It's a Creative World

My Little Quilt-adventures in patchwork!

The drooling is over- sewing begins!

So my quilting adventure had begun- I had fabric, I had thread and I had a vague idea of creating a patchwork lap quilt!

After fussing a worrying about doing it WRONG- I decided to use my 5" charm squares to create a series of larger squares.

I machine sewed four 5" squares together, I used a 1.4" seam to join the squares.

 

I then took 2 sets of these patches I created and sewed them together with 2 10" squares from the Layer Cake pack again using a 1/4" seam:

 

Describing the process makes it sound WAY more complicated than it was!!! 

The photos explain it better!

It was also REALLY quick to pin the squares and ZIP them together on my old Singer machine.

So my Lap quilt was a series of these patches!

 

Borders:

Next I ironed my quilted top and measured it so I would know how much fabric I'd need for the borders-you can see on the photo above the strip of yellow fabric I added to the borders. 

I also added a second strip of fabric outside the yellow border to make the quilt wider:

 
 I created a back panel for the quilt- I didn't want it to be a plain piece of fabric so I sewed small blocks of 'Happy Campers' fabric to create a patchwork panel to go right across the red fabric I used for the backing. I also added borders of cream fabric so the back panel was the same size as my top piece:

With the top piece and back piece completed I was into the next stage of my quilt- where I added to wadding between the fabric pieces and start quilting them together!

Now I found this stage tricky but I asked for advice and received some top tips from quilter friends:

~Attach your backcloth to the floor/table.

I used masking tape and spread the back piece out on the floor- use pins if you have a carpeted floor!

~Lay the Wadding onto the back piece and lay the top piece onto that.

~Pin the three layers together.

~Use long tacking threads to loosely sew the three layers together as they tend to shift around.

I was going to just use pins to attach the layers but I found the fabric slid around on the wadding causing it to bunch up when I tried to quilt it *groan* therefore it was worth spending the time tacking the layers together!

So currently I am hand quilting along all the seams of my quilt or 'in the ditch' as the jargon goes! Because the three layers are being melded together the quilt is starting to look like a REAL quilt now!!

After the quilting I will be making the strips of fabric to bind the edges of the quilt and finish it all off. I will update you when I get there!

Happy Crafting!

GlitteryKatie xXxXx

Just a quick update, I finished!!!

Here are some photos I took- but it was hard to get to keep either my Daughter or the Beagles off it!!!

 

Here's a photo- ALMOST dog free!!!

And it is for ME and not the dogies!!!

 

Love kt x
  

  

Box of Memories

Hiya Claire here with a little box of memories I made for my Nana.

We sadly lost my Grandad at the end of last year & I wanted to make Nana a little something to hold her happy memories with him, so I made a little box which holds a mini book made of beer mats - which I snaffled from his local pub ( he used to have a pint with his friends every Saturday afternoon).

The box was made from an old pizza box, I also wanted it to be easy to open as Nana has arthritis & can't undo fiddly things so I made what I call a "flop box" as in you take the lid off & it flops open. It was really easy to make

 the centre square measures 4inches x 4inches & the outer squares are 4inches wide x 3 inches high, it was cut out of one sheet of pizza box & I scored the folds with a bone folder.

the lid was made in the same way the centre square being just over 4inches to allow it to fit over the box.

On the corner edge of each flap I punched a hole & added an eyelet then tied the corners together with ribbon to give it its lid shape. The lid is what will keep the box closed.

The top of the lid is decorated with a big bloom, a smaller bloom & a button

On the outside of the box... again wanting to keep things simple, I wrote 4 words, love, cherish, memories & good times (well 5 words) onto white card cut out the rectangles & attached one to each side of the box

Inside the box, I decorated each panel with a die cut heart & the book nestles in the middle

& here is the book itself, I put photos on both sides & it stands up by itself. Again I really wanted to keep the book simple... no words, just pictures & minimal embellishments as I didn't want to detract from the photos.

 I really hope you like this project.

Thanks for stopping by to see us here on Its a Creative World & hope to see you back here soon.

