Friday, December 20, 2013

Owl gadget cozy

I first saw this cute little guy on Pinterest.....as a link to someone's Etsy shop where he was for sale.  Of course I surely thought I could make my own....and I finally did!  But I had help.  I was at the library and just about fell over when I saw him on the cover of a book! The Happy Stitch book of 30 Felt & Fabric Projects for Everyday! Page 18 and there he is! And now he's mine!  It was my first attempt at any sort of embroidery stitch, including the blanket stitch, but over all it went okay.  I skipped the liner on the back.  In the future, I think I would line the back, but also use interfacing on the back for increased support (something which the book does not suggest.)

Saturday, December 14, 2013

microwavable rice bag monster

Greeeeeaaaaaat.....I just read a blog that says not to use felt on these microwaveable rice bag creations because much felt is made from polyester, and polyester will melt in the microwave. Of course the same blog suggests using fleece, which is also a type of polyester.  It melts when over-heated.  Ideally, you should use a 100% natural fabric like cotton.  Oh well.  

Anyway, here is the tutorial I used.  

Applique just bores me to death.  

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Perler- Hama Owls-- persistence pays off

I bought these plastic beads at a thrift store for some oddball project I was doing.  The project didn't work out and I was left with all these silly beads.  I saw some really cute owls on Pinterest using the beads, so I thought I would give it a shot.  Having never worked with these beads before, I didn't realize that there were different boards for different patterns. Sure, my thrift store find came with different boards- like a star and circle, but I just figured they were to help you make a star and circle.  I didn't realize that the little nubbies on the boards were actually set up difference.  Of course I found this out pretty quick when I tried to replicate the picture on Pinterest.   Frustration ensued.  First I tried to completely wing it with the first (large) owl. That's a blocky mess with a big head. Then I very closely followed the second smaller owl, which wasn't lining up correctly and hence turned out a big cock-eyed.  Finally, thank you LaRaLil!!! She had her owl photographed on the STAR board, so I was able to clearly follow her lead.  I'll tell ya, things are much less frustrating when you have a pattern to follow.  I was cursing those Hama beads, wondering why anyone would want to do anything so tedious and frustrating as trying to get those little plastic beads in just the right location.  But once I had a pattern and my owl turned out decently, I actually had a little bit of fun!


Side note........so, explain this to me.........we are often so concerned about melting plastic and releasing toxic fumes and chemicals..........yet all over the world we are melting plastic Hama beads.  I've seen blogs where people are using take-out plastic to make their own shrinky dinks, and the naysayers are warning in the comments of "dangerous plastic fumes"......Or people are afraid of plastic water bottles and BPA.......Okay, we aren't drinking the Hama beads, so I'll give you that one.  But barely.  

Applique

I thought I would try my hand at applique again and dress up a boring shopping bag I had made earlier.  OMG, what a tedious task sewing an applique is.  I remember reading somewhere to go slow.....so slow that you get bored.  Well, I got bored alright.  Ugh.  How do people do so much applique?  It's just so boring!  Cute results, but boring!

And no, I don't expect that tail to last very long.  I need to find something more permanent.