Monthly Archives: October 2009

I like learning how things are done.  It might be the engineer in me, I don’t know.  Anyway, I’d love to learn how to weave but I can’t add a loom to my already overstuffed workshop (aka spare bedroom)

A few months ago I was reading back through the archives at AT-SWIM-TWO-BIRDS and saw that you can make a loom out of cardboard and weave up some pretty scrumptious stuff too.

So I immediately got some cardboard and tried it out.  My results weren’t as impressive as Renilde’s but it was fun to do.  I used this ‘How To‘ to get me started.

I used embroidery cotton and linen for the top one.  It took ages to finish and I ruined it by attempting to machine finish the edges which didn’t work at all.

The second one went faster using my hand spun wool.  I’ve got plenty of wool that I’m not knitting with.  Maybe I could make a massive cardboard loom and weave up some placemats or something Hmmmmm.

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Today I had FOUR (4!) parcels waiting for me at the post office.

One  cute little package contained Renilde de Peuter‘s georgous pincushion all the way from Belgium. The $AU – EURO exchange rate is a killer, but I’m glad I’ve now got it in my hot little hands.  It was immediately pressed into service.

A Miriam Bereson yearly planner to stick on our fridge (photo from her website).  I love yearly planners, I couldn’t live without them when I was in the thick of engineering project work.  This one is prettier than any I ever used in my office!

Jasper received a suprise from Grandma… A BOOK!  ‘Where is the Green Sheep’, by Mem Fox, which I read to him as soon as we got home.  He loves to join in when we are reading, so it was a pretty noisy affair.

And finally, an envelope from Tessuti with some sewing goodies.  To be blogged about later……

I’ll leave you with a progress shot of the Yellow Triangles.

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Stitching and the use of stashed fabrics have been occupying my creative thoughts over the last few weeks. 

The yellow, hand dyed muslin has been waiting for many years.  I this is my favourite type of yellow – it just has a touch of green-ness and is ‘oh so cool’.

I wouldn’t have normally teamed it with the natural hued linen, but it’s working for me today so I’m running with it.

I stitch in the lounge room and this is today’s ‘pile of mess’ which has accumulated on the little side table next to me.

Phone, scraps of thread and fabric, little scissors, glass of water, a book that needs to go back on the shelf, a little zippered bag where I keep my embroidery bits and bobs and water soluble texta.

When Jasper isn’t feeding or sleeping (or being smothered in cuddles and kisses by moi), he’s usually rolling around on a quilt or two at my feet.

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My two hansome fellas lounging beside the pool.

The water in the Jabiru pool has warmed up beautifully since our last swim.  Jasper loved it! We swooshed him around and he spashed and kicked.

Jasper’s current favourite trick: blowing raspberries!

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I’ve started embroidering the tablecloth.

Little sprigs placed at the intersections of the square grid pattern which is part of the fabric’s weave stucture.  I think I got this fabric from Ikea.

I needed the motifs to be more or less uniform in size and shape so I made a template and marked the cloth with wash away texta (blue). 

I suppose these acetate sheets will become a rare item soon since nobody uses overhead projectors anymore.  Though I’ve got a pack which might just last me a lifetime 🙂

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I live in the middle of nowhere and there are few opportunites for retail therapy.  The highlight of the day is going to the post office box… where I’m often disappointed to find NOTHING.

In order to keep my post office visiting self happy, I’ve been indulging in beautiful handmade goods from around the world.

The scarf above was made for me by Susan Johnson of Avalanche Looms. It looks fabulous wrapped loosely around my neck and I can’t wait to visit a cooler climate so I can wear it!  It is a summer weight scarf, but more of a Tasmanian summer rather than a Northern Territory summer where it’s already averaging 39deg every day in Jabiru.

Sue from Heritage Needlework has been busy weaving these beautiful bookmarks.  There are new ones on her site just now, so you should definitely check them out. 

Also, I love my brooch made by Karen Ruane. She’s having a sale at the moment- see her blog for the details.

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Squares and rectangles of terry towelling, muslin, cotton knit, seersucker, flannelette and waffleweave. I get a lot of pleasure using, washing and folding baby items.  (we use disposable nappies which is why I’m probably still cheerful about laundry)

My second favourite smell is ‘fresh off the line sheets’ (first favourite smell is when rains for the first time in a while).  The clothesline is idle today, I wagged from washing… but see our banana trees behind… we’ve got another big bunch of bananas on the way!!

In the last few weeks I’ve been busy converting various stashed bits of fabric into functional household stuff.  I made this little hand towel from very light weight waffle weave cotton left over from my baby blanket making frenzy.

And just this morning I finished hemming a table cloth which I’ve had stashed for many years.  I’m dreaming up some simple embroidery to pretty her up.

The sample embroidery has already been rejected. I think my sketches might be leading me down the right track.

And finally, I’m thinking about getting some linen sheets.  I think linen may be a good solution for our sweaty tropical nights (even with air-con). Linen fibre has a hollow core which helps it absorb moisture and also it is a smooth fibre so dirt doesn’t stick…. I bought some linen tea towels to test this theory out.  So far, so good.

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Mitred corners are a neat finish and are easy to sew as there is no great wad of fabric to sew through at the corners.  I’ve been on a roll with sewing up baby blankets and wraps in the last few weeks, so I can crank out a corner pretty quickly now.

Here’s how I do it.

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Last year I made embroidered felt balls to hang on my Christmas tree.  But I seem to have lost them in our move PLUS they would be a major choking hazard for our little one.  So I started making some new, bigger ornaments from my home made flat felt.

This first one is inspired by Jude and Cathy’s use of the heart in their work.  A love heart, doodled by the thousands by myself as a child and now with renewed meaning.

Before Jasper was born, friends told me to expect to cry a lot in the first week… and I did.  Every time I looked at this beautiful creature, I felt LOVE.  Overwhelming and total love, I was full to the brim.  It took me by suprise and is still very, very strong.

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This top took me 5 minutes to ‘make the pattern’ (ie trace a top that I already own), cut out the fabric and sew together with my overlocker.

Until today I was scared of sewing knit fabrics.  But I read this post over at Soozs and I decided to just jump in and sew something.  In my haste I cut the back piece with the motifs upside down… so lets call this a muslin 🙂

I also saw on the above blog TinnieGirl had come up with a concept called Blogtoberfest.   I’m a little late to the party, but I signed up anyway.  My aim is a quick post every day in October (starting today)…. wish me luck!

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