Free Applique Pattern series: Fluttering, Block I

The Romance Series of 4 blocks have all been posted and shared.  Now here is the 1st block from the Fluttering Series of 4 blocks.  They can stand alone or be added into the same quilt as the Romance Series. With these blocks I share my love of butterflies to compliment my love of flowers and hearts.  What could be greater but a quilt with all my favorites. I have heard from several people that they will be using my patterns for a embroidery pattern.  That's what is great about applique patterns.  They can be used for embroidery, applique and painting.  Just have fun and enjoy.  
Marjory

STUD (Swap Till You Drop) Sept-Oct Anything Goes Theme

My partner, Quiltnkimmie, loves "The Wizard of OZ" movie.  She has a collection of many different items from Oz.  I decide to do the witch for her.  After all my favorite holiday is Halloween.  I have called this mini quilt "Take that! My pretty!"  This was a gas to make.  Loved every inch of it. Here is the final package sent.

Yes, that's a witches hat pincushion.  Coming up with the right extra was the only problem I had with this swap.  Here's a closeup.

I'll be making one for myself for my collection and I will be putting together a tutorial at that time.  I may wait until next Halloween to share it or I may not.  tee he he he

Here's what I receive fro Quiltnkimmie.

He really is a "STUD".  I adore him!!!!  He's so cute!  I have yet to put him up on my wall of fame, but he will end up there sooner or later.  Wait I'm not done yet!!!  Let's see what else I received in this package.

There was a glass, a wood and 2 silver frogs in my package.  I'm in glory, I'm so thrilled.  The glass frog in on my frog shelf, the wooden frog is a magnet and is on the frig.  The silver frogs are hung out for me to see everyday.  Actually I will see them all everyday.
Quiltnkimmie said she thought it would be fun to include frogs made of different materials.  It is, it is!!!!  The next picture shows the little purse that the silver frogs

were.  It's darling!!!  When I finally have a shelf for all my pincushions this will be included with them.  The peace signs are actually tacks and have been added to my design wall.  I received this the day after the package from Scrapnchick arrived so I've been a very happy camper lately. 


Keep on Swapping!

Marjory

STUD (Swap Till You Drop) Sept-Oct Halloween Theme

My partner, Scrapnchick has received the mini quilt that I made her for this round.  This means I can finally share it here.  This is and the other STUD swap I've done this round is why it's been so quiet here the last week or so.  I can't share here if I want it to be a surprise and I'm big on surprises.    For this round Halloween was the theme.  Not hard for me, I just had to go to my already designed unfinished projects and steal from them.  I did some tweeking to make it fit this venue and it was ready to go.  Oh, oh my partner posted that she likes spiderwebs.  I wasn't planning on that.

That made me rethink the ghosts in the offsetting corners.  I still wanted to do them but I wanted the spiderwebs to be seen too.  "Flash" goes my brain.  What if the Ghosts were made from organza.  I could burn the edges and sew them on.  Better yet what if I sewed them on with Glow in the Dark Thread.  This resulted in 2 technical problems that delayed my finishing the quilt on time.

Most Spiderweb blocks are made using 4 blocks that intersect.  This would make the web way to large for a mini quilt.  After a search of the web, I found this pattern.  So I designed my mini quilt around this block.  The problem was I didn't read the directions.  This block is made by sewing strips together, cutting this into squares.  Then cutting the squares in half on the diagonal.  Easy right, just like half square triagles. Just pieced.  The problem was it's done completely random and the block comes
out the size it comes out.  I decided on what size strips I would cut to do a small enough block.  This quilt is not suppose to be bigger than 15"  Half of 15 is 7 1/2", right.  Well the first block game out to be 8 1/2".  Too large!!!  So I recut strips 1/4" smaller thinking this should get me closer to the right size.  Wrong!!  It came out about 6" finished.  Instead of making another test, I just added a border around the web to make it float.  Whew!!! 

Second problem came when I tried to attach the first ghost.  I thought and thought about this and decided to use paper piecing paper. I could temporarily sew the ghost to the paper, thereby stablizing the organza.  Then I could cut out the ghost and zigzag it in place on the quilt.  This would work because the back of the ghost was in the seam allowance, so I could pull the paper out through this side.  Wrong, wrong, wrong!!!!!   The paper is stronger then the organza!!!  The organza tore before the paper!!!!  This was a nightmare.  I was going to be late!!!   I still had to do my other swap for the same group.  Ughhh!

I refused to change my design.  I needed to make it work!!!  After several sleeples nights and a consultation with my BFF in Texas. I came up with the idea that maybe I should cut out a fusible web to be about  1/8" around the outside edge of the ghost.  That would stabilize it long enough to zigzag around it.  Hopefully.    As you can see it worked.   Here is the entire package that I sent Scrapnchick.

