Two it is! Thanks so much for your input on Wednesday. I made two pillows instead of one, and I really do like seeing them side by side.
I loved working with Vicki's hand-dyed fabrics (isn't that deep red-orange fabulous?), and I think part of my turning in circles over what to make was that I didn't want to screw up with such a unique print as those raindrops. Or they could be teardrops, if you're of a mood to cry on your pillow (and who isn't from time to time).
A couple of you suggested nixing the zipper for an envelope back, and that was a brilliant idea.
If I'd have made just one pillow, I'd have had to put in a zipper. Making two, I could take a shortcut. The only hitch was that the fabrics I wanted to use were FQs, not quite big enough, so I had to use two different prints per back. I'm fine with how they turned out.
In fact, I'll let you in on a secret. The blue and white fabric FQ had been cut on the bias to make the ruffle, so I'd already hacked that in pieces diagonally. I really wanted to use what was left of it for the back, and the printed design seemed forgiving enough, so I pieced it back together on the diagonal and sewed it up. You can't even tell unless you really go hunting for the seam.
Sarah suggested a covered button for the center of the "umbrella." I loved that idea, but I didn't have a button to cover on hand, so I came up with a fussy cut flower fused to the center instead. It adds just that extra something, don't you think?
It's been quite dry here lately, but I know it's much worse in other parts of the country. I'd do a little dance around these pillows if it meant some rain clouds would gather, but that probably won't work. Instead, how about some music while we wait for the weather to change? I suggest The Rain Song by Led Zeppelin or I Can't Stand the Rain by Seal.
I'll be linking to Whoop-Whoop Fridays again. Click to have a look at what other crafty peeps have been up to this week!
I need your advice. I decided to make a pillow from some gorgeous hand-dyed fabrics from Vicki at Dotty Jane Designs.
"Decided" makes it sound easy, but as I am a notorious overthinker, it was anything but. I mulled and hemmed and hawed. I chased my tail and got dizzy. Then I blogged about bras, in an attempt to focus on something else for a bit.
All the while, that lovely raindrop batik waited calmly on my ironing board for the cyclone of possibilities and variables to blow itself out.
Ultimately, I landed on an idea for a pillow with a wavy ruffle, like water splashing or a rivulet, or something along those lines.
I know. Simple. All that mental energy should have led to the invention of world peace.
Then I pondered the back side of the pillow and came up with a kaleidoscope block to look like the top of an umbrella. This was idea number 4, which occurred to me in the midst of overthinking to death ideas 1 through 3. I sewed it up before I could change my mind.
Okay. So now that I have both sides of the pillow sewn, I'm thinking again. Feel free to roll your eyes.
Should I make this one pillow, with the front and back as shown, OR should I make two separate pillows? If they're separate, I would think of them as a set, though they wouldn't exactly match. I'd also have to come up with different backs, which would have to come from my stash, because I am stubborn insist on challenging myself that way. It already annoys me that I may have to go buy a zipper or two because none of the 7,963 other zippers I own are invisible. And yes, I have thought about doing a lapped application instead with a regular zipper.
Help!
There are a lot of good things to be said for eating better, but today I'm going to talk about the downside. Ha, downside. There's a pun and you don't even know why yet.
Anyway, if one drops a couple of pounds, let's say, one may have to buy new clothes that fit better. I recently had to shop for the first new article of clothing—or underclothing, as it were.
That's right, friends, the girls have deflated. Nobody ever said life was fair.
I must wear a more common size now, judging from the lack of choices in said size at the store. Picked over, is what they were, leaving me to buy the first white bra since, oh, sixth grade? No, not really, but it's been a while. Also, the first non-underwire bra since Bush No. 1 was president. Like I said, the pickin's were slim.
What cracks me up is this tag. Age-Defying Lift! With helpful directional arrows! Just in case you're dyslexic when it comes to north and south or can't tell what's up and what's aiming for the floor.
But I have to say, it's not false advertising. I feel very uplifted. And my boobs don't look a day over 40.
I love this woman's voice. However, I wish to buy her a bra. Preferably while they're on sale.
I had originally intended to whip up this table runner in July, but September will do. It's done before Christmas, that's the important thing.
The pattern for this project comes from Penny at Sew Take A Hike. The "peppermints" are paper-pieced.
This time, wonder of wonders, I didn't have to re-watch the how-to-paper-piece video (though I thought about it). I just sat and stared at everything for a few minutes and flipped things back and forth until it came back to me. That's progress, I guess.
I traced the design onto regular wax paper. I couldn't get a pen or pencil to work on the waxy surface, however, so I grabbed a good old-fashioned tracing wheel and used that to mark the lines. Then, as an afterthought, I tried a Sharpie marker to number the sections, and wouldn't you know, that worked just fine and didn't smudge. But I did like how the tracing wheel worked to make subtle perforated lines that were easy enough to follow.
Wax paper is translucent, which makes things easier for this newbie, and tears away readily. It's also inexpensive. One downside is that it shrinks/wrinkles a bit if you press it with an iron, so I just finger-pressed the seams until the whole block was together, and then I went over everything with the iron.
I had a sewing machine wreck about halfway through making this. I was winding the drop-in bobbin on my 1960s Singer when the bobbin, as well as the bobbin case, popped out, the needle jammed, and things came to a crashing halt. It was really quite spectacular. After I got everything unstuck and back in its rightful place, my machine started making a clattering sound as it sewed. But it did sew, so I kept right on using it to finish this runner (which probably constitutes some kind of machine abuse, and certainly stubbornness on my part). A day later, I sewed over something hard and broke a needle, and things got quieter once I replaced it. So I'm not sure whether to take it into the repair shop for a once over, or simply carry on. I'm leaning heavily toward the latter. Call it denial.
The directions for this runner suggest flannel as a thin batting. Instead, I used an interfacing-like material and doubled it. Mistake. Flannel is probably the way to go. Mine turned out a little too poofy, although the quilting tamed it down some.
So, the Christmas table runner is done—but I'm not ready for snow and jingle bells just yet!
It's already Friday in Shay's part of the world, and that's good enough for me. That means it's Favourite Things Friday!
I tell you what, most of the time it's easier for me to name a Not My Favorite Thing. Like that pesky little fruit fly that keeps zipping through my field of vision as I type this. Hey, Fly Dude, that banana peel is around the corner in the garbage can. Go, knock yourself out.
Anyway, Favorite Thing. Surprisingly, it wasn't these (recipe here).
But check out that evening sunlight. Now that's scrumptious.
My Favorite Thing this week is the music of The Belle Brigade. I found them while perusing Amazon's recommendations the other day. Brother and sister duo with tight harmonies, thoughtful lyrics, and a sound that brings to mind the likes of Simon and Garfunkel, Lindsey Buckingham, and maybe Indigo Girls.
Here's an upbeat tune:
In this next one, they're doing an unplugged version of "Losers" in a bathtub (bathroom acoustics are the bomb). The towel on Barb's head rocks its way off about halfway through, lightening the mood.
And finally, a live version of their song, "Rusted Wheel."
If you don't have time for a listen, that's just fine. But tell me, who is one of your favorite musical artists?
Thanks for stopping by, and have a fabulous Friday!
In fact, I'll let you in on a secret. The blue and white fabric FQ had been cut on the bias to make the ruffle, so I'd already hacked that in pieces diagonally. I really wanted to use what was left of it for the back, and the printed design seemed forgiving enough, so I pieced it back together on the diagonal and sewed it up. You can't even tell unless you really go hunting for the seam.
