Longhorns on the Bed

A couple of years ago I participated in the first Quilt Shop Hop Across Texas.  I made it to about ten shops and thoroughly enjoyed myself in seeing parts of Texas that I hadn't seen before.  During that two day drive I picked up a couple of kits with Texas Longhorn themes.  One I put together and hated.  Fortunately it was very small and when I knew I was hating it, I chucked it in the garbage.

Fast Forward to this past November.  While packing for the quilting cruise I took I threw in a partially finished kit that I had started at the KAQG quilting retreat in September and finished most of the piecing on the cruise.  I was feeling pretty good about piecing something that had only aged a couple of years. It took until a couple of months ago for me to get it ready for quilting and (FINALLY), last week I got it quilted.  During the recent Walking Dead marathon I completed the binding.

For once, I am completely happy with the way a quilt turned out.  (Crappy picture below)

The original pattern was based on a Thimbleberries design called Christmas Tree farm which does not seem to be on the web.  The basic concept was to use related fabrics including one large print (the Longhorn center panel) as the focus to create a very simple quilt with a lot of pizazz. My version turned out to be about 50" x 70" which, from past experience, is the perfect size for one human and a Doxie or three to use for a cozy winter's  nap.

Lessons learned ... actually there is only one lesson I learned with this quilt.  The lesson is that for every quilt it is good idea to cut your final border fabric an inch or so wider than the final measurement.  This allows you to square up the quilt without losing any of the final width so that the proportions remain the same as what you had planned.  I must remember this because even long arm quilters appreciate that little extra wiggle room if needed.

Now back to The Walking Dead! 

Weave in ends and block.

Those are dreaded words for most knitters that come at the end of most knitting patterns. 'Weave in ends' is not the biggest issue but BLOCK can make me shiver with dread.

Blocking is the last step before you get to wear a knitted garment.  The goal is to get the item nice and flat and all those stitches evened out, with the flat parts flat and the puffy parts (think nups) puffy.

There are basically four ways to block an item:

1. Throw it in the washer and dryer,
2. Throw it in the washer and lay flat to dry,
3. Soak it/wash it by hand then steam it to size or
4. Soak it/wash it by hand then pin it to size. 

First you need to decide which way you want to wash it.  If you know the content of your yarn that can be pretty easy.  Anything that is 75% or more acrylic or 100% cotton can be safely thrown into the washer and dryer and it will turn out fine.  Acrylic and cotton yarns are simple because there is nothing you can do to make it get into a shape that it does not already have.  Anything with less acrylic or cotton should be tested.  Testing can be done successfully with your tension/gauge swatch.  You do make make tension swatches for every project, right?

Some yarns you just know should not be washed and dried in your  laundry machines.  100% wool will felt in the washer and dryer no matter how you handle it.  If you want felt, that is all well and good but if you don't, please avoid the laundry room.  Many super wash wools ask you to wash in the machine but dry outside of the machine.  Fancy yarns usually like you to handle them more carefully...hand wash and pinning.   Lets look at the four ways of blocking your project.

1.  THROW IT IN THE WASHER AND DRYER

This is not an official blocking method but it is useful to know.  This is the simplest way to block something but there are a couple of cautions.  First don't use hot water or cold water.  Room temperature or tepid water are just fine.  Most cottons will bleed color so don't put your best white blouse into the same wash...unless your knitting is white.  I also toss in a few color catchers to soak up that extra color.  Do not use your toughest cycle, normal or permanent press cycles only.  Acrylic items tend to dry just fine on normal and permanent press dryer cycles while heavy cotton items sometimes need extra drying time.

2,  THROW IT IN THE WASHER AND LAY FLAT TO DRY

This is how I handle super wash wool items and most anything with 25% acrylic content.  I generally do my socks this way.  I will wash them in a normal wash in the washing machine with other knit items then dry them on sock stretchers.  Sometimes though I have found that the strecthiness of the socks just doesn't come back after washing and blocking on stretchers.  When that happens I wash them again and put them right into dryer.