Here is the quilt that arrived from Scrapnchick. Isn't it great.  I love the black and white

border fabric and the way it cries fall not just halloween.  Below is the whole package.  That large green button is really a little box filled with colorful buttons.  The Jackolatern face is a small mugrug.  It's so cute!  I love it!  Then there is a pad of paper with a magnet on the back.  It's now joined all my frig art.  I've been very lucky this round with my partners.

Swapping is Fun!!!!

Marjory

Potholders Pass Shipped and Received!!

Here are the potholders that I sent to my secret partner.  She should receive it sometime this next week.  I can't say much about her except that she posted on Flickr that she likes them.  I included a little house pincushion as a little extra.  I am thinking of doing a tutorial next month for both the potholders and the house pincushion.  Anyone interested?

Here's what came yesterday but I didn't find until today.  I have what is almost extinct in this country.  Door to door mail service.  I have a slot in my office wall where the mail is deposited.  If the mailman can't insert it they leave it on my bench right outside the door and next to the slot.  I didn't see this until I went out front to water this morning.  What a Sunday surprise. 

Just look at the decorated envelope.  Isn't it just great!!!  Inside was the wrapped package.  My partner took a lot of time and consideration for this swap.  I really love that! Here is the back of the envelope.

Now wait until you see what was inside the wrapped package.  Can you stand the suspense? 

They aren't potholders they are little pieces of art!!!!   Can you see the little pumpkins in front of the house?  Look at that tree and moon.  These are so cute. I won't be able to use them so let's see how I am featuring them in my kitchen.



I already owned this colorful magnetic clips and they offset this little quilts perfectly.  Now I will smile every time I open the frig.  How did she know what colors to do to match my clips?  The mystery of life.  Thank you MyHeart4Him!!! I couldn't be happier.

Creating is the key!! 
Marjory

"Boo!" to you too!

Have you ever come across the iron on rhinestones at your favorite craft store?  Did you really like them but didn't have an idea to use them?  Here's what I did with the prefabbed iron on rhinestones that I bought on sale.  This little greeting card is 4"x6".  I started by following the directions to iron them on the black fabric.  I then cut a piece of batting a little larger than the finished card I wanted.  Cut the "Boo" out randomly and pinned to the batting.  Did a little sew and flip.  Bound it and "Voila" a greeting card anyone could do.  

Funky Pumpkin Pincushion Free Tutorial and Pattern

Here it is folks!!!  The promised Funky Pumpkin Pincushion tutorial.  It is lengthy so I again made a PDF file for you to download.  Actually there is 2 PDF files one for the directions and one for the pattern.   I think this would be fun in green, then it would be a green pepper.   So for you pepper lovers out there it is perfect.    I stuffed mine with crushed walnut shells but it could be done with stuffing also.  I like the weight of the shells.  The pincushion will not tip over that way.  Don't you hate it when that keeps happening when you are reaching for your pins.  You can get the crushed walnut shells where ever they sell pet products.  It is used as a litter for some small critters.  It is fairly inexpensive.  If I could afford it I would be using emery.  I just make too many to make that feasible.  I hope you all enjoy this pincushion.  I had a lot of fun designing and making it for my swap partners.  Don't worry there are 3 here and 1 is for me.  tee hee hee.   Check out the link pages I will be posting this item on them. 

Funky Pumpkin Pincushion Directions
Funky Pumpkin Pincushion Pattern

I love pincushions!!!
Marjory

linked to:   http://www.momnivores-dilemma.com/2011/09/halloween-link-party-my-first-halloween.html

Have you ever saved anyone?

Wow! You won't believe what happened to me yesterday afternoon. I was loading my car to go to a friend's house. When I do this I am usually slamming doors. The first door I slammed was my house. Then I heard someone calling "Dale, Dale". At least that's what I heard. Then as I was loading the car, no calling. I then slammed the car door. Again I heard "Dale, Dale". I thought it was a neighbor calling their kids. I had forgotten to lock the house, so slam goes that door again. This time I thought I heard "helff, helff". So I opened and closed my car door without getting in to make sure.

Sure enough it was "Help! Help!". I live in a neighborhood with a lot of elderly living alone. Across the street I went. My neighbor directly across from me lives alone. He was prone on the floor right by the front door. Luckily the door was open and I could see him through the screen. He had fallen and broken his knee or broken his knee and fallen. While we were waiting for 911 he told me he had been there for 5 hours waiting for someone to hear him.

This really shook me up!!  Luckily when I arrived at my friend's house I noticed a bowl on the dining table.  It had frogs on it.  Johnny said "Come on in and sit down".  I responded, "I'm ogling this bowl with the frogs".  "Oh, dear!"  he responds, "We were supposed to hide that before you came."  They were saving it for my birthday.  But I needed a pick me up right then so they gave it too me.

