Sewing Accessories PDF pattern

The pattern for my sewing accessories set, the companion set for my sewing machine cover, is finally available at the shop! This pattern, 'Beyond Measure' Part II, was originally published in the January 2011 issue of Australian Homespun magazine.

The set consists of a sewing machine mat, thread catcher and pincushion, made from a linen/cotton blend fabric and the vibrant 'Hope Valley' by Denyse Schmidt 

The machine mat is designed to sit beneath your sewing machine. I have been surprised at how the mat has reduced vibration of my machine, and helps to prevent my sewing from slipping off onto the floor! The quilted mat has a pocket panel, which overhangs your workspace, providing lots of storage nooks for your sewing tools of trade. It has piping trim, and is embellished with a twill tape, printed with 'measuring tape' markings.  

The thread catcher attaches to the mat using magnetic clips. It is removable for emptying. It sits conveniently at my right hand, ready and waiting for my snipped threads. Of course, if you're left handed, you could simply switch it to the other side of the mat. It has simple running stitch embroidery and pearl button embellishment.  

The pincushion is a simple, rectangular design and has a handy scissor keep at one end. It is embellished with running stitch detail on the side panels.

Details of the exact sizes of these accessories can be found in the shop listing.


As for my machine cover, I made up a second set in a contrasting set of fabrics. I have maintained the same linen fabric, but have used Moda's Martinique line, for a different look:

The 'measuring tape' twill ribbon I used in these projects can be purchased at The Home Patch, who readily do mail orders. They sell the ribbon in metric and imperial markings.

And I changed the button detail to a 'bloom' alternative:

Both 'Beyond Measure' Part I and Part II are available in the shop as PDF downloadable patterns for AU$8.50 each. 

For a limited time, if you'd like to purchase both patterns, you can have them for AU$15! Just click on the 'Bloom' sale link in my shop if you'd like to take advantage of this offer.

The peace of a garden

How quickly the first term of school has flown by. It has been a busy time in our household. But it is the destruction, natural and manmade, in the wider world in the last three months that has left me overwhelmed and seeking shelter in my garden. I took some photos in the late afternoon sun on Friday, drawing breath and seeking some serenity! 

 Diaphanous diascia!

 French Delbard rose,'Camille Pissarro ...

 ... bathed ever so briefly in the warm light of a setting sun.

Nodding heads of the David Austin rose, 'Lichfield Angel'.

Pert prettiness of the lovely 'Jane McGrath' rose.

 Lipstick pink salvia, making a bold and saucy statement ...

... matched only by the drama of some hot red snapdragons!

But these dwarf, showy wannabes will soon be eclipsed by the brilliant autumn colour that is developing with Acer x freemanii 'Autumn Blaze'!

How's the serenity, eh?!

Oo-oo-ooh ... do what you wanna do, be what you wanna be, yeah!

Thank you for your thoughtful and insightful comments on my last post. I really enjoyed reading every one of them!

I need to say that my 'dumbing-down' post wasn't borne of any direct criticism of my work. In four years of blogging, I've had not one negative comment about what I do. I am very thankful for that. My post was a simple response to the debate and I took the indulgent liberty of some navel gazing!

Such was the wisdom expressed in your messages, that I've pulled together a list of helpful reminders from your comments, hitherto referred to as the 10 Commandments Things to Try Hard to Remember:

1. Thou shalt quilt what makes you happy!
2. Want simple, do simple. Prefer to be engaged in the art of precision work, then do so. 
3. Those starting out quilting should be encouraged and admired for their efforts, and those who can produce a pickle dish of breathtaking precision should be held up as the artisans they are.
4. Do what you love, post how you want 
5. Your blog, your way!!!
6. Be happy and supportive of one another whatever we choose to make.
7. Quilt and guilt should never occur in the same thought.
8. If we lose sight of the pleasure quilting is, what's the point?
9. Don't ever lose the love of how seemingly disparate fabrics can come together in a dance of colours that bring joy to those who get to wrap themselves in it!
10. Who cares what 'they' think, let's go quilt something!