Take care

Claire

xx

 

One Sheet Mini Book

 

At the minute I'm loving mini books, and here's a cute little book I found on my blog travels at Inspirational Tips Techniques and Tutorials that can be made out of one sheet of 12" x 12" patterned paper.  Here's my version of the book.  I hope you like it!

First, score your piece of patterned paper. You need to score it at 2”, 6”, and 10”.  Turn the paper 90 degrees and cut at 3”, 6” and 9”. Cut along the first 6" line up to the 9" line and fold.  Your paper should look like this:

Next fold it all together and punch two holes using a Cropadile and thread with ribbon.

To seal the edges, I cut 2" wide pieces of pink cardstock to the length of the book.  I then scored these down the middle and used a scalloped edge punch on each side.  I then stuck them down the side of each page to finish off. It's then up to you to decorate your book as you please!

This book is really versatile.  It could be used as a brag book with tags inside, and it's just the right size for ATC's.  You could make it into a sweet little coupon book for Valentine's day, or use it for journalling. I am using mine for storing all my stamped images that I've coloured, ready for making into cards.

I hope you like this mini book and I'll see you again soon.

TFL! Joanne x

Knitting my days away!

Hi Joy again,

I hope all the snow has melted where you are and the temperature has started to rise.  We had blue skies and a bit of sunshine in rural Oxfordshire today.

I type this confined to the sofa.I have broken ribs due to coughing and therefore I am a bit incapacitated. I am not one who enjoys sitting still so I have decided to knit.  I am not the best knitter in the world but I did introduce you to my twirly scarf last year. This year it is wrist warmers.  I decided to knit these after being out in the snow taking photographs. I had to keep taking my gloves off and they kept falling out of my pocket. My hands were also freezing.  I am not skilled enough to do fingerless gloves so I decided on wristwarmers.

 

Here they are modelled by my teenage daughter who has pinched this pair already!

You will need  

5mm needles

double knitting wool

buttons, if you choose to add them.

How to;

Cast on 30 st ( you can cast on more for bigger hands)

Rib (K1, P1) repeat to end for 6 rows.

(K1 row, P1 row) repeat until work measures 17cm, in total.

Rib (K1, P1 ) repeat to end for 4 rows

Cast off.

Sew up from bottom edge 12cm.

Leave a 3cm gap for your thumb.

Sew to top.

Embellish as you wish or leave plain.

I now have to knit them for all my daughter's friends.  That should help me pass the time!  The next pair will be in Wolverhampton Wanderers colours for my sons.

Stay warm

Joy xxxx
 

Digital revelations ...

Hello, Alexa here! Glad to be with you again, and if you've been here before, you'll know I'm a fan of simplicity in scrapbooking. Love it. Also a little bit on the if-I-just-tweak-this-it'll be-perfect side. So when I finally started getting to grips with digital, wey-hey! Straight lines and even spacing is a breeze. You can centre everything in sight without getting Herma on your fingers, the cutting mat, eyelids (yep, that's a nasty one), or moving things so often that you end up reaching for a clean sheet of 12x12 because the current one is too tacky, literally, to use. Quick and perfect.

Well, perfect-Ish. There is a downside, if you're into perfection. Photoshop lets you endlessly add layers, change colours, drop in shadows, hunt for just the right embellishment, shuffle papers - click, click, click ... Before you know it, DH is standing at the door with a terse 'Right, I'm off to bed', you suddenly notice how cold you are (the heating having gone off hours before), and a dazed look at the clock tells you that getting ready for tomorrow is, well, frankly not going to happen as tomorrow is now today. Quick it ain't - Revelation Number One. I say this with some feeling, since this is the very recent process that resulted in ...

Yes, I was pleased with it. Using a template from Cathy Zielske's current Design Your Life class over at Big Picture Scrapbooking was interesting, and fun. And time-consuming. The next day, I wanted to print it out - I like to have something in my hands as the result of my labour. The first page left me really disappointed. Revelation Number Two: if there's a three-dimensional object, like a brad, I don't like seeing it in two-dimensional form. I want the texture, the realness of it, not a photo of it. OK, so let's turn off some background layers, I thought, and just print the images and the journalling onto photo-paper, then mount them onto card and add real brads. Revelation Number Three whacked me between the eyes. Ouch! The photo and journalling looked lovely, just sitting simply on a white page. On their own. Nothing added. No fiddling. I could have done this in a fraction of the time, and been equally - no, more - happy ...