It looks to me like it's from before 1945.  It's not marked on the bottom and it has some crazing in the glaze.  They bought it for a $1.00.

Well keep on keeping on
Marjory

Halloween Scappy MugRug Completed

I really had fun with this months theme in my mugrug swap.  Halloween is my holiday!!!  I mean that!  My birthday is a week before Halloween and all my life I felt it was my personal celebration.  Sorry if I'm offending all you other Halloween babies out there, but it is my celebration!  I have designed so many applique designs for this holiday that all I had to do was raid them and pick what elements I wanted to us.  Of course it had to have a frog/toad involved.  You will be seeing some of these elements in my Spookytime quilt that is in progress. I stole some of them from that design and just resized them.   I sure hope my partner like this.  If not she can just send it back!  What you can't see is the quilting.  It's done in a spider web that glows in the dark.  What fun is that!!!   

Here is the whole package my partner will receive.  I designed and made a funky pumpkin pincushion.  Also included are some Halloween beads from my stash, a fat quarter of Halloween fabric and a small toy mummy.

Here is a close up of my pumpkin pincushion.  I will be posting a tutorial and pattern for it later in the month.  Don't forget to check out the other swappers.  There are some really fun mugrugs posted this month.  I can't wait to see which one is mine!!!! 

 Join a swap today!!  
                Marjory

Franky with his Furry Friends

I want to thank Anita and Kelly for hosting this great Howl-oween Tricks & Treats Craftathon.  What a joy to have been invited to share my craft with you.  Here is Franky with all his critters.  He just loves small furry animals just like us.  He is created with some unique techniques.  Like sewing before cutting.  Check out the set of 4 PDF's that will help you to create Franky and all his friends, Lightening the cat; Flash the mouse and Thunder the dog.  Don't forget to check out my other crafts; patterns and tutorials.

Enjoy,    Marjory Peck at

http://peckspieces.blogspot.com/

This is the post that I sent for the Howl-oween Tricks & Treats Craftathon over at http://rhinestonebeagle.blogspot.com/   They are hosting a month long craft fest.  Click on their link and enjoy the tutorials for all the great crafts.  New stuff will be posted everyday so be sure to go back for more. 

Mini Quilt Hanging Sleeve

I've been really busy completed my Halloween Doll and tutorial to premier on Howl-oween Craftathon at rhinestonebeagle.blogspot.com .   It will be posted on the 5th of October and that is when I will post it here with a link to their post. 

In the meantime I thought I would show how I hung a few of the mini quilts that I have recently received in all my swaps.

Here is the start of my hall of fame.  The top left is: By the Pond created by AlwaysSewLove.  Top right: Waiting for my Lady a cross stitched beaded lovely by my sister, Bonnie.  Bottom left:  Frogs Legs by CASharp.  Bottom right:  Dahlia by Handmaderetro.  Aren't they all great and there is room for a lot more.  Now my beaded frog has friends.  He's been so lonely stuck in my office all alone.  Now he has a girl friend to share life with.

I made hanging sleeves for all the mini quilts and sewed them to the back.  Here is a small tutorial to share with you on how I did this.  

1. Purchase a wood slat at your favorite lumber store.  The slat should be about 1" wide and 1/4" deep.  I found them in the finishing wood. They come is different lengths.  I usually buy big so that I can have extra on hand.

2.  Measure width of mini quilt to be hung.  Cut slat to exact width of quilt. 

3.  Cut muslin for sleeve.  The length of the muslin should be the exact measurement of the width of the quilt.  The width of the muslin should be the width of the slat time 2 + 1".  So if you quilt is say 16" wide and you slat is 1" your muslin would be cut as 16"x 3".

4.  Turn under 1/4" on each short edge, press.  Turn under another 1/4" on each edge, press.  Top stitch these edges down.  This will make the sleeve 1" shorter than the quilt.  This leaves room to create a hole in order to hang the quilt.

5.  Fold muslin in half lengthwise with wrong sides together.  Sew raw edges together using a 1/4" seam allowance creating a tube.  Press seam allowance open.

6.  Flatten muslin tube with the seam allowance centered in the middle.  Lightly press.

7.   Place and pin muslin to back of quilt top, right under binding. Be sure to center muslin tube in center of the quilt back.  Sew top of sleeve down being careful to not let stitches show on the front of the quilt.   

8.  Before sewing down the bottom of the sleeve, make a 1/4" pleat and pin down.  This will take up the depth of the wooden slate so that it doesn't distort the quilt from the front.  Now sew down bottom of sleeve to quilt.  Remove pins.  Insert slate into sleeve and mark slate for drilling. 

9.  Hang