the fabrics in this pouch are available to purchase in my studio.
And last but not least, a geographical pouch for a special girl!
My middle daughter has already left for a 3 month missions trip, so I thought a useful but easy to pack pouch would come in handy.
With another offcut of map fabric I managed to include 2 countries that hold significance for my daughter, Brazil (a country she would love to visit one day) and Japan, where she will be spending the first 2 months of 2020.
I quilted both sides of the pouch along the longitude and latitude lines that were already printed on this ‘old style’ map!
So that’s my round up of cork pouches gifted this Christmas.
If you’ve never sewn with cork before give it a try! You’ll soon discover how versatile and user friendly it is!
By Judith on December 21, 2019 2 Comments (Leave comment)
Today I handed over 2 more pressies to my monthly breakfast buddies!
You may remember I ran my Robin Hoop Art workshop last month. Robins are so iconic at this time of year and I thought these sketchy hoops would make the perfect handmade gifts for my craft-loving friends.
While the theme is the same, each hoop has subtle differences. The background fabrics are different and the character of each robin is different.
Also, for the first time I’ve introduced (tea stained) paper to my textile pictures. The quote for each friend is different and personal.
These 8″ hoops are the perfect size for gifting, and are such fun to make, especially if you love free motion sketching!
By Judith on December 19, 2019 6 Comments (Leave comment)
A very good friend of mine had a ‘special’ birthday this month, and last night I got to hand over the quilt I had made for her.
This is a strip pieced quilt, made in Amy Butler fabrics (mostly Soul Blossoms).
I love this type of piecing, and it’s a great pattern for using up leftover binding and Jelly Roll strips too! (see the free tutorial for my scrappy version here).
A friend of mine long arm quilted it. I always think that when a quilt is quilted, that’s when the fabrics just seem to come to life!
The backing is Tilda, and the navy and white stripe binding is from a collection called England Swings (my birthday friend is English!).
I love how bright and cheery this quilt is, and it totally reflects my lovely friend’s bright and cheery personality!
By Judith on December 12, 2019 2 Comments (Leave comment)
During our last week of classes we have adopted the tradition of ‘Secret Santa’.
I love this fun tradition, seeing the variety of handmade and bought gifts, all for under £5!
6 weekly classes means I have 6 Secret Santa presents to either make or buy. This year I’m trying not to buy as many presents, but making gifts where I can.
So here are my handmade Secret Santa classes gifts:
As you know I’ve been EPP-ing in the evenings, enjoying working with my Tilda scraps from past projects.
I saw some cute pincushions on Pinterest and thought my little Tilda Grandmother’s flowers would make pretty pinnies!
I appliqued the flowers onto some Essex Yarn Dyed Linen (Flax) and hand stitched with pale pink embroidery floss around the outside of the flowers.
I really like the recessed buttons on this design. I covered some buttons with more Tilda scraps and pulled the thread tightly through to the back of the pincushion to give it a more cushiony look!
I paired each pincushion up with a packet of pins and I’m pleased to report that the ‘secret’ gifts were very well received!
So my secret Santa pinnies are not so secret anymore!
And a big thank you to all my ‘Secret Santas’ for the lovely gifts that I received!
Svetlana’s patterns are always so well written, and she includes 2 sizes for this cute basket. I made the small size.
I’ve been doing a little EPP (English Paper Piecing) in the evenings, using up some pretty Tilda scraps.
I know my friend likes Tilda too so it was a no brainer when it came to choosing fabrics!
I quilted some Essex Yarn Dyed Linen (Flax) for the exterior – always a great partner for Tilda!
I think this would a perfect basket for a knitting or crochet project, or even some EPP!!
Svetlana’s Juniper Basket pattern is available here, but be sure to check out the rest of her store! She has lots of beautiful bag and pouch patterns to choose from!
By Judith on November 13, 2019 2 Comments (Leave comment)
Hi there, if you are looking for details of my giveaway you can find it here.
Since the summer I’ve been working on 3 quilts, getting them ready to gift later in the year.
Well the first has been completed and gifted and I can show you it here.
This is a lap quilt made for an elderly couple, using a French General Layer Cake (Rouenneries I think!).
I’ve always loved French General fabrics, oh the richness and depth of those reds! Yum!
I used this free tutorial to carve up the full Layer Cake without creating waste.
Some simple organic vertical wavy quilting adds a little movement and lovely texture through all the squares. Not to mention it being a quick and easy ‘go to’ quilting method.
The obligatory striped binding finished the quilt off. I got it labelled and handed over last week.
My prayer is that this quilt will bring some comfort and joy to the lovely recipients.
By Judith on November 9, 2019 6 Comments (Leave comment)
If you read my last post, you will know that I’ve been making gifts for my #Threads Across the Sea quilting friends.
Here’s what I made:
I love the organic nature of kantha stitching, an ancient form of Indian embroidery. Originally used on saris, kantha now makes appearances on apparel, home furnishings and quilts.
Photo source: SewGuide.com
Combined with my love of tweed and woollen textiles, I thought wouldn’t it be radical fun to try a little tweed/kantha combo!
And so 3 Kantha/tweed drawstring bags were formed!
Most of the fabrics in the exteriors of these bags are from free sample books (love a bit of recycling).
I pieced the exteriors, then bedded down the seams with a little top stitching onto heavy sew-in vilene.
And then the kantha fun began!
Aurifil 12wt wool threads are perfect for this type of naive embroidery. I choose saturated colours to compliment the soft tones of the tweed and wool.
Now I sized these bags for a particular purpose. Inside where funny mugs the girls could take along to their respective Modern Quilt Groups!
Aren’t they funny! You can find a great selection of craft, sewing and knitting slogan mugs here.
3 and leave a comment here or on FB or IG telling me what’s your favourite textile to work with.
You have until Monday 18th November to enter, when I will announce the winner (international entries welcome). (Please ensure you leave your email address with your comment if you are a ‘no reply blogger’.)
By Judith on November 8, 2019 4 Comments (Leave comment)
For the past few years, an annual tradition has started among 3 of my long time quilty friends and myself.
L-R: Sarah (@sewmesarah), Me (@justjudebelfast); Trudi (@trudi_wood); Di (@willowbeckdesigns)
2 of us live in N.Ireland and the other 2 in England. We try to meet up each year to sew, taking it in turns to meet on either side of the Irish Sea! And that’s why we call ourselves #Threads Across the Sea!
This year, Trudi and Di came to not so sunny Belfast and spent a weekend of chatter, natter, lots of eating (delicious home baked yummies by Trudi and Sarah!) and of course some sewing in my studio!
One of our traditions is to gift handmade items to each other! This is like Christmas come early!!
From Sarah we each received these personalised Arm Chair Caddies (pattern from the book ‘Zakka Home’). Aren’t they cool! And Sarah got me spot on with my love of denim and all things ditsy!
