The Square Box

Every now and then I get to test a pattern for a friend, and it's always such an honor. My friend Amber has been turning out a series of unbelievably clever little boxes that are sewn completely by hand using English Paper Piecing methods. I got the chance to test out her new Square Box last week, and I absolutely love how it turned out.

My version is slightly smaller than the original pattern, finishing at just 7" square, but it's still very roomy. I didn't have fusible Pellon 71F on hand, but I made do with Pellon Peltex 70 and some adhesive basting spray which worked quite nicely. The combination of firm interfacing, hand sewing, and linen fabrics makes this an incredibly sturdy little box. I can tell that it's going to hold up well with use.

I've been needing a bigger container to hold my button collection, which had outgrown the little tin pail I was using. This box not only gives me plenty of space, but it looks just plain adorable sitting on the shelf in my sewing room. Visit Amber's pattern store on Craftsy to make one of your own!

Storytelling Pillow

When the amazingly talented Janice of Better Off Thread started showing peeks of her new Round the Blocks pattern on Instagram, I was excited. When she gave me the chance to pattern test the block for her, I was absolutely thrilled. This quilt block is full of possibilities, and her fantastic pattern instructions make the process of paper piecing and sewing curves completely doable. As I started rummaging through my Heather Ross scraps for the little windows, the idea suddenly came to me: a storytelling pillow!

My husband is a genius when it comes to bedtime stories. I often hear him spinning tales to our daughters in the evenings about the three little hippopotamus sisters who live in a tree house in the forest of Galamagoo -- and who (strangely enough) are usually having an adventure that coincides with whatever activity the girls are planning to do the next day. My daughters adore story time with Daddy, and they've gotten so that they love telling stories to each other too, so a pillow like this is going to get lots of use.

The process for using the pillow is simple: pick a main character from the four choices in the middle circle, add in a few details from the ring of characters, and then choose a setting from the corners. You can mix and match in so many ways that the options really are endless.

I used a cheater print by Jay-Cyn Designs from the Storyboek II collection for the back of the pillow. I figure this throws a few more characters into the mix if need be, and I love the whimsy of these designs. Click on over to Craftsy if you'd like to buy Janice's brilliant pattern for yourself. At just $3.95, how can you resist? She has some other wonderful options for this block too which you can see at the link above. I really can't wait to see what everyone else makes with this.

Meanwhile Bunny just got her first chance with the storytelling pillow on her afternoon school break. As I type this, she's over in the corner with the pillow in her lap talking softly to herself, "Once upon a time there was a Daddy Mouse, a Mommy Mouse, and a Baby Mouse, and they all lived together in the crazy pond..."

I can't wait to hear how it ends.

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday.

Retro Kitchen 2

Kristy has another set of Retro Kitchen blocks almost ready to go, and they're just as fabulous as her first round. I got to test out the scale...so much fun. Paper piecing isn't everyone's cup of tea, but for me, it's therapy. I love working on these.

You can find all of Kristy's patterns here. I've already purchased her first Retro Kitchen pack, and have the pieces cut out for my next block: the coffeepot. One more and I have enough to make a table runner...

If you haven't yet, check out my Craftsy class giveaway here.

Linking up to Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.

Hooked

My latest pattern test for my super talented friend Kristy of Quiet Play is hot off the press. I've loved every pattern I've ever tested for her, but right now anyway, this one is my favorite. You all know I'm a sucker for anything retro, and this is right up my alley. Check out her other designs in this incredible series below:

Image courtesy of Quiet Play

Adorable, right? I had originally planned to turn this piece into a pot holder, but now I'm picturing a table runner for which I'll need a few more blocks. Maybe a lot of blocks. Stay tuned...

Testing, testing...

Last August, Diane of From Blank Pages gave me the chance to test out her new paper pieced alphabet set. I've been holding onto the pictures of my project until she officially released My First Alphabet, and today is the day! I used leftover pieces from a charm pack of Sew Stitchy by Aneela Hoey to spell out the word "notion" on a simple zipper pouch. I love the grass green shade of Kona for the solid background. The embroidered words are a little joke between my husband and me -- every time I mention that I need to purchase sewing notions, he starts singing his own version of the Beach Boys' tune: "If everybody had a notion...across the USA..."

The back of the pouch is a mix of grass and cactus green Kona solids. Both of these were originally bought as a part of the Woodlands Inspired Kona Bundle at Sew Fresh Fabrics, which I have thoroughly enjoyed using on several different projects.