OK, so I changed the font size down half a notch and added the date in red, but that WAS, actually, very quick and simple! Now you might prefer the more complex double-page spread, and I'm delighted if you do. But there is something so spacious and calm about just the photo and words that lets me take a deep breath of sheer pleasure...

So the next time you're fiddling with something, turning it this way and that, laying papers and embellishments against it, chewing your lip - take a deep breath, take them all off, put your photos and journalling onto a piece of white card on the floor and stand back. I accept it mightn't work for you. But it might just, as Bertie Wooster would say, be the ticket. As for me, in the absence of Jeeves, I am off to do all the things I didn't do (and should have been doing) when I was Doing Digital. And when it comes to the moment for wrapping my hands round my white mug of hot tea again, I am going to have to contemplate the result of the revelations: it's not just got to be simple, it needs to be quick as well...

PS If you can't see the journalling, here it is: "Top of the world! At least, that’s what it felt like! As well as the edge of the world - that was my anxious Mummy voice starting to speak as, yet again, you head for what seems to be the scariest place to stand. My role has been to watch, and encourage from afar, and it’s involved lots of breath-holding. Lots! But as we climbed up through the snowy woods and out onto the moor, and I watched you head purposefuly for the ledge, I thought: “Do you know what? I’m going to do that!” 2010 is going to be my courageous year. Don’t know what landscapes I will walk through yet, not sure what ledges I will head towards. With the steady companionship of my loving family, I fully intend that by this time next year, you will take a photo of me, standing there, arms outstretched in exhilaration, and smiling. And it will be your turn to hold your breath! Christmas day 2009."

2010 Project - SIMPLE THINGS

Hello, Eleanor here, introducing our year long project for 2010, called SIMPLE THINGS.

We chose this title to help remind us that the most important things in life are, or should be, SIMPLE.

Our lives as women are frequently hectic and full, and we can all benefit from stepping back occasionally and appreciating those simple pleasures which soothe us, or excite us, or just help to make our lives worthwhile.

Each month, we will provide a word, and various members of the Creative Team will interpret that word in their own way, A month later, we will 'SHOW AND TELL' and give the word for the following month.

As it is an ongoing project, we have each chosen individual ways in which to demonstrate what the word of the month means to us personally,  and so there will be a variety of techniques to inspire you, using different materials and ideas. We hope you will feel moved to join us, perhaps every month, or maybe just occasionally. No pressure.

Let us show you how we have begun, before we work on the first word, SIMPLICITY, over the next month.

I am working with fabric, for my SIMPLE THINGS project - 8" x 8" appliqued, embroidered squares, which, at the end of the project will be a 60 inch square quilt, like this:

My title square, therefore, lies exactly in the centre of the planned quilt, and all the orange scribbles indicate where the subsequent 'WORDS' will be placed. The pink and green scribbles will be plainer squares and I will edge it with a 2 inch patterned border.

Here is my appropriately simple title square, with simple applique letters:

Over to Dolly, with a completely different style and technique .

Words are incredibly powerful. They are potent, evocative and memorable and so many conjure up such strong feelings, emotions and recollections.

Just a string of symbols, because after all, that is all letters are, arranged in a particular way can make us laugh or cry, smile or frown and bring pleasure or depair.

Hopefully the words going in this book will all make me smile. It is a year long project that I am expecting to savour.

I think this project will be really special and I am looking forward to seeing how everyone interprets words differently. I can't wait to start and to see what everyone comes up with.

I have made my covers out of thick chipboard and covered them ready, but I am not going to bind my book until I have made all of the pages. Once complete it will be bound with my Bind-It-All.

The book is 8" x 6" and I chose a landscape format as I find that I am increasingly a landscape scrapper and not a square scrapper.

I used My Minds Eye papers and some lace to create a softer look to the cover.