As I read through your comments, the overwhelming sentiment seemed to be 'do what you wanna do, be what you wanna be'. This is the chorus from a 1971 The Master's Apprentices song. Yep, I'm showing my age ... awww, I was only five! I found the original film clip, and though the other lyrics have sweet nothing to do with the topic at hand, it made me happy. So here it is. I hope it makes you happy too! 

I think I will go make myself a nice cup of tea, settle in to some quiet stitching and wait for the storm to pass! Bloom x

The dumbing-down of quilting?

This post has been rattling about in my head all day  - perhaps it should have stayed there. Perhaps I would be wiser not to buy into the debate raging in quilting circles right now. At issue is whether quilting is being over simplified to the point of sacrificing technique and quality. 

In an attempt to summarise this emotive subject, here are some of the thoughts being debated:

As a quilter, are you:

• extending your skills, or contenting yourself with simple designs?
• working with triangles? Are you adept at constructing a pinwheel block?
• sewing with a consistently accurate 1/4" seam?
• choosing your own fabric combinations for quilts, or buying pre-cuts where the choice is made for you?
• are you striving for accuracy, or disguising the lack thereof with 'wonky, improvisational' blocks?

As a quilter who blogs, are you:

• doing your readers a disservice by sticking to simple designs, focussing on quantity, rather than quality?
• glorifying the simplest of quilting achievements, in order to have your ego stroked?

As a pattern designer, are you:

• trying to make a buck from selling over-simplified patterns? 

My, what a minefield! And do you feel the pressure? I feel guilty of several of the points at issue, and I feel a somewhat irrational need to defend myself! Many of the projects I am drawn to right now are simple and understated. This is purely a result of the stage of life I am currently in. With school-age children, I simply do not have the time to pursue complicated designs or the money to attend workshops to extend my techniques. I most certainly have the desire for these things, but not the wherewithal right now. And I don't think I'm the only one in this situation!

Has this issue caused a lack of confidence in my work and whether it is blog worthy? Well, yes. I feel like I should be getting my Dear Jane out again to justify my claim as a quilter! But it is a momentary lapse of reason, to be sure. To beat myself up with guilt or to turn myself inside out seeking the good opinion of others is not what being creative, or writing a blog is about. Quilting for me is a creative release, a therapy amidst a busy life. My blog is not about showing-off or seeking praise. It is a precious way of connecting with like-minded women. 

If you'd like to immerse yourself in the great 'dumbing-down of quilting' debate, just Google it!

Hey, big spender ...

After weeks of relative restraint on quilting purchases, I have weakened lately in preparation for a flurry of creative activity (ha, so don't quote me ... lots of plans, no prospect of any spare time)! In my mailbox this week:

A soft & sumptuous 'Strawberry Fields' layer cake, by Fig Tree & Co for Moda. Purchased from Jane at the very appropriately named Want It, Need It Quilt Store. I highly recommend Jane's store for her prompt delivery and competitive Australian prices on Moda precuts. I have a new quilt planned for these lovelies.

A spring clip and chain from Marg Low Designs, to make Marg's 'Delightful Blooms' purse in this month's Australian Homespun - a perfect little Easter holiday project, that will surely be accomplished in a wink?

And a new quilt pattern from Shea at Empty Bobbin Sewing Studio, at the request of my son, who says it's very cool and wants in it exactly these colours! It is called 'Seeing Squares' and is available here. On first reading, it seems a very clever and well written pattern. I am looking forward to getting my teeth into this one. Son is even offering to learn to quilt, knowing full well how long his last quilt took me to make! Perhaps I'll take him up on it!

Hey, big spender ... S-P-E-N-D a little time with me!

Bloom x

Free to a good home

Just popping in briefly amidst helping my kids through what seems an insurmountable stack of homework and projects. If you want to know anything about the themes of the graphic novel 'Maus', or anything at all about the South China Karst or even the Taj Mahal, well I'm your girl!

