Perle Club : Tiger Tape Tutorial

Hey there!

This month, all of our Perle Club members received some Tiger Tape and needles along with their shipment of threads.  I'm going to show you a quick how-to for using the Tiger Tape to help guide your hand quilting.

Basically ... if you're a pro at hand quilting, you probably won't need Tiger Tape.  But for those of us who are new or it isn't our best skill yet (ahem ... like me), its a great tool to help you practice sewing consistent stitches.

Start with something small to practice ... I have a little Mini Dwell block.  I spray basted mine really well, but a hoop is also really helpful and I would definitely use on a bigger project.

 Place a strip of the Tape along the line where you want to sew.

Thread some perle embroidery floss on your needle.

Knot the end of your thread and come up from the back. (If you are starting in the middle of your quilt, knot the end of your thread and pull the knot through the backing to bury the knot in the batting.)

Coming up from the back, sew straight down at the next line.

Then come back up at the next line.

And repeat.  As you get more comfortable, you can load a few stitches on your needle.

Once you finish your line, you can usually reuse the tape once or twice more and continue stitching in the same manner.

Of course, there are some great hand quilting tutorials online in several places. Here's a helpful video and post on the Craftsy website.

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Tutorial : Hand Quilted Journal Cover

Hi everyone!

I was recently asked to participate in a hand made series over at Clover & Violet, so I put together a tutorial for hand quilting a sketch book cover.

You can read more about the hand quilting process here at Clover & Violet.

To make the cover, I modified the Swatch Book Cover Pattern from Michelle Patterns to fit the size of a standard composition book cover.  Since I followed her directions for construction, I don't want to share them here as a "tutorial" but will give you the measurements and modifications I made to create my book cover.

Modifications to Michelle Patterns Swatch Book Cover Pattern: 

• I chose to omit the flap closure for this particular project. 
• I used a 1/4" seam to baste the lining and flap pockets together. 
• I used a 1/2" seam when I attached the front to the lining/pockets and left a 3" opening along the bottom instead of one of the sides.
• I used a 1/8" seam to topstitch around the entire piece to finish. 
• I used interfacing on the Crossweave (top and pockets) as well as on the lining, but didn't clip the corners before fusing (although I would next time to avoid some bulk).  Since I had quilted my top panel to flannel, I omitted the additional layer of sew-in interfacing called for in the pattern.
• Measurements:  Top and lining measurements are 11.5" x 16.75" presew.  Pockets were cut 10" x 11.5" (fold along long edge for a 5" x 11.5" folded flaps). 

The pattern is well-written and easy to follow and includes instructions and pattern pieces for two sizes of Moleskin Cahier notebooks.  

To learn more about how I quilted the Moda Crossweave with Perle cotton check out my tutorial at Clover & Violet. 

For this project, I used Moda Crossweave in Natural, a Honey Honey by Kate Spain print for the lining, and Perle in Medium Sea Green and Light Violet.

If you're interested, my sample is available for sale here. 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

Modernista Homemade Project

Hey y'all!  So far it has been an exciting week around here ...

Monday morning I finished and mailed off my Modernista Homemade swap package and then got ready for some my of my girlfriends to come over that evening ... while tidying up, I noticed a small lizard in the dining room.  Freak out moment.  Especially since my husband wouldn't be home before my friends came over.  Bigger freak out moment.  My husband's advice to "make a game of it" when everyone got there was not acceptable!  LOL  I tried to swoosh him outside, but he skittered under the couch.  I solved the problem by walking outside and asking the neighborhood elementary boys who were playing basketball next door who wanted to earn $20.  Four of them came running at me.  I explained the lizard needed to go, there should be no blood or guts on the carpet, and that the TV better not get knocked over.  A very entertaining 20 minutes later, the lizard was rescued and returned to the outdoors.

More exciting, though, was getting to see Chicago The Musical last night!  Wow!  What an incredible show.  Christie Brinkley was supposed to star, but was sick so they flew in the lead from NYC.  I am sure Christie is good, but I think we got the better deal on that one.  :-)  If you get a chance to see it, you should.

Anyway, I know y'all probably come here for fabric-based stuff, so here's some quilty stuff for you ...

My Modernista Homemade swap partner has a sewing area in the corner of her bedroom.  She likes big florals and birds and wanted a red and cream theme with accents of gray and blue and she asked for either a machine cover or a sewing organizer.  Needless to say, I felt a little goofy posting my fabric choices in the Flickr pool because (A) I was sure it would give it away and (B) well, most people wouldn't immediately associate "modern" with them.  So several "pretty, but not for me" type of comments later I had a few doubts.

I decided to use my Etchings charm pack and make it happen anyway. I bought some ruler twill tape on Etsy and added it on.

I like balance in my projects and decided to do a big center panel instead of an off-center one in the pattern that I was using.  I'm also still pretty new at the embroidery thing, so that also helped make my decision. :-)

I really love the perle quilting on this.  I am no longer scared of hand quilting since the Tiger Tape really made it pretty much fool-proof!  I found some shell buttons at the big box store and added them after I quilted the line down the sides.  This wasn't a problem, since the machine cover is completely lined when you are done.

I almost skipped the piping, but I think it adds a nice touch ... and I learned some things along the way that I will do differently the next time I use piping but overall I was pleased with it.

Overall, I really love it.  She should get it today and I am hoping she does too.  I might have been checking the tracking and the Flickr group anxiously to see if she's gotten it yet and what she thinks.

I also made a pin cushion and trash bucket caddy thing using this tutorial from Elizabeth Hartman - its called the "Weighted Pincushion Organizer." And its really easy to make.

I used some scraps from the cover project and I think it turned out pretty well.  The little bucket is removable as well.  I just thought a matching set would be nice.  :-)

I added a few other things and sent off this package. :-)

I haven't gotten anything from my secret swapper yet, but will update here when I do.

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Progress and Plans

Hey y'all!  So, I got some great sewing time in yesterday and managed to make some serious headway on my Modernista Homemade swap projects.  Hallelujah!

My partner asked for either a pin cushion with a removable trash bucket or a sewing machine cover.  Well, I couldn't decide between the two ... and her tastes are so specific for this project I really wanted her to have a matching set.  So I am making both.

Got the cover pieced.  Loving it with some Quilters Linen, which isn't real linen.  Surprising it looks really nice with all the gray even though its more brownish.

I am using this project to get some practice with hand quilting.  Tiger Tape is my new best friend since its helping me stitch straight and with consistent stitch length.  (Edited to Add:  We'll have this Tiger Tape in the shop later this week! :-)

Still have a few more rows to do.  :-)   I did get the pin cushion set all done - just have to stuff and stitch the cushion part closed.  I'll share that later on after I've taken some photos of it.

I also reluctantly dragged myself go to the big box sewing store today for some buttons and cording to finish up the machine cover project this week.  I will keep you posted on it.  I am sure I will wish I didn't have to mail it off.

I also worked on some plans for this week.  We're having "Christmas in July" this week!  If you get our newsletter, you'll get all the details tomorrow morning.  Or stop by here for what we've got going on this week!

Happy Sewing!  :-)