The 'More than just' was cut out of black card using my Robo and 'words' is made using Thickers.

 

The back cover is very plain and I will use the block to write the date on when the book is cmpleted.

The inside of the front cover explains what I am doing and why and gives me the start date as well.

And a word from...

Hi all Michelle here, you may be saying who? an interloper on this blog LOL well I am thrilled and excited to have been invited along as an honorary IACW girl for the Journey of Simple Things. I had such a great visit with you all last July as Guest designer that I couldn't resist the invite to play along with this project.

I'm hoping it will really make me stop and think about all the simple things in life, what I appreciate each and every day and probably take for granted all too often, as we all explore each word and what it means to us, and what better way to express the emotion each word evokes than through art, what ever form that takes! I can't wait to see all the other ideas and be inspired by all the creative girls and you the blog followers ... I just know it's going to be fun, exciting and probably emotional!

So I'll stop the waffle and share the 'vessel' I have created to hold my year long project. I have been playing with the idea of a 'hope' chest for a while, a kind of treasure chest that will hold all my hopes, wishes and dreams aswell as extra special memories and this project is just perfect for it.

 

At the moment I have got as far as the chest making, The outside decor will be added as I go as the project takes shape for me and will become part of the journey too! I have lined the inside and will probably add a little tray in the bottom for special objects that tie in with each entry and as for my interpretations of each word they may be in a book that sits in here, index cards, fold out pieces .... not sure yet and quite like the fact I'm going to let the inspiration of the project take me where it wants to!

 
 
 I particularly like my hinges though LOL embossed chipboard and large brads ... see the project is inspiring me already! Thanks for wading through my waffle, see you on the journey! Love M x

Hiya everyone, Claire here, I was going to use a chipboard album for this project, but after a bit of thought I decided to make an album out of corrugated card from pizza boxes (not ones that have contained actual pizza I must add). I felt it fit nicely with the theme of the project. I'll be binding my book with book rings & the pages will be stuck back to back. I'm working in 6x6 as its my favourite size for mini books & ongoing projects. I've chosen the Fancy Pants, On A Whimsy papers, which are quite different from my normal style, so I'm looking forward to working with them. I haven't covered the back of my album yet as I want to see how the album takes shape, I'll also be attaching an envelope to the inside front cover for any little bits of memorabilia I want to save. So here is my front cover...

I'm really looking forward to getting my teeth stuck into this project & I really hope you would like to join in too. Thanks for coming to see us & hope to see the Simple Things that you love too.

Claire xx

Hi from Caz!

I am so excited to be part of this project. 2009 was a very hard year, it was tiring and I feel like I have forgotten how to be SIMPLE. TO just sit and appreciate my surroundings and the people I love the most. In 2010 this will change.

And the change starts now.....today.

I am going to art journal Simple Things. Now i'm no great art journaller but I loved the A-Z project which was my first time trying the art of art journalling.

Now when I had to prepare my book, I got a little worried. You see my A-Z cover was done half way through the year, at the point that I found the inspiration. So my cover is done, but I have NO doubt at all that it will evolve, lol.

 

I've used a Khadi Papers journal/sketch pad which is 7.5"x6" landscape and the plan is to art the right hand page and journal the left, ie the page behind. Well that's the plan anyway!

I hope you all come along for the ride, it's going to be great fun :) 
xx

Hello again, Mandy here. 

I was really pleased to be asked to join in with the 2010 project 'Simple Things'.   I've always wanted to make a touchy feely  fabric book & decided this was a perfect opportunity!

 
I had some large cloth serviettes (bought in a Charity shop) in my stash which are the thickest cotton and already hemmed so all I did was fold three of them into quarters, iron them to get crisp creases & layer them up.  This makes the book about 10" square.  The pages will be bulky so I used  1 1/2 "  width ribbon for the spine of the book.  Then I used my quilters 'Micro Stitch' tool down the ribbon spine to hold all the layers together...