I will definitely be using mine when hand stitching in the evenings in front of the telly!
Trudi is an amazing hand stitcher and quilter, and being recently laid up with injured ankles facilitated the huge amount of time she invested in these pouches.
I particularly love the sashiko stitching on Art Gallery Denim! Yum!
And from Di we each got a treat bag of goodies!
Di lives in the Lake District and the particular area she lives in is known as the Cake District!!! Fab or what!
Included in the bag were thread snips, mobile thread cutter/needle threader and wood turned items made by Di’s uber talented hubby! Check out the gorgeously tactile needle holder and Christmas Tree decoration!
See what I mean by Christmas come early! I’m so blessed to call these talented women my friends.
And if you want to know what I made for my 3 friends, you’ll have to tune in again to find out (and there might be a wee giveaway too! wink wink!).
Having a sew-social with like minded creatives and wonderful friends is one of my favourite things! Already looking forward to TATS20!
By Judith on October 4, 2019 0 Comments (Leave comment)
This term in class we have been running a soft toys theme. And in keeping with this theme, this week I have been demo-ing the hugely affectionate Sock Monkey!
You need one pair of socks to make 1 monkey. The pattern suggests using crew length socks (approx 8″ from heel to cuff) however I adapted knee length socks for my large monkey and used a pair of ladies ankle socks (approx 5″ from heel to cuff) for the medium monkey.
I found these monkeys surprisingly easy to sew, especially as the pattern directs you to mark and sew the limbs and features on the complete sock first, before cutting out! Genuis!
And there is a nifty way of getting stuffing into that narrow channel of a tail!! (It’s so clever!)
The toys we have been making in class require lots and lots of stuffing, really well packed in to achieve the finished shape. However, that is not the case with these little fellows!
Because socks are made from a stretchy knit fabric, the more you stuff, the more it will stretch! So my advice is not to over stuff, just enough for maximum cuddle factor!
A little hand sewing brings all the features together. Don’t worry if you’re not that neat a hand sewer like me. The stitches just seem to get absorbed into the knit fabric! Magic!
Aren’t they cute! And great gift ideas for little (& big) kids (I recommend using safety eyes instead of buttons if gifting to small children).
So no need to discard those old or odd socks! Get sewing your very own troop of monkeys!
By Judith on September 10, 2019 2 Comments (Leave comment)
I got to hand over another little handmade gift last week!
You may remember the Tilda & Cork pouch I made for a friend during the summer? Well this one is for her mum.
My friend recently gave me a bag of small fabric samples, the perfect size for pouch making! And she also guided me on her mum’s favourite colours – sage & olive greens, gold and oatmeal.
Well I just had to sneak in a rich autumnal red with this classy colour scheme. And a little vintage trim to boot!
Quilting the swatches onto Legacy Flex Foam really gives them definition and structure.
I also found an old jewellery pendant which I thought worked well as a zipper pull!
I’m happy to report the recipient is tickled pink with her new pouch!
And because I love making cute little pouches from repurposed textiles, I’d call that a win, win!
By Judith on August 22, 2019 3 Comments (Leave comment)
The 2nd of my gifts being handed out this week is this English Paper Pieced (EPP) Hexie Pillow.
This gift is actually a ‘thank you’ from my daughter to a family who’ve been like a 2nd family to her for many years, and have faithfully supported her missionary training!
The family in question love the North Coast of Ireland, and holiday there every year (with my daughter included!).
They have a particular affection for The Giants Causeway, a geological phenomenon of mostly hexagonal shaped basalt stones, created from volcanic movement 50-60 million years ago.
But despite what Wikipedia and National Heritage say, we all know it was in fact built by the Irish Giant, Finn MacCool! Of course!
So this coastal coloured pillow with it’s columns of ombre hexies is my textile ode to The Giant’s Causeway and our legendary and affectionate giant, Finn MacCool!
This is my first time appliquing EPP hexies in this way. It’s important to draw your placement grid first onto the background (Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in this instance), before bondawebbing the starched hexies in place.
I’m delighted to say the pillow was very well received and the recipients immediately got the inferences to their favourite little corner of the world.
I love making cushions (well they’re just mini quilts really aren’t they!) and trying out new things. I’ll definitely chalk this one up as a success (especially as I would like to have one in my own home!)!
By Judith on August 20, 2019 6 Comments (Leave comment)
This week I’ll be delivering 2 more handmade gifts.
Today, I handed over a sweet little Tilda and Cork patchwork pouch!
My friend is an interior designer and very kindly supplied me with the sample swatches I needed for my daughter’s Teacher’s present.
This is another sewing friend, so I though she might like a little pouch to keep some sewing bits and bobs in! Though when she saw she said she was in need of a new make-up pouch!
I love making projects from ‘wee bits’ – I think the cork compliments the Tilda scraps beautifully, as well as giving the pouch a sturdy and robust feel.
The exterior quilted beautifully onto Legacy Flex Foam, so while it is soft and squishy, it can stand up proud all by itself!
But what do you think of the mini pompom trim? I’m still not entirely sure if I should have added it or not!
Pompom trim or no, my friend was tickled pink with her new pouch!
I so love giving handmade gifts to friends, don’t you!
By Judith on August 6, 2019 4 Comments (Leave comment)
Today I got to hand over 2 special gifts!
Angie, my very good friend and fellow sewist, had been travelling for a year and before she left she gave me her precious and treasured stash of vintage sheets!
I too am a collector of vintage sheets, so I instantly understood the value and meaning of this archival gift.
When I protested to Angie that I couldn’t possibly accept her treasures, she jokingly said I could make her a cushion from them for when she returned.
Well she returned last month and I got to hand over the cushions today. She was delighted!
Among this vintage stash were lots of strips and smaller pieces. So I went with ‘strippy’ friendly designs.
I popped in a little table cloth embroidery to kick start this scrappy Log Cabin, one of my favourite quilt blocks.
The quilting was sinple ‘echo’ quilting of the Log Cabin rounds and some of the bigger pieces went into the envelope back.
As you can see, I was having so much fun that I couldn’t possibly stop at just one cushion!
The solid pink fabric in cushion number 2 was also in Angie’s vintage stash because it was edged with a sweet trim (used in the back).
Using my ‘strip pieced block’ tutorial, I made 4 x 10″ blocks, joined them together, quilted them and then hand quilted some coordinating running stitches.
A little crocheted scallop trim finished the cushions.
I had so much fun making these, enjoying the vintage prints and softness, and reminiscing back to my childhood bed linen (oh those 1970’s purples!).
Thank you Angie for entrusting me with your vintage treasures and giving me an excuse to ‘play’! I hope you too get new opportunities to ‘play’!
By Judith on June 28, 2019 2 Comments (Leave comment)
My baby girl turned 18 this week!
Wow! How did that happen! I’m now the proud new owner of 3 adults!
I’ve made all my girls quilts for their 18th birthdays, and I try to reflect something of their personalities in the quilts.