3.  SOAK IT/WASH IT BY HAND THEN STEAM TO SIZE

This is the way I handle odd shaped items that should never go into the washing machine. It is also the way I wash my hand embroidered items like cross stitch or linen work. Think of all-wool sweaters or odd shaped wool shawls and you get the idea.  In this instance. you fill up the kitchen sink with tepid/room temperature water and some gentle liquid soap.  I use liquid dish soap or Soak.  I prefer liquid dish soap even if I have to rinse it a lot because sometimes perfumed Soak makes my nose unhappy.  Gently immerse your item into the sink after the soap has dissolved and leave it for several hours.  You may gently agitate it every once in a while but the important thing is to let it soak for an extended period.  This will relax the yarn and make it easier to flatten it all out. Remember to wait for several hours before going on.

Gently remove your item from the soap bath and gently rinse it in tepid water until the soap has been removed.  Gently squeeze out excess water and lay out your item on a large bath towel roughly in the shape that your want it to take.  Roll up the towel around your item and leave it to damp dry for a few hours.

Unwrap your towel and lay your item on a flat surface that is water resistant and heat proof...I use my big ironing board.  Gently tug your item into shape and press it flat with a steam iron.  I put the iron down then pick it straight up and press the next section.  I start at those edges that may be curled from knitting and work on them before going on to the body of the item.

Let the item rest flat covered by another towel or two overnight until completely cool.  Store your item folded or flat on a shelf, out of the sun but exposed to air.

4.  SOAK IT/WASH IT BY HAND THEN PIN IT TO SIZE

This is the preferred method for blocking those lacy shawls made out of wool that we all love to see but dread to block.  Start off the same way as the method above right up to the unwrapping from the towel.

With a spray bottle of clean water on hand, for re-wetting, if necessary, lay out your item on a flat surface.  Also have on hand blocking wires, stainless steel pins and a large pinnable surface (could be your carpet or a special mat or an extra large cutting board which is pinnable).  Carefully thread the wires through the edges stitches of your item...yes, every edge stitch.....then use the pins to pull the wires apart stretching the item to within an inch of its life.  Yes, this can take a lot of time.  Yes, it is worth it.  For curved edges just pin the tips, again stretching until well stretched.  Leave your item to air dry...usually several hours.

You could skip the wires but then you would need to pin every edge stitch as well as the pointy bits.

Remove the wires and pins and gently fold the item, matching the edges and ends together then let it rest between a couple of towels on a flat surface with a pillow or two on top of it.  Leave it over night and the next morning you will be extremely pleased with how your shawl looks.  This last step is recommended by Nancy Bush and really does make for a better product.

So that's my take on blocking knitted items.  There are hundreds of You Tube videos and articles available on the internet which have their own take on this topic but these are the four methods I use so they might be useful to you.  Some links you might enjoy are listed below:

Basic lace blocking on Knit Picks
Knitty's take on blocking (pretty funny in parts)
Knit Simple's instructions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfwAkgtitwE - a nice video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fQitQ2j8AI&feature=related - an early Knitting Daily episode

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

In some ways I am really glad to move away from 2011 and move onto 2012.  I think I have shared in the past how, as a child, I couldn't imagine living to the year 2000 whereas now I wonder how I can make it to 2050!  

The baby Kimora

2011 was marked by the sudden and horrific passing of Kimora, Kelis's sister.  Kelis still looks for her at Paul's house and at the vet's office.  Even Alex, who only seems to live for treats, belly rubs and naps,  has become a little hysterical when we visit the vet's office since her passing.  They know something horrible happened and that the vet was involved.  On the other hand Kelis has adopted some new habits, like learning how to steal bones from Alex, and my little escape artist has not made any attempts to leave the yard since it happened.   


On the other hand, 2011 had many moments of personal satisfaction for me.  The wheel chair and walker bag project has been taken up by a couple of churches here and we were able to supply a local nursing home with 200 bags this summer.  I even had my name in a Methodist church bulletin, very odd for someone with my mixed religious roots.  I just about burst with pride when I saw the bags in use and that they really worked.  In addition, although I have never sought recognition for these projects, the Kingwood Area Quilt Guild honored me with a Silver Thimble Award this September and you couldn't get the grin off my face for weeks.