Driven to drink, I am sipping a half-glass, late evening tipple of sauv blanc, and having a 15-minute surf before bed. I happened upon this little lovely:

The uber-talented Aussie stitchery designer Bronwyn Hayes of Red Brolly, has designed this very sweet Easter project, and has generously released it on her blog for FREE! Run, go get it here! Thank you Bronwyn, for such a perfect project just in time for some holiday stitching ... if I can just get these teachers to stop giving my kids homework!

A quick fix

There is such satisfaction in finishing a quick project. I made this little iPod case today.

It is from Janelle Wind's lovely book, 'Pieces of Me'. (There is a list of stockists of Janelle's patterns on the left sidebar of her blog).

I have used some precious scraps of Denyse Schmidt's 'Flea Market Fancy', a cobble stone print from 'Flights of Fancy' by Paula Prass, and an XLN Basics orange dot. Oh, and a very old, worn button, which I thought just sort of worked.

Now the only argument to be won is which of the three girls in the house this belongs to. I am betting on the oldest and most persuasive one - ha, that would be me!

Roast plum and blackberry cake

A sweet gem from the Sunday paper, using the last, luscious fruits of summer - a very moist and delicious dessert cake. It is a little soft for lunch boxes, although my kids didn't mind! The recipe is by Karen Martini. Enjoy!

Distracted by colour

My apologies for a quiet blog for the last little while. Life has been busy with kids' swimming carnivals, a school fete, some work days here and there, and trips to the farm. There has regretfully been no sewing time, but mercifully, some thinking time!

I have been thinking about colour. It all started here, with this Anna Maria Horner 'Good Folks' print purchased recently. I noticed an astonishing FIFTEEN colour dots on the selvedge. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this means fifteen different screens for a single print - wow! No wonder this fabric packs a punch!

I love to use the colours of selvedge dots to inspire colour schemes for quilting or stitchery designs.

Another source of colour inspiration is Color Collective. Lauren Willhite has compiled this wonderful resource by using the works of artists, designers and photographers to inspire imaginative, often unusual but always beautiful palettes of colour. Any day that you are stuck for a new colour combination, you are bound to find something to enliven your senses at this site.

image source

You can waste a whole lot of time over at Kuler, where there are endless colour schemes to fire your imagination. Under the 'create' tab, you can upload your own photographs and Kuler will generate colour palettes to match. You can even choose a 'mood' for your palette from colourful, bright, muted, deep or dark.

For colour advice, specific to quilters, there are some great posts written by bloggers to refer to. My first port of call would be the queen of colour herself, Rita at Red Pepper Quilts. Rita has written a wonderful post called Colour in quilting in which she advises to take time to notice colour in the everyday.

Jeni, at In Color Order, is writing a brilliant series of posts called The Art of Choosing which deals with fabric and colour. She has lots of great advice about choosing and organising fabric, based around principles of colour. Pop over to Jeni's and feast your eyes!

And just for fun, here's what happens when colour, a bookshelf and someone with a whole lot of time collide!

Imagine doing this with your fabric stash - how fun! Have a great week,

Bloom x

Something for Kate!

The 'Little Menagerie' has been tamed into a quilt top.

Photos shot very glamourously against the garden shed!

That's the easy part done. Now ... to the quilting!

(Pattern is my 'Abracadabra', fabrics are Melanie Hurlston's 'Little Menagerie', against white solid).

The 'eyes' have it

I did my darnedest to resist, truly I did. But every time I walked past these fabrics in my local quilt shop, they were calling my name. Those sweet elephants, their innocent little eyes coaxing me, "Come on Bloom, you know you want to" ...

What is it with the eyes? The owls too have that pleading look, "Hoo, hoo, take me home ... take me home"!

And the monkeys? Well, who could resist such cheeky smiles!So try as I might, these cute creatures have charmed their way to my place, destined for what will hopefully be a busy weekend of sewing. They are from Melanie Hurlston's 'too cute for words' range, 'Little Menagerie'. Melly, you do 'eyes' way too well - I'm sure there's some subliminal messaging going on!