 
I sprayed the front cover with 'Glimmer Mist' and once dry randomly stamped all over with a 'Paper Artsy' text stamp.  The title letters are 'American Crafts' felt thickers which I inked with black STAZON to darken them up.  I used blanket stitch to join the title to the cover and on the spine too.  The fun part was stitching the heart and buttons on.   I'm planning to make  8" x 8" textile pages which I'll sew into the book & am looking forward to adding photos by printing onto T-shirt transfer paper and canvas. 

Mandy

 x

And hi from Di in HOT and HUMID Durban South Africa.

I have decided to make my journal from mountboard which is GREAT and thick and so easy to work with. I have chosen a FabScraps range of patterned paper which is a great quality but single sided paper. It is local to South Africa so very reasonably price for me. It is almost cardstock weight and good to work with. BUT who knows I may add to the range!!!

 I started with 8 by 8 mountboard pages but have gone for 8 by 10 for front and back covers.

And here is my front cover. In line with the theme it is simple and portrays the two things that help me manage my life - Time and TODAY. I sanded the entire cover lightly and the edges quite rigourously - no ink LOL.It has quite a ragged look.I have  a little mini book on the front cover which will contain a little photograph of each of my pages.

I am inspired by Simple Abundance - Sarah Ban Breathnach  perhaps you can be too!

Love as always from Di X

Hi Deanne here, looks like Claire and I were on the same wavelenth! lol
I've decided to take the Simple Things as it also states, each page will made from recycled materials and only scraps of stash, nothing new, my way of keeping it simple. My book cover is 5 x 5 inches in size and each page will of different sizes.
Each monthly word will be a personal journey for me whether it be past, present or future, so I'm really excited and looking forward to seeing my book at the end of the year and the journey I've done

Thank you girls.

Well, we're off on a journey, something different for each of us, and it would be lovely if you would join us in appreciating the simple things in life.

If you would like the button for your blog, here's the html to copy and paste into your posts or sidebar:

<a href="http://itsacreativeworld.typepad.com/its_a_creative_world/project-2010---simple-things/"><img src="https://itsacreativeworld.typepad.com/.a/6a00e54f88b54188330120a7d8b74a970b-320wi" class=" selected" /></a>

We'll be back next month with our first word completed:

SIMPLICITY

IACW girls.

x

Pretty Crochet Scarf

Hi, Kel here. Thanks for stopping by. It can be really tricky if you have loved ones with birthdays close to Christmas. You don't want to let them down by not giving birthdays as much thought as Christmas, but it can be hard to be inspired for both at the same time. I was planning on going down the gift card route, but then I noticed that my stepmother's scarf was looking fairly bedraggled and, after all, I knew exactly how old it was, having crocheted it 19 years ago!

 
 So, with only about ten days to go, I hatched my plan. Luckily, the local shop had some nice cotton yarn, in exactly the colours of one of her favourite outfits. Otherwise, it would have been a trek into town, through the snow and storms of Eastern Canada, to the big craft store, with no guarantee that they would have anything nicer.

 I had an idea of what I wanted. The tan yarn made me think of old lace, and yet my step-mother likes things simple, so lacy panels were perfect. Her old scarf had just been repeated rows of the same (fast) stitch, so was easy to improve upon.

Now remember, I learned to crochet in North America, about a year before I moved to Ireland and then the UK. I can crochet easily and happily, but please don't ask me to explain what I'm doing. I can read a pattern, but I always have to check what stitches are called in that particular book (not a bad idea actually!). So I will use the North American terms and put the UK in brackets to suit everyone.

I chained on 36 stitches with the green. I wanted quite a wide scarf. If you want something trendy and narrow, you might even get away with fewer (20, 23, 26, 29, 32 and 35 would all work with the pattern). Then I did 15 rows of single crochet (UK - double crochet). I joined in a row of the tan for 1 row of single crochet (UK - double crochet) then back to the green for a row of 2 double crochet (UK - treble crochet) then chain to make a space, skipping a stitch in the row below & repeat to end. It gives you a pattern that looks like: TT^TT^TT. I had to finish with 3 of the double crochets (UK - trebles) because I hadn't planned ahead! Change to tan for a row of single crochet (UK - double crochet) followed by three rows of the double crochet pattern (UK - treble crochet). Finish the lacy insert with a row of double crochet in green (UK - treble crochet) and finally another row of tan single crochet (UK - double crochet). Now you start again with your 15 rows of green. 