On the project side of the ledger I have changed my habits quite a bit.  I noticed that, in the past, I made a lot of things (totes, purses and other accessories) just to test out a book or a technique.  I ended up with a lot of little useless things.  I learned a lot from these projects but it seemed like a waste of time and effort.  I have tried to become more focused in my sewing and knitting and have tried not to add to the UFO pile.  The whole upstairs of my home has become more organized for creative work and I have become morefocused because of it.  My unorganized mess has become restricted to just one closet and even that has become less cluttered as I have sorted out its contents.


 I have no specific goals for 2012 but Alex and Kelis have made some specific requests.  Their requests run something like this...More walks, more treats, more naps, more belly rubs, more quilts and, most of all, more bones.  I think I can handle these without breaking the bank or my back.  For myself, just waking up everyday is wonderful with everything following that a bonus.  I intend to make the most of those bonuses and who knows where that might lead me (besides the pet store)?

Walker Bag Instructions

Last week I talked on the latest Women on a Mission project.  Today we tried to figure out the best way to get the walker bags efficiently put together.  These are a little more complex than the wheel chair bags that we have made in the past but the results are pretty spectacular.


Here's what we figured out.


Take note - these bags are best for the aluminum frame type walkers rather than the ones with brakes and seats.


Staffing needed:  One person serging, two sewing, one ironing/running/trimming/organizing.


Seam allowance - between 1/4" to 1/2"


Fabric cuts needed - four pieces 4" x 12" for the straps, three upholstery weight or five quilting cotton weight cut 16" x 14" for the body (and lining) and an exterior pocket, two pieces of 6" of Velcro (optional)


Handles (four 4" x 12" cuts of fabric) - Fold and press the handle fabric, wrong sides together, lengthwise then fold the long raw edges into the center of the handle and press again.  Top stitch the open edge closed and the folded edge as well.

(images from Sewing 4 Dummies)  

Trim and set aside.


Note: the Velcro, if wanted, should be attached after the bag is constructed as we have found this is the best way to make sure that pieces line up correctly.  If you don't use Velcro then the handles can tied to attach the bag to the walker.


Pocket (one 16" x 14" piece of fabric):  


Wrong sides together, along the long (16") side, sew or serge a seam creating a tube.  Turn right side out and press so that the seam you just made runs along the middle of the pocket and not on an edge.  


Top stitch one long side as the top of the pocket.  


Top stitch the other long side to one of the exterior pieces two inches from the bottom edge. 


Perpendicular to the top stitched seam you just sewed, sew one or more seams subdividing the long pocket into two or more smaller pockets.  Back stitch these seams securely at the top and bottom of the pocket.


Putting it all together


Upholstery Weight Fabric


Place the pocketed piece of fabric right sides together with the remaining piece of exterior fabric.  Serge along the sides and bottom of the bag.  Make sure you catch all the layers!


To make a 'bagged bottom' line up the side seam and bottom seam together making a pointed corner.  Serge off this tip making a four inch long seam.  Use the bottom of the pocket to estimate where to sew.  Here is a nice tutorial on how to do this.


Serge around the top of the bag making a nice clean finish.  Remember that you will be sewing only one layer of fabric!!!


Top stitch all of the serged seams, except the top.  You may be sewing through very heavy fabric so do the best you can.  The purpose here is to reinforce the serged seams and to making a nicer finish on the the interior.  Try to also sew down the serged seam in the corners as well.


Fold the top, serged edge about one inch into the interior of the bag, pin the handles, two to each side about three inches in from the nicely serged and top stitched sides.  Top stitch around the bag at least twice, once at 1/4" and again at 3/4" in from the folded top edge being sure to catch the handles both times.


Sew Velcro onto the handles (if wanted) being sure that the handles don't twist when the Velcro is pressed together.



Trim, trim and trim again.  There will a lot of thread ends no matter how careful you are so trim, trim and trim again.


Quilting Cotton Weight Fabric


I wrote a reversible tote bag set of instructions a couple of years ago and the construction of the walker bag using quilting cottons is a very similar construction method.  You can find the full instructions here.


Layer your 16" x 14" fabrics n this order:


one interior fabric face up
one interior fabric face down,
exterior fabric with the pocket face up,
exterior fabric without the pocket face down.


Serge along the sides and bottom making sure you capture all the layers.


