Cat

An adorable cat pincushion I made for my Mother in Law (fellow craft woman). I loved the look on his face when I saw the pattern.

She takes her pins very seriously and only puts the best in him!

He has elastic around the back to hold scissors or other small sewing paraphernalia so doubles up as a tidy.

Square Sewing Tidy

Again a sewing tidy made from 3 FQs. This folds up to form a neat little square secured by Velcro.

  I have used a long strip of clear vinyl across the middle and two of the square sections. This allows for visibility of what's in the pockets. 

 The other two sections have pockets that are secured with Velcro which prevents their contents escaping.  Note the shape of the tidy, this meant that the binding had to be made on the bias, good excuse to learn how to make continuous bias binding.

 There is a needle keeper and a small pincushion.

Please have a look at my other work by browsing in the categories on the right hand side. There is lots to see. Please leave me your comments.

Sewing Roll

Before actually making the sewing roll I played with the sew and burn technique to create a new fabric. Starting with an all wool felt I layered tiny pieces of fabric - using anything and everything I had. This was covered with a voile and then free machined to secure everything in place.

A soldering iron with a thin tip was used to burn through the voile exposing the fabric beneath. Some of the underneath fabrics burnt as well which added to the design. This formed the outside of the roll.

The pattern for this roll came from Mandy Shaw of Dandelion Designs. It was quite challenging to make and if I made another I would adapt the pattern in a few places. One thing I would change for example is the top of the inside flap which I would cover with the the rolls binding.

I love the button which is made from lots of small buttons. This idea I will use in other pieces.

Hussifs

A take on an item that originated from what soldiers and sailors would include in their standard gear. There is no specific pattern as these would have been made from whatever was to hand at the time. Traditionally filled with useful sewing equipment and it would appear their popularity grew and hussifs were often carried by many different people. A comprehensive history can be found here

 I have made quite a few of these and adapted them including needle keepers and small pin cushions. This is the most basic with 4 pockets, the depths of each varies to accommodate different tools. When not in use this rolls up neatly.

Sewing Machine Tidy

I saw this at a retreat and took note of how it was made. My version uses 3 FQ, but that is for a standard sized sewing machine. This is a great way to keep all those essential tools near to me when sewing.

The sewing machine sits on the main part of it which helps with uneven surfaces and eliminates vibration when sewing.

The hardest thing about making this is sewing the plastic. I have since bought a a non stick foot (#53) which does help.

 When not in use it rolls up. This is the prototype and I soon learnt that the ties need to be in a different position to have a neater roll.