That's the pattern and because of the number of rows there is no front side or back side, as it alternates with each repeat of the design - quite nice for a scarf I felt. I needed about 4 1/2 balls of the green and 2 and a smidge of the tan.

It came together fairly quickly and the fun thing was that my stepmother had no idea that it was for her, so I was able to work on it in plain view. In spite of being cotton, it is actually quite warm and very soft. I don't have the commitment for large projects, but I love how quickly things come together with crochet. That may well be the last for a while though, as I am scrapbooking at the moment.

Origami

Origami is supposed to be very big in 2010 in the crafting industry so I've decided to have a play at home and see what I could come up with, I used this book to start off with for some simple designs, there all really easy to follow and they come with all the papers in the back of the book for each project

 
A simple little house

Do you remember making these at school? I do :)

A spinning top, I really enjoyed making this, using three different papers and tucking each one into the other, a fab design and fun toy

For this project I used this book which has lots of projects that you could use on scrapbooking and craft projects

This project in particular is called a Tato Purse, and is brilliant for hiding little keepsakes on scrapbooks, or great for table favours at parties to hold confetti or dried flowers 

I hope I've inspired you to try a little paper folding

I'm still enjoying the snow here in Northamptonshire, so signing off to go make another snowman

Deanne x

Transparency book.

Ali here,

i love all mini books, but i especially love books made from transparency sheets,which are available in most large stationers

 

what you need to make a book;

Transparency sheets -this project used A4 sheets.
Book rings -2 or 3 depending on size.
Clear glue -e.g. Glossy Accents
Patterned papers/card stock -double sided is ideal (this project used Cosmo
Cricket).
Chipboard elements
Rub on lettering
Acrylic letters
Alcohol inks
Paints
Ink pads
Ribbons, jewels, ribbons

Tools

Sharp paper trimmer or craft knife and ruler.
Hole punch.
Corner rounder

To prepare the book:

•

Cut the transparency sheets to the size that you require. Most trimmers
should be able to cut through transparencies -however you may need to
use a craft knife.
•
Cut a number of 2 inch wide strips of paper -fold these in half along their
length to give 1 inch strips.
•
Glue the strips to one edge of the transparencies -like a sandwich with
the transparency as the filling. (This is the binding edge of the book). make holes for the book rings in this edge.
•
Trim the paper so it is flush with the transparency. Round the corners
and ink or paint the edges of the pages.

place your photographs and embellishments carefully,remembering that anything you place on the page will be visible from the other side.

 

Naked chipboard has been painted and makes a great base for
rhinestones and buttons.
•
Tie scraps of ribbons around the book rings to add interest.
•
Rub ons add interest to the pages -but remember any word you use will
be seen in reverse on the other side of the page.

 

Personalised Desk Calendar

Last year I made my brother and his wife desk calendars with photos of their son to keep in work. They loved them so I intended to make them one this year but with the early arrival of their second son and a hospital stay time ran out.

My brother is going to choose 12 favourite photos and then all I will have to do is print and stick and the calendar will be finished.

I googled printable calendars for 2010 and found these websites  here and here, there are many to choose from.

I cut a piece of card 12" by 4". It doesnt have to be nice card as I cover it with paper (I find the empty tea bag boxes very good) Score the card at 4" 6" and 8".

Cover the card with patterned paper, it is sometimes easier to leave a tiny gap where the folds are and ink the edges so that the calendar folds up.

Cut 12 pages 3.75" by 3.75".

I have cut a little embellishment to go with each month of the year. All the edges of the calendar and the pages are inked with chocolate brown ink.

These are the pages all ready for the photos.

Add any extra details like stickles to the snowflakes and leave to dry.

 

I have used a bind it all to join the top of my calendar. If you dont have a bind it all you could use very small book rings.

I might make one to organise my 'its a creative world'  posts.

Happy New Year everyone.

Debbie x