Hawaiian Applique

In sticking with this month’s theme of “Using what I have”, I start to work on my Hawaiian Applique. I selected a leaf pattern from Elizabeth Root’s The Pillows to Patch Quilt Collection… the Hawaiian Way. By the way Elizabeth’s books are a work of art in their own right. My own words would fail to describe their beauty. I suggest checking them out for yourself. I own two. I just realized that she has many more than I need.

I stated by preparing the background fabric. The book suggests using a 21″ square. I only had a fat quarter. So I squared it to 18″. Then I folded it find the middle. I used my crease lines to determine the center. Then I needed to decide which size of the leaf I should use.

Since my background is smaller than suggested I had copied the leaf in two different sizes, 100% and 90%. When I held them up to the background, the larger one looked better inspite of my small background.

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I cut a 14″ square out of my leaf fabric. I folded it into 1/8th, like cutting a snowflake. I traced the leaf pattern onto the fabric with a micron pen. Then I cut. It was easier than I expected. You definitely need good fabric scissors for this step.

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Using the crease marks, I center the leaf onto the background. I love it. The leaf pattern is fairly simple. Yet the print is very busy. They make a good match.

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Final preparation step: securing the leaf to the background. The book suggest basting the leaf. I really hate to baste. Instead I secured the leaf using Roxanne’s glue, a lot less time consuming.

So far I’ve managed to applique a few leafs. Since I have no idea what this applique will grow up and become, I can take my time and enjoy the proces.

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My Pointy Kitty

I finally decide to create Wee Wonderful’s adorable Point Kitty. While I love to sew and create things, I don’t have the best track record with stuffed creatures. Maybe I just need more practice. Right? I made the plunge. Here’s my version of Pointy Kitty…

Pointy Kitty

Pointy Kitty

Now I’m off to create an account in Flickr so others can see my creation.

Use what I have

While I’m a little late to announcement my involvement, I’ve decided that I’m going to participate in the Use What I Have challenge.
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Since April 1 I haven’t purchased any additional crafting supplies. So far so good. I think this is a great opportunity to finish a few unfinished objects.

In fact last night, I finished a pair of socks for Brother #2. He knows that I’m making them. He’ll be happy to finally get them.

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I’m addicted to Bloglines

Today is a sad day. Bloglines is down. I without my daily craft inspiration. I need it.

I really have stuff to post. I just need to do it. My problem? My little laptop died. Ross has a laptop. However he uses it a lot in the evening to to write. So I don’t get much screen time. Ugh! I need a solution. I think we’ll need to have a little chat tonight about my need for computer time while at home.