Bag the bottom aiming for a four inch long seam.  Use the bottom edge of the pocket as a guide.  See the reversible tote bag instructions for a good picture.


Turn the bag right sides out and press well.


Press the interior and exterior fabrics about one inch into the space between the fabrics.  See the reversible tote instructions if this doesn't make sense to you.


Insert the handles, two to each side, about three inches from the side seams and pin in place. Top stitch around the bag at least twice, once at 1/4" and again at 3/4" in from the folded top edge being sure to catch the handles both times.


Top stitch the side seams, the bottom seam and bagged corners as best as you can to reinforce the serged seams.


Sew Velcro onto the handles (if wanted) being sure that the handles don't twist when the Velcro is pressed together.  

Trim and trim again although there will not be as many thread ends to finish off as the upholstery weight fabric bags it pays to check carefully just in case.


DONE!


What?  No pictures?  I sent all the fabric kits and practice bags home with the beautiful Rose but I will try to get some pictures the next time.


Want to do something simpler?  Here are the instructions for the wheel chair bags we have been making for a couple of years now. 

Easiest Pillowcase Ever

 I have participated in several sewing projects for charity that have involved making pillowcases for a variety of causes.  Not only are these a great charity project but pillowcases are a great present or an addition to a quilt and a great way to refresh your bed linens.


The Million Pillowcase Project at APQ has contributed over 270,000 pillowcases to the needy  through a variety of sewing outlets. 


I have made, or helped to make, well over 200 pillowcases, some for the project, some for the American Sewing Guild and some for for various quilting groups.


Over time I developed a swift, accurate and secure method for making them and I would like to share this here.


Why now?  I just made about ten for a local quilt guild and realized that the people who made the kits had probably no idea how to make a pillowcase.

Easiest Pillowcase Ever

Fabric
27" (2/3 yd.) for body
9" (1/3 yd.) for hem
2" for accent
all cut selvage to selvage


Supplies
Sewing machine with thread matching or contrasting with the body fabric
Serger with thread matching or contrasting with the body fabric. (Optional)


Construction
Press the accent and hem fabric, wrong sides together, lengthwise.


Layer the fabrics selvage to selvage with the body fabric right side up, then the accent fabric, then the hem fabric... raw edges together and serge or sew together.

Finger press the hem and accent away from the body fabric and top stitch the serged/sewn edge to the body fabric.

Inside after top stitching

Outside after top stitching

Wrong sides together, serge/sew the raw edges using an approx. 1/4 seam.

Turn the pillowcase wrong side out and re-sew around the pillowcase encasing the serged/sewn seam within the new seam.

Good seam

Turn right sides out, check to be sure your first joining seam is fully enclosed, fold nicely and use in good health.

Oops!

Another way to enclose the seams, including the hem and accent edge, is the 'burrito' method and is explained here.  

Workshop Houston Update

This afternoon Workshop Houston had their Spring pop-up shop event and I had a chance to spend a little bit of time wandering around seeing what damage i could do to my bank account.


I was disappointed that I did not see any of the kids I have worked with but, then again, I wasn't there more than twenty minutes so that doesn't mean they weren't there at another time.


I did get to see some of the board members and lust after some spectacular silent auction items.


The best part of my brief visit wast that I got to buy one of the reversible tote bags that the kids made.  The construction is based on my easy reversible tote instructions changed to eliminate the bagged bottom.


The best part is that the kids silk screened the fabric so that a logo is visible whichever way you use it.


Isn't this a neat tote bag!


Side one - green canvas with navy and purple silk screens.

Side 2 - orange canvas with light blue and purple logo.

I was busting with pride that I had taught this tote bag construction to the kids and the Style Shop coordinator and that they had done such an excellent job constructing the bags.

I hope this program can keep going.  It is a huge undertaking and needs all our help.  For now I will keep showing up and helping these kids get excited about sewing.

Wheelchair Bags Revisited

Last year, for the Quilt Guild, I got into using excess upholstery weight and quilting fabrics to make wheelchair bags for the local VA hospital.  The bags hang from the handles on the back of the chair and are used by caregivers and others to store stuff while pushing the chair around.

Today we made a bunch more and I seemed to