I lined the pouch with a white and grey scissors print from Half Moon Modern -- it was just too perfect to pass up. Though I had originally intended to use this bag for smaller items like thread and buttons, it's size (8.5 x 13") makes it absolutely ideal for storing my zippers.

I really love this bag. The paper piecing, embroidery, and prints were all fun to put together. Mostly, though, I will always remember how impressed my dad was when I first showed it to him. His eyes lit up as he reached for the bag and turned it around in his hands. "I like this one," he said with a smile.

And when it comes to compliments for a sewing project from my dad, that's praise indeed.

Polaroid Mug Rug

My brilliant friend Kristy of Quiet Play has another great pattern coming out for those of you who enjoy paper piecing. After seeing this Polaroid camera on her blog, I was absolutely charmed, and I was even more thrilled when she let me test it out for her. Discovering that I was out of black fabric didn't stop me -- I pulled out my fat eighth bundle of Architextures (which didn't include the black prints), and decided to go the navy blue route. It's a little busy, but I like it. I threw in a few blocks from the Polaroid block swap I did through Debbie's blog earlier this year, putting it all together to make a good sized mug rug.

The back uses one of the great ledger prints from Architextures. That green strip at the bottom almost makes me think of a composition book.

Add a mug of tea and a few oatmeal cookies, and I'm ready to go...

Linking up to the Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link-up.

Sushi Plate Lunch Mat

Normally I'd be doing a Vintage Holiday Quilt post right now. Unfortunately I wasn't able to finish my quilt top until after dark, and I just couldn't bear to take an indoor picture of this one. Tomorrow morning I'll get a shot of it on the back patio and have a post for you before lunch, so be sure to check back. I'm so happy with how it turned out!

The incredibly talented Kristy of Quiet Play gave me the chance to test one of her upcoming paper piecing patterns: Sushi Plate. This is my third try at paper piecing, and I love it more each time I do it. This pattern was so much fun to put together.

I used the newspaper print from Maude Asbury's Crabtastic collection for the background. I love using text prints, and this one fit the theme so well that I had to include it somewhere. The rest of the block is made from scraps by Lizzy House, Cosmo Cricket, Violet Craft, Joel Dewberry, and Michael Miller. I added a border of grey linen to make it the right size for my husband to use it as a lunch mat at work in his classroom -- large enough for a plate but narrow enough to fit on the edge of his desk below the keyboard. The back is just a single piece of the orange Jewels print by Lizzy House which I used for the fish on the front. While the mat edges look slightly wonky in the first photo, they're actually straight -- not really sure what was going on there, but it was probably the linen acting up a bit for the camera.

This project was such a delight from start to finish.  Be sure to check Kristy's blog if you'd like to snag a pattern for yourself in the weeks ahead. I've come to enjoy pattern testing so much. If any of you are ever looking for someone to test a new pattern of yours, just send me an email at hjstaples@gmail.com. I'd love to help you out!

Linking up to Manic Monday, Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link-up, and the return (yippee!) of Sew Modern Monday.

Retro Phone

When the amazingly talented Joanna of Shape Moth said that she was looking for people to test a few of her new paper piecing patterns, I was more than happy to throw my name into the ring. The pattern she ended up sending me was her adorable Retro Phone -- could there be a more perfect fit for me? This was my first attempt at paper piecing, and I have to say that I enjoyed it. It takes a little time to wrap your brain around the process, and my seam ripper has never gotten so much mileage in one day, but it's a fun challenge...sort of like putting together a fabric puzzle. I highly recommend that if you're trying it for the first time, that you watch a video demonstration. I found this one to be helpful, but I know there are more out there, so look around.

There are a mix of fabrics from different lines here including Aunt Edna by Denyse Schmidt, Reunion by Sweetwater, Hometown by Sweetwater, and Flora by Lauren and Jessi Jung. After some deliberation, I densely quilted the background so that the phone would stand out. As a last touch suggested by my mother, I added the number dial in the middle of the phone. This was a great weekend project which will now make a nice little wall hanging. Thanks so much, Joanna, for giving me the chance to learn something new!

I was excited to see my Zakka pincushion on the weekly picks again on LR:Stitched. This week we get to tackle the sewing kit, demonstrated by Katy of Monkey Do. I've been looking forward to this project -- definitely an item that will get some use around here!

Hoping you're all having a great start to your week today. Linking up to Manic Monday.