My youngest daughter has a sunny nature, loves colour, texture and random things! So her quilt has lots of colour, random prints and non-geometric design, sunny blues and mustard and the cosiest fleecy backing!
Despite having our warmest days of the year this week, she has very much enjoyed snuggling under her new quilt!
(A big thank you to my friend Hilary for quilting this quilt on her long arm.)
So that’s another family milestone and another milestone quilt!
By Judith on June 3, 2019 4 Comments (Leave comment)
My youngest daughter finishes her 14 year school career and turns 18 this month! Where did the time go!
She has had one teacher in particular who has nurtured her love of literature and encouraged and inspired her for the last 4 years.
So I offered to make her a bag, as a thank you. I already knew the bag I would make, patchworked and roomy enough to take school files.
I had it on good authority that ‘said teacher’s’ favourite colours are black and grey – sadly the 2 colours I have least of in my bag making stash!
So I scrounged requested some sample swatches from a generous friend and my vision of a patchwork bag came alive!
Front
My daughter loves the touch of velvets and soft wools so while I quilted some of the swatches, I left some of the more ‘tactile’ ones alone!
back
I took a risk with the purple lining, but the bag was delivered today and I’m pleased to report ‘she loved it!’ Phew!
Using swatches from (often free) sample books is a great way to make patchwork projects. Ask in Interiors and Curtain making shops for their last season’s books.
However, working with swatches is very different from sewing with cotton.
Here are a few things to consider:
try to remove all the paper from the back of the swatches
use a larger stitch length & walking foot when working with thicker fabrics
fuse interfacing to lighter fabrics to give them equal body to thicker ones
quilt onto a lightweight flex foam (I used Legacy) to stabilise the mixed fabrics & help absorb the thicker seams
‘stitch in the ditch’ before other quilting
use size 90/14 Jeans needle (quilting) and 100/16 Jeans needle (construction)
for quilting use upholstery thread (top) and standard quilting thread (bobbin)
for construction use upholstery thread (top and bottom)
June is turning into a busy month of present making! I will have more to show you before the month is out!
By Judith on January 14, 2019 3 Comments (Leave comment)
We are well into our stride again with the new term of classes.
So it’s time to show you my New Year Display Table!
I’ve gone for a ‘kitchen’ theme this term, getting you inspired to pretty up your table and domestic space, as well as lots of gift ideas for those friends who love being in their kitchen!
So let’s get started!
1 Trivet Mats
Over the years I have gathered up lots of free EPP (English Paper Piecing) packs and templates, most of which came free with quilting magazines.
Often there is a useful little book or pattern ideas that come with them, and I spent my free time over Christmas doing some relaxing hand sewing, and having fun with my Tilda scraps.
I used some Essex Yarn Dyed linen (Flax and Denim) for the backgrounds, appliqued and quilted them onto Polyester Insulating Wadding (available here) and made my own bias binding to finish.
I purposely used the thicker poly wadding (also used in oven gloves) to give my mats some durability when being used as trivets. I also love the lush texture you get from the denser batting.
You could easily replace this wadding with Insul Bright heat resistant wadding and turn them into placemats (all materials mentioned are machine washable).
2 Aprons
I have 2 types of Aprons on display, and I will be teaching them both as a Saturday workshop on 9th March.
The pattern for my Tie Back apron will be coming soon (adult and child sizes will be available).
This apron is designed to fit into a decorative mason jar so it can be gifted!
Cute or what!
3 Lunchbags (2 styles)
(Pattern coming soon)
I had a lot of fun designing these lunchbags several years ago for Popular Patchwork magazine.
The raw edge applique designs can be child or adult friendly (or you could even made a patchwork version – that’s next on my list!).
Both bags are insulated with Insul Bright heat resistant wadding, and the linings are made from wipeable Rip-stop nylon (or you could re-purpose a machine washable shower curtain!).
The pattern (includes both styles) is currently being tested and will be available soon.
I’ll be running my Folksy Tea cosy pattern as a Saturday workshop in April.
I originally designed this for Sewing World magazine, and it combines insulating wadding and fun felt applique.
The pattern takes you through how to measure your teapot and calculate your bespoke teacosy measurements. It also includes the additional applique design ‘Sit Long Talk Much’.
If you like to take a bottle of wine round to a friend’s house, or to your favourite ‘BYO’ restaurant, then you might find this reusable bottle carrier a handy addition to your kitchen cupboard.
One fat quarter will make the whole carrier, but why not jazz it up with a contrast fabric!
This is one of my newest patterns available for general release!
It is a ‘charm pack friendly’ project, but the pattern also includes yardage quantities to make the runner in 3 feature fabrics.
I’ve seen my runner made in non-Christmas fabrics (I love seeing different interpretations of the same pattern!), and I have this variation done in Retro 30’s prints hanging up in class.
The link above is to the Easter Egg version of these pouches, but simply draw a circle instead of an egg and follow the same tutorial.
If you know someone who prefers money or gift vouchers (or diamonds!) pop them into this compact pouch. The addition of a key-fob attachment turns it into a useful little coin purse!
Then hang them on the tree, or stuff into stockings and wait for the smiles!
9 Christmas Coasters
(no pattern available)
These 5″ Christmas themed coasters are made using the foundation paper piecing method and are great for using up small Christmas scraps!
I first saw them here, but the link to the maker’s website is no longer available.
However, if you are attending my classes, I can easily take you through the making of these!
My Scandi Stocking pattern was first published in Sewing World magazine several years ago.
It combines one of my favourite fabrics, Essex Yarn Dyed Linen, with Makower’s gorgeous Scandi Christmas fabrics.
A little fussy cutting and simple applique add manageable and fun stages to this project.
Which is why I decided to run it as a Saturday workshop, on 17th November. (Full kits are available for those attending the workshop, but any leftover kits will be offered out!).
Only 1 place left on the workshop – get in touch if you would like to join us for some festive fun!
If you fancy a little hand sewing in your Christmas crafting, how about some Dresden coasters. The blades are English Paper Pieced for accuracy, and the rest is done on the machine.
Again, these made their debut in Sewing World magazine. I used more Essex Linen here, this time Black, with a few leftover Christmas 5″ charm squares.
Of course you could make these anytime of the year, making the dresden blades in non-Christmas fabrics.
This cute fellow first appeared in Pretty Patches magazine, and has been a big hit ever since!
He is a mixed textile cushion, making him super tactile and cuddly!
If you like mixing in a little tweed, wool or linen with your cottons, then you will love making this Rockin’ Robin!
I have used satin stitch applique here, but you could easily use raw edge applique or blanket stitch applique (more guidelines on machine applique here).
5 Christmas Baubles Cushions
(pattern to come)
I first made a Christmas Baubles cushion for a Brit Bee friend as part of a secret santa cushion swap several years ago!