My plan is to whizz these up into a little 'Abracadabra' quilt for a new niece.

Comfort

Dull, rainy day ... hot scones and homemade crabapple jelly - life could be worse!

Needless to say, I didn't have to go to work today! Scone recipe here, and crabapple jelly recipe here.

Tip of the day

Not that my days are chock-a-block with tips, but here is my 'tip of the day' nonetheless. Inspired by this post, over at La Vie en Rosie, I made myself a block board today. 

Armed with a $2 art canvas, some spray adhesive and some fleece, I made myself a block board. That is, I stuck the fleece to the board and trimmed the excess. How clever am I?! I chose the art canvas only because it is flat and inflexible. Any sort of 'board' would do. 

I can now transfer my nine-patch pieces from my design wall to my machine (admittedly only metres away!) without losing bits or forgetting the layout I decided upon. The fabric squares stick nicely to the fleece, no slipping. What can I say - happiness from the simplest things!

Sewing machine cover PDF pattern

For those of you who have been waiting patiently for my sewing machine cover pattern, 'Beyond Measure', it is ready and available at the shop! This pattern was originally published in the November 2010 issue of Australian Homespun magazine.

The cover is a tailored design, closed at the ends to keep the dreaded dust at bay. It has piping trim, simple running stitch embroidery and pearl button embellishment. The 'measuring tape' twill ribbon can be purchased at The Home Patch, who readily do mail orders. They sell the ribbon in metric & imperial markings.

I made the cover twice, changing the patchwork panel from the hip and happening 'Hope Valley' by Denyse Schmidt to the more subdued and elegant fabrics from the 'Martinique' range by 3 Sisters. It gives the cover and entirely different look.

I live by a theory that ANYTHING + LINEN = SUCCESS.

'Hope Valley' and 'Martinique' are such different ranges, but against the common foil of linen, I think they both sparkle.

I have designed a companion set to this machine cover. It will be released as a PDF pattern in a couple of months, subject to my contract with Homespun magazine.

Thank you for your support of my fledgling little pattern business, especially the lovely souls who purchased my 'Abracadabra' quilt pattern. I appreciate your support sincerely!

Daybook entry #7

Outside my window ... are my beloved roses. The day is refreshingly cool after a hot spell.

I am thinking ... how much I hate housework. Over the years, I have come up with all sorts of strategies to motivate me to get through the household tasks. Today is one of those days where there is so much to do, I don't know where to start. I have taken myself aside and we have decided to 'just do SOMETHING'! I dug out this little stash of squares, and have put them next to my sewing machine. 

I am stitching ... therefore, between menial household tasks,  little 9-patch blocks as a reward for my impressive domesticity!

I am thankful for ... healthy, energetic children, even though they fight with each other and wear me out!

From the kitchen ... I need to make up a batch of Thimbelina's Easy Scrolls. These have been a hit for school lunches. I make them at my leisure, wrap them, freeze them and thereby avoid the dreaded sandwich making in the mornings.

I am thinking ... of whipping up one of these little cuties for a new niece: a fluffy*stuffy bunny. Jenny over at Allsorts has very generously posted a free pattern for her bunny and a dress to match. 

From my picture journal ... a favourite photo of my waterlily, flowering right now. I have added it to my wallpaper page if you'd like to share it!

Happy house-working to those of you enjoying that pleasure today! Bloom x

Thinking of our Queensland friends

There is an awful feeling of impending doom here in Australia today. There is a severe cyclone due to hit the far north Queensland coast this evening. How much can the people of our beautiful northern state endure? The state is just recovering from devastating floods, and now this. I am old enough (just!) to remember Cyclone Tracy which hit Darwin on Christmas Day in 1974. And this cyclone is shaping up to be just as destructive.

 

To my blog friends in the path of tropical cyclone Yasi, we are thinking of you and praying for your safety.

Amazing coverage of Yasi's approach here.

And posted to the Queensland Police Facebook page - typical Aussie bravado!