These are great fun to make because there is no end to the ‘style’ of bauble you can have.
And you can let your creative ‘quilting’ juices flow too when it comes to the quilting.
One day I will get around to writing a pattern for these cushions – it’s on the long list!
So that’s the end of part 1!
Tune in again for part 2 and my 2nd surprise reveal!
By Judith on October 6, 2018 0 Comments (Leave comment)
Waaaaaaaay back, in February, I facilitated a very good friend’s special birthday request!
16 friends squished into my classroom, each of them charged with making a patchwork block about their dear friend.
Shirley has been a nurse, midwife, missionary and lecturer. She is one of the most generous, caring and just people I know and I feel truly privileged and blessed to call her ‘friend’ these past 21 years.
It took a wee while for a few postal blocks to come in, and then I set to work, finishing up the sketching details and chosen texts, as well as assembling and quilting the quilt.
And then the final handover happened last week (took a while to get us both in the same country at the same time!).
I’ve made a little mosaic of the individual blocks so you can see more of the details (I promise they aren’t as curvy as they seem here – I took pictures of them while the quilt was on the line! It was windy!)
There is so much thought, love and creativity in all of these blocks, a moving tribute to our funny, coffee loving, brilliant friend!
Even though I had already gifted Shirley a quilt for her birthday back in February (read more about this quilt and the sew-in here), I wanted to contribute a block to her Friendship Quilt.
And here it is….
That’s Shirley in the middle (portraits were never my strong suit!) between me on the left (I told you portraits weren’t my strong suit!) and Rosie (amazingly this actually looks like Rosie!). We first met 21 years ago at Bible College, and are the self named ‘Breakfast Club’ (we still meet once a month for breakfast, coffee and catch-up!).
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about this very special quilt and its very special recipient!
By Judith on September 28, 2018 0 Comments (Leave comment)
My 5 minute demo in class this month was how to make these super easy infinity scarfs.
You can use anything between 1 and 4 pieces of fabric for your scarf.
The sumptuous softness of Art Gallery fabrics or Liberty Lawns work particularly well, but you can also use quilting cotton, or for a more cosy scarf, try brushed cotton or snuggly fleece.
Would you like to know how to make them? My tutorial shows you how to make a scarf from 4 fabrics.
You will need:
Scarf made from 1 fabric: 1 x (20″ x 60″) or
Scarf made from 2 fabrics: 2 x (10.5″ x 60″) or
Scarf made from 3 fabrics: 2 x (10.5″ x 30″) & 1 x (10.5″ x 60″) or
Scarf made from 4 fabrics: 4 x (10.5″ x 30″)
3 metres mini pom pom trim (optional)
Adjustable zipper foot
Use 1/4″ seam allowance
1 Sew 2 panels right sides together along the short edges. Press the seam open. Repeat for the other 2 panels.
2 On the right side of one of the pairs, pin and machine tack 2 x 60″ lengths of mini pom pom trim down both long sides. The pom poms should be facing away from the outer edges. I used my zipper foot for this part so I could sew past the pom poms.
3 Place both paired panels right sides together and sew down both long sides. Again, I used my zipper foot here.
4 Turn the scarf right side out.
5 Iron under the raw edges of one short end by 1/4″.
6 Take the other short end and twist the scarf once before tucking it into the ironed under short end.
7 Even out the short ends, pin and sew them together, 1/8″ from the folded edge. You are only sewing through the 2 short ends here.
And there you have it! A beautifully soft infinity scarf.
You can of course lengthen and widen the measurements here to suit your needs or style!
Have fun making these versatile and practical scarves. But be warned!
Unfortunately I don’t have a pattern written up yet for this project, but I’m currently working on a new Denim Pouch Bag, so stay tuned for new ways to upcycle your denim.
By Judith on September 10, 2018 0 Comments (Leave comment)
Last Saturday was my 2nd Rope Bowl Workshop.
And I’m pleased to say this lot were just as productive as my first group of ladies!!
Once again the feedback from this workshop was a resounding success!
It gives me so much pleasure seeing proudly smiling faces going home with beautiful creations tucked under arms and invigorated inspiration for many future gifts!
Well done ladies!
Interest and enquiries for this workshop continue to grow, so I will be sure to schedule more in next year!
By Judith on August 20, 2018 0 Comments (Leave comment)
It’s about time I posted another tutorial here, don’t you think?
Before all the sniffles and colds get going, how about pretty, quilted tissue box covers. I’d much rather see pretty fabric sitting in my room, than a functional cardboard box!
And this tutorial will explain how to cover a box of any size, so let’s get started!
You Will Need:
Exterior Fabric
Lining Fabric
Wadding
Heavy Sew-In Vilene
Non-permanent fabric marker
Cardboard or template plastic
Measure your box:
Take measurements A (short side), B (long side) and C (top). Then add 3/4″ (0.75″) to each measurement (1/2″ for seam allowances, 1/4″ for ease) to get the cutting out sizes.
You can see my measurements in the example below:
Cutting Out:
So now that you have the cutting out measurements you can either ….
apply all measurements to your exterior fabrics, lining fabric, wadding and heavy sew-in vilene
OR
instead of cutting out the sides, cut and baste an 11″ x 12″ piece of exterior fabric, wadding and sew-in vilene. Once quilted, this is big enough to cut out all 4 sides.
You will also need this template for the openings. I use the larger shape for rectangular boxes and the smaller shape for cube boxes. Cut out the openings and transfer them to card or template plastic.
Make It:
Use 1/4″ seams
1 If you haven’t already done so, spray baste the exterior fabrics, wadding and vilene together.
2 Quilt as desired (I marked and quilted a 1.5″ diagonal grid, see photo above).
3 Pin an exterior short side (A) right sides together with the exterior top (C). With a pen, mark 1/4″ in from each corner on the short side (wrong side).
4 Sew from marker to marker, starting and finishing with a reverse stitch. Repeat for the other short side.
5 Press the short ends out before attaching the long sides in the same way (remember to mark your 1/4″ points).
6 Repeat steps 3-5 for the lining pieces.
7 Find the middle of the lining top piece (I simply folded it in half lengthways and widthways and finger pressed).
8 Centre your chosen template opening onto the wrong side of the lining top piece and draw around it.
9 Pin the exterior and lining pieces right sides together. Sew along the drawn line, starting and finishing with a reverse stitch.
10 Carefully cut out the opening, leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance. Snip at 1cm intervals all the way around the opening, taking care not to cut into the stitches.
11 Push the lining through the opening and all the way round to the back of the exterior. Iron around the opening to neaten.
12 Top stitch around the opening, 1/8″ from the edge.
13 Pin the exterior sides right sides together. Sew adjacent exterior sides together, sewing from the top down to the 1/4″ marker (fold the top piece out of the way so you can get right down to the 1/4″ marker). Start and finish with a reverse stitch.
14 Repeat step 13 for the lining pieces.
15 Turn the exterior right side out, by folding it out over the lining. On the inside you should be able to see the right side of the lining.
16 Push the lining well into the corners of the exterior cover. Pop in the tissue box and trim off any excess cover and lining level with the edge of the box.
17 Machine tack (large stitch) around the raw edges 1/8″ from the edge.
18 Make enough double fold quilt binding to get around the bottom edges with a couple of inches overlap. Attach, join and finish the binding as you would for a quilt.
Pop in the tissue box and adorn your bedside table!
Or how about a scrappy tissue box cover ….
…. or have some free motion sketching fun!
Whatever shape or design you choose for your cover, have lots of fun!
By Judith on August 14, 2018 1 Comment (Leave comment)
A good friend of mine recently celebrated a milestone birthday.
Now this friend is uber creative and talented, especially when it comes to ceramics.
Rachel has a workshop in Conway Mill, just 2 floors above me, and makes the most stunning ceramic house pictures and brooches #weecolouredhouses
I’m lucky to be the proud owner of 2 such creations!
So from one maker to another, I knew my gift had to be handmade!
approx 12″ x 8″
My ‘Wee Coloured Houses’ pouch is inspired by Rachel’s adorable little houses. They have been free motion sketched onto Essex Yarn Dyed Linen (Flax). Those tiny windows were a challenge!!
I know Rachel loves colour, so I went with a patchworked back and a bright, funky lining.
So here’s to many more creative years Rachel!
And if you would like to purchase one of Rachel’s pictures or commission her for a custom order, you can contact her here.
Also, keep an eye out for her at Frock Around the Clock Fares and the Fine & Dandy Markets, as well as seeing her stock in The Designerie (Bushmills), Belfast City Airport, The Crafty Barn (Carlingford) and Klover (Hillsborough) to name a few!
By Judith on March 16, 2018 0 Comments (Leave comment)
So, I’m going to completely ignore the impending snow forecast and pretend it is spring and enjoy my narcissus and daffs and the blissfulness of denial!
With just over 2 weeks to Easter, let’s crack on with part 2 of my classroom Easter table.
At the top right hand side of the picture, you will see my Garden Shed Tidy.
Sewing with clear vinyl isn’t as tricky as you might think!
This was made for the May ’16 issue of Pretty Patches magazine. As the garden starts to come to life again, I get sporadic urges to amble down the ‘garden’ isles of my local homeware shop, buying packets of seeds with renewed vigor that this year I will plant them (!!)
And if (like me) you aren’t much of a gardener, you could easily use this cute tidy in your bathroom, the teenagers room, or in the study keeping stamps, envelopes and stationery organised (people do still write letters, right?).
Hanging on my diy Easter tree are my Easter Egg Zippy Pouches, made with older children in mind who might prefer money or vouchers for Easter! You can get the free tutorial here.
Also hanging on my Easter tree are some crochet bunnies. I followed this tutorial, however mine seem to resemble some kind of dysmorphic bat!
Now one of the cushions on my table is an old friend. You may recognise her from this quilt!
My trusty Woodland Hare, Harriet, has been enlarged and appliqued onto a bespoke cushion cover. She’s been stuffed and in the absence of piping cord, I top-stitched the side seams.
Seeing Harriet’s endearing smile always brings me joy!
Finally, for part 2, all of these items are sitting on my Picnic Bobble Blanket.
This was another magazine commission, this time the August ’16 issue of Popular Patchwork.
It’s a great pattern for showing off a larger scale print.
It is double backed, the outer layer being a machine washable shower curtain (we don’t want any soggy bottoms!).
This is another pattern I will commit to re-write for general sale!
There is a lot of work involved in converting a pattern from a magazine template to one of my own formatted patterns. I have a long ‘to do’ list and will be announcing some new releases soon! Thank you for your patience.
There are still 2 projects left on the table to tell you about. But I will give them a post all of their own!
By Judith on March 14, 2018 1 Comment (Leave comment)
When I was at Primary School we had a ‘Nature Table’, decorated according to the seasons, with items mucky hands would triumphantly find and trophy into class the next day!
The Autumn Table was my favourite. I can still see the bright orangey-red ovals of rosehips, shining like jewels among the tattered leaves and empty conker casings.
Well I may be all grown up now (sort of!), but in the childhood-spirit of celebrating the season, I thought it would be nice to have an ‘Easter Table’ in class!
Not all of these items are strictly ‘Easter’ related – I’m using a little Spring inspiration (& a lot of creative license!) too.
So over the next 2 posts, let me talk you through my table and I’ll give you the links to the free tutorials too!
We’ll start with the left hand side of the table. The items are sitting on my blue chenille mat. If you’ve never tried chenilling before, I highly recommend it. Great fun and super easy too!
Chenille involves lots of layers of fabric, sewn together on the bias in half inch channels. The fabric between the channels is then cut, through all layers except the bottom one. Give it a rigorous wash and tumble dry, and hey presto, you have the fluffiest fabric which you can then turn into anything you like!
So far, I’ve chenilled a baby play mat, a bath mat (below) and a heart cushion!
The large and small baskets are based on this tutorial by Pink Penguin. These are so versatile, with a multitude of applications!
Above the trug we have my easy cutesy baby bibs ….
… and my large and small Bunny Tote Bags.
These were made for Pretty Patches magazine last year. One day I will get around to re-formatting the pattern for general sale!
And above these Bunny Tote Bags are my hanging Scented Houses. I ran this as a workshop a few years ago, but I need to update the pattern. So it’s not available just at the moment, soz!
hang them in your wardrobe to keep clothes smelling fresh!
I think that’s enough to be getting on with!
Tune in later in the week for Easter Table Part 2!
I’ll leave you with my crocheted spring garland (another invention of mine for which I haven’t yet written the pattern! Soz again!).
By Judith on December 27, 2017 4 Comments (Leave comment)
Hello everyone!
How did your Christmas go over? Mine was a peaceful and relaxing time spent with family…. the best kind (though eating my body weight in mince pieces and festive fayre is perhaps overdoing it, a tad!).
In all the pre-Christmas madness busyness I past my 7th year blogiversary (20th) and on 10th December I reached 1000 followers on Instagram! Quite the milestone!
Now that is call for celebration! I’m hatching a giveaway plan, so watch this space – details will be coming soon.
But for today I’ll show you 2 more gifts I managed to squeeze in before the big day!
These are Lola pouches, designed by my very talented friend Svetlana.
I had the privilege of testing the Lola Pouch for Svetlana a couple of years ago, when I made the larger size (which I use to store all my EPP papers and templates).
This time, I needed a small zippy pouch to ‘carry’ some little gifts, and I immediately thought of the small Lola pouch.
Because of Svetlana’s brilliantly written pattern, I had these two run up in no time at all (it took longer choosing fabrics!).
I love how Svetlana puts fabrics together. Going for black and white binding may seem like a brave option given the floral Amy Butler fabrics, but I love how Svetlana has used it in the past and I just knew it would work (any excuse to use stripey binding!).
I can think of a million uses for these cute little pouches! And so quick and easy to make too!
If you fancy having a go yourself, you can get both sizes in the one pattern here.
By Judith on December 21, 2017 3 Comments (Leave comment)
Hi everyone!
Well with only a few more days to go, I hope you are not too stressed!
I have only one more commission to complete (tomorrow) and then I am officially off work! Yay!
Despite the busyness this week, I did manage to get 2 presents made. One is a secret santa (which has already been gifted) and one is a thank you gift.
It’s always ‘playtime’ for me when it comes to re-purposing my denim hoard stash! But this was my first time trying denim half square triangles.
I kept the half square triangles fairly big (by patchwork standards) and they worked like a dream. The bags are approximately 11.5″ wide by 9″ tall, lots of room for all the accessories us ladies seem to accumulate!
I love the finish of Aurifil 12wt wool thread on denim.
And some tabs saved from a beloved denim shirt add the perfect finishing touches.
And remember, never throw away those broken or unwanted pendants or charms! You never know when they’ll come in handy!
There are 2 sizes included in the pattern. I’ve made the ‘ornament’ size, finishing at only 3.75″ tall (including stem). The larger ‘pincushion’ apple finishes at 4.5″ tall (including stem).
I made these all from small scraps, and the smallest pieces of felt. It took longer to blanket stitch the stem and leaves than it did to sew up the apples!
It’s a really clever pattern – just look at those dimply bottoms!
As a pattern writer, I appreciate and enjoy using a well written pattern, especially when it produces the same results as the picture (wish I could say the same for my baking!!).
So if you need a new pincushion, teacher’s gift, or an adorable apple ornament, then this is the pattern for you!
By Judith on October 19, 2017 1 Comment (Leave comment)
Hi there! How’s your week going so far?
I hope you are managing to fit in some sewing time.
This week has had a few twists and turns for me. The Quilting shop where I teach announced they are closing down. Sad news for staff and customers alike.
A few weekends a go I taught my first ‘Rockin’ Robin’ workshop at the Northern Ireland Patchwork Guild.
The ladies were a joy to teach and totally embraced the ‘mixed textiles’ vibe. 12 cute Robins adorned the table at the end of the workshop!
I’ll also be teaching this project in my weekly classes, in the run up to Christmas.
I can’t wait to see many more versions of my Robin cushion appearing here, there and everywhere!
I’ve put together some Robin Cushion kits, using my wonderful collection of tweeds, flannel, linen and vintage cotton. The kits include everything you need to make the cushion front, including the pompom berries, pattern and already enlarged template.
Stuck for a gift idea or fancy having a go yourself? You can get your hands on one of my Robin kits here, but be quick – they are flying out the door fast!
By Judith on September 17, 2017 4 Comments (Leave comment)
Hello everyone!
How are you doing?
I haven’t done a tutorial here in a long while, so I thought it was time to rectify that.
You know how I’m always saving fabric scraps? Well I even keep the part of the fabric most people chuck away!
If like me you love to read, or know an avid reader, how about a selvedge bookmark? The perfect fabric/book loving combo!!
The key to keeping usable selvedges is to allow at least a quarter of an inch of fabric above the text (the edge below the text is a sealed edge, not a raw edge).
Here’s the tutorial:
Materials:
A selection of selvedges (with at least 6mm/0.25” above the text)
4” x 10” piece of heavy sew-in vilene (or wadding)
4” x 10” piece of cotton fabric (back)
1 x 10mm eyelet
12” length of narrow ribbon
Method:
Assume ¼” seam allowance unless advised otherwise
Angle the top corners of the vilene/wadding by measuring 1” from each corner along the top edge and 2” down from each corner along the sides
2. Place your first selvedge level with the bottom edge of the vilene/wadding (remember ¼” will be absorbed by the seam allowance).
3. Place the next selvedge on top, with the sealed edge covering the raw edge of the first selvedge. Stitch close to the sealed edge.
4. Continue adding selvedges in this way until all of the vilene/wadding is covered.
5. Flip the bookmark over to reveal the original shape of the vilene/wadding. Trim away the excess selvedges.
6. Place the backing fabric right sides together with the bookmark and sew around all sides, leaving a 2” gap in the middle of the bottom edge. Trim away the corners.
7. Turn the bookmark right sides out through the gap in the lining. Push the corners well out and press. Press under the raw edges of the gap.
8. Top stitch 1/8” from the edges on all sides, closing the gap as you go.
9. Insert an eyelet at the top of the bookmark, using the manufacturer’s instructions.
10. Thread the ribbon through the eyelet and knot to secure.
And you’re done!
Time to curl up in a squishy sofa, with a snuggly quilt and hot chocolate, and allow a good book to take you and your imagination to far flung places!
By Judith on August 10, 2017 6 Comments (Leave comment)
Happy Thursday everyone!
It’s a happy day here at the Hollies Household because not only is the sun shining, we have just had gas installed in our new home! This means we now have long awaited hot water, cooking facilities and a little heat on chilly evenings! #livinglikekings
The quilt I’d like to show you today is long overdue its reveal!
My middle daughter turned 18 last February, and I got her birthday quilt started at Brit Bee Retreat.
My daughter loves travel/world themes as well as old style items, images and graphics. Also, she isn’t into pink or girly colours so much, so I knew I had to get the fabrics and colours just right.
Purchased from Lovely Jubbly Fabrics
I was browsing travel themed fabrics online and came across this Makower fabric called ‘Airmail Travel Stamp, Special Delivery!’ It was my perfect starting point and this became my ‘headline’ print. I used the colours in this print to guide me through the rest of my stash and scrap boxes.
I didn’t want to chop the Airmail print up too small, so designed an ‘on point’ block where large sections of the headline print would appear in the secondary pattern, with scrappy pieced dividers. A little white on white to separate the busyness and it all came together beautifully.
Keeping the scrappy prints to softer tones and small scale prints helped create an overall calm feel to the quilt. My daughter’s bedroom is mostly neutral creams and greys so I didn’t want the overall look of the quilt to be too bright.
I managed to get the quilt almost completed by the end of February, just a few weeks late of the birth date. And then a request came in from a magazine editor requesting a quilt for a summer edition!
This was the only quilt I had available in the tight timescale, so off it went to England, with an apology to my daughter for yet another delay on her quilt (she was most forgiving)!
The quilt was published in the August issue of Pretty Patches (still in the shops now) and it was returned to me yesterday!
I could finally present it to my girl, who I’m pleased to say, loves it!
She travels to Norway in September for 6 months and only wishes she had room in her luggage to take it with her (she might well be needing it over there!).
So that is the story behind ‘Around the World’ Birthday Quilt. Always a special make when it’s for a loved one, and only 6 months late!!
By Judith on May 10, 2017 11 Comments (Leave comment)
My colleague in work had a bonny baby girl last week!
As we both work in a Quilting shop, it seemed only fitting to make her a quilted baby gift!
I have loved Ayumi’s fabric basket pattern since she released it in 2008, and have made many in a variety of sizes as gifts for recipients of all ages!
The original size makes for an adorably cute baby gift, especially when it gets stuffed full of treats for mummy and baby!
I recently blogged about my Ditsy Daisy Quilt, which used an uber cute collection by Lewis & Irene called Flos Little Flowers.
I had some leftover scraps from this quilt which I used to make the pretty girly mini basket and matching bibs. Some Essex Yarn Dyed Linen for the base and a little crochet trim finished off the basket perfectly!
For the bibs, I kept the patchwork simple, with a little panel of squares and ribbon trim.
The bibs are backed with towelling, making them soft and absorbent for dribbly little mouths! Using my own template I can get 5 bibs from one hand towel! This time I stitched on little velcro circles for the fasteners.
I like how the bibs make sweet little roll-ups to fit neatly into the basket!
This is a sweet collection of prints I have very much enjoyed sewing with. I hope you like them too!
By Judith on April 30, 2017 5 Comments (Leave comment)
Hi everyone, can you believe we are through April already!!
It’s been an eventful month for me, especially this past week (more on that another day). But as always, there has been lots of sewing!
I have two great friends that I regularly breakfast with. They have birthdays 2 months apart, and you may remember ‘Vi in Tweed’ made an appearance as one of these birthday gifts.
For my other friend, I made ‘Harriet in Tweed’! I recently inherited a lovely bag of tweed and wool, which set my heartbeat racing!! I couldn’t wait to use them and immediately new a Tweed Hare Cushion was on the cards.
I made the background in the same way as before, piecing strips of tweed and then quilting the seams onto wadding.
The main inspiration for this version of Harriet was a piece of vintage chintz linen. It went perfectly with a piece of green tweed I found in the bag.
Harriet is my favourite of my Woodland Friends. I used Irish linen for her face, ears, feet and tail. There’s just something about her sweet, friendly smile that gets me every time!
This time, I satin stitch appliqued the pieces to the background (bondawebbing them first of course)! I used Aurifil 12wt wool threads for the satin stitching, with a size 100 needle (just use your normal thread in the bobbin).
It’s soooooo satisfying when you have just the right coloured threads!
The back is an open weave tweed, trimmed with the chintz linen and a recycled duffle coat button to finish.
My breakfast friend is chuffed with Harriet. So that’s two happy breakfast friends, with new Woodland Friends of their own!
Wishing you all a wonderful start to the new month!
But continuous use means they get a little ‘worse for wear’ over time. So I thought a replacement was in order.
I mainly store my scraps in colour order, in a tall drawer stacker! But when I have leftovers from a particular collection, I will keep them together.
I had one such little bag of small 2″ squares leftover from a quilt project a few years ago. I can’t remember which fabric collection these are from, but I had just enough to create 9″ square pot holder.
Instead of using Insul Bright Heat Resistant wadding, I tried an extra thick compressed wadding (sold in the shop where I teach as ‘oven glove wadding’!).
I increased the stitch length and was able to quilt through it no problem. I love the firmness and texture from the thicker wadding.
Curving the corners and adding co-ordinating bias binding & a loop finished this quick little gift. It only took an afternoon!
I love how this pot holder has turned out! Can you believe I don’t have a single one in my own kitchen! I really must make myself a few, especially as they don’t take long, and let’s face it, I have oodles of scraps to choose from!
Linking up this hot pot holder with the Scraptastic Tuesday queens, Nicky and Leanne!
By Judith on February 19, 2017 2 Comments (Leave comment)
A lovely ‘owl loving’ friend of mine had her birthday this weekend!
‘Olive Owl’ first made an appearance in my Woodland Friends quilt last year. (And I’m currently teaching this quilt in my classes – it’s been so lovely watching a beautiful ‘Parliament of Owls’ appear!)
I adapted the pattern to create mummy owl, and her 3 babies on this Essex Linen wallhanging.
I love satin stitch applique, scraps and mini quilts wallhangings! And I’m pleased to say that my friend (a talented quilter herself) does too!
I managed to source an Owl wire hanger too (no pics sorry!).
So these cute birds are now too-wit too-woo-ing their way into their new home!
It’s a while since I’ve linked up to Nicky and Leanne’s Scraptastic Tuesday! Great to be checking in again with the many other talented scrap-busters out there!
By Judith on January 11, 2017 5 Comments (Leave comment)
I hope you aren’t tired of seeing my denim pouches!
I was woefully late getting a birthday present to my friend, but now that she has it I can show it to you!
This one is a little different from my other denim pouches. I thought I would keep hexies as the dominant theme this time.
the back
My Sizzix cutting machine makes light work cutting through the denim. And because I enjoying EPP-ing hexies so much, there are more hexies on the back, with just a hint of Aurifil Wool thread featuring in the base (couldn’t resist)!
Sometimes denim can feel a little masculine, so I made sure to add some feminine touches with the floral lining and pink zip!
While this pouch has been made from recycled textiles, I haven’t even made a dent in my hoard!
I guess I’ll just have to think up a few more ways to use denim!
By Judith on December 30, 2016 1 Comment (Leave comment)
Some much needed time off in December meant ‘play time’!
And for me, playtime usually involves denim!!
I love the many different tones that exist in this durable form.
I started my ‘playtime’ with a little denim EPP (English Paper Piecing) in front of the open fire on chilly December evenings.
Pretty soon I had 2 EPP panels made, and before I knew it I had 2 sizeable pouches made! I even employed The Beast for those particularly thicker features!
I was loosely basing these pouches on my denim washbag. I love how Aurifil wool thread holds its own on the thicker textiles.
I had 2 people in mind as the recipients for these pouches.
This one went to Katy, who I was making for in our Brit Bee Secret Santa.
And this one went to a good friend on her birthday – can you guess what her name is?
And I might just have a 3rd EPP Denim project on the go!
By Judith on December 17, 2016 3 Comments (Leave comment)
My uni daughter loves Gingerbread men biscuits, Gingerbread houses, Gingerbread scented candles – just about everything Gingerbread!!
So I knew the perfect gift to make for her ‘room away from home’.
I sourced some brown felt online and fiddled about with the size of the template until I was happy! I cut out 12 men.
Then I fixed some heavy weight sew-in vilene to the wrong sides of the front men, and sewed on the ric rac trim.
Buttons and embroidered faces finished the fronts.
A long time ago a good friend bought me a spool of Liberty of London twine, and I knew it would be perfect to string up these gingers!
Not wanting to have loops coming out of the tops of the heads, I machine tacked a continuous length of twine onto the wrong sides of the ‘back men’.
Then I sewed the fronts and backs together, at first with a top stitch on the machine, close to the edge, and then I blanket stitched the edges by hand using Aurifil Wool 12wt.
I’m really pleased with how these cute fellas turned out! And so is Uni daughter! It will be so lovely having her home for a few days at Christmas.
If you’d like to have a go yourself at some gingerbread men ornaments, you can get my free template here.
Along with my Tipsy Santas, this has been one of my favourite Christmas makes this year!
By Judith on December 14, 2016 2 Comments (Leave comment)
Often the smallest and quickest sewing projects can bring the most pleasure.
I’ve curated some of my free tutorials for you, in a ‘Stocking Filler’ collection!
Who wouldn’t love a framed purse in their stocking, or a handy little glasses case?
Framed Purses (2.5″ x 6″)Flex Frame Pouches
Keyfobs are such a useful accessory, as our my stacking nesting boxes (you can use these on desks for stationery or for keeping those beauty essentials organised on a dressing table!).
My towel backed bibs make sure the youngest members aren’t excluded (yes of course they have their own stocking!). Make them in cute Christmas fabrics for ‘baby’s first Christmas’!
Baby BibsUse 2.5″ squares for these festive patchwork bibs
And if you need to create a little more intrigue for a small gift, pop it into one of my gift bags! Isn’t the opening of presents just as much fun as the presents themselves?
By Judith on December 5, 2016 1 Comment (Leave comment)
I don’t mean to worry you, but Christmas is less than 3 weeks away!
Eeeeekkkkk!
I need to get my ‘Christmas shopping skates’ on!
But if you need a few ideas for what to buy a fellow sewist (or yourself!!) then how about a kit?
This is an exciting new feature of my shop and I currently have 2 types to choose from:
Hexie Framed Purse Kit:
Framed purses are so versatile and make great gifts. These hexie purses mean you can indulge in a little hand sewing (English Paper Piecing) as well as machine quilting and construction.
By Judith on December 3, 2016 3 Comments (Leave comment)
The December issue of Pretty Patches included a complimentary booklet called ‘Easy Christmas Gifts’.
I fancied having a go at the cute Swedish Santas. However it took me 3 goes to get them right!
A few ‘bottom’ issues meant my Santas weren’t sitting completely upright. And so they were affectionately named ‘Tipsy Santas’! (I think they got to the sherry a little too early!)
I also had a few ‘glue’ issues first time around, so I exchanged gluing the ribbon on with self-adhesive crochet trim. Oh how I love this stuff!
But despite the issues, I’m pleased with how they turned out, and have gifted 2 of them.
So if you would like to have a go at making some Swedish ‘Tipsy Santas’ my advice is to cut out the circle base a few inches smaller, go carefully with the glue and stay well away from the Sherry!
By Judith on November 30, 2016 0 Comments (Leave comment)
Hi everyone, I hope your week is going well. Can you believe it’s December tomorrow?!
And you know what that means!!
Giveaway time! I’ll be announcing the winner of my Tula Pink giveaway tomorrow evening, so if you haven’t already entered, just sign up for my newsletter (right) and/or like my Facebook page here.
And 18 fat quarters aren’t the only free items I’m giving away!
How about a free pattern?
This is my Storage Caddy, as seen in Pretty Patches Magazine.
It is 7″ tall with 7″ diameter and can be used to keep lots of bits and bobs in order. You could use it in the sewing room, the nursery, the bathroom, even on your bedroom dressing table!
This pattern will give you a flavour of how I structure and present all my patterns.
So if you fancy having a go at this ‘beginner friendly’ pattern it is available for free download here.
(If you have trouble downloading the pattern, please let me know and I will email the pattern to you. We have been having a few teething problems on the new site, but are working hard to get you a fully functional service!)
At the start of my patterns, you get a ‘Good to Know’ section (you can see this section before purchasing). This is where you can get all the essential information e.g. if a zipper foot is required, main techniques, best fabrics to use etc.
The rest of the pattern is then made up of the following headings:
There are step by step colour photos throughout the Make It section, and all templates have been professionally art-worked.
I have worked hard to ensure that my patterns are as easy to follow as I can make them. It is my desire that you can use a pattern confidently at home, without needing a teacher on hand to make sense of it!!
But I’m always up for constructive feedback! Let me know what you think of the Storage Caddy pattern, or any others.
By Judith on November 26, 2016 3 Comments (Leave comment)
It’s wonderful to see so many folks entering my Tula Pink giveaway.
If you haven’t already entered, just sign up for my newsletter (right) and/or like my Facebook page here.
So Christmas is sneaking up quickly, and I thought you might like a quick and easy Christmas tutorial.
How cute are these gift bags?
They are fully lined and stand at 7″ tall. Perfect for jazzing up those smaller (but no less important) gifts!
So let’s get started. Here’s what you need:
Outside: 2 x (7.5″ wide x 10.5″ tall)
Lining: 2 x (7.5″ wide x 10.5″ tall)
Channel: 2 x (2″ wide x 8″ tall) or use 1″ wide ribbon
Drawstring: 2 x 20″ lengths of narrow ribbon
Safety pin
Small square ruler
Method:
Assume 1/4″ seam allowances
1 Place both outside pieces right sides together. Sew around the side and bottom edges. Repeat for the 2 lining pieces, but this time leave a 2″ gap in the middle of the bottom edge.
2 Make box corners: Pull the corners apart and place the side seam on top of the bottom seam. Place the ruler on top of the corner and measure and mark 3″ vertically (or 1.5″ from tip horizontally).
3 Sew along the line, starting and finishing with a reverse stitch. Repeat for all 4 corners. (I like to trim off the excess from the lining, but leave the corners on the outers for a ‘stronger bottom’!)
4 Turn the outer bag right side out (leave the lining inside out).
5 Place the outer bag inside the lining. Match and pin the side seams and top edges.
6 Sew around the top edge (you will find this easier if you remove the accessory tray). Start and finish with a reverse stitch.
7 Turn the bag right side out through the gap in the lining. Push the corners out and stitch the gap in the lining closed.
8 Push the lining into the bag and press the top edge to neaten.
9 Make the Channel: Press under the short ends of each piece by 1/4″. Also press under both long sides by 0.5″.
10 Pin the channels to the bag. The top edge of the channel will be 1.5″ down from the top of the bag. Don’t worry if there is a little gap at the sides.
11 Slide the bag into your machine (without the accessory tray) and sew around the top and bottom edges of the channel, 1/8″ seam away from the edge. Rather than stopping at the sides, just continue sewing onto the next channel. Start and finish with a reverse stitch.
12 Finishing: Attach the safety pin to one end of a piece of ribbon. Thread the pin into the channel at one side, all the way around and out the same side. Knot the ends of the ribbon together.
13 Thread the other piece of ribbon in the same way, this time from the opposite side.
14 And you’re done! Fill with goodies and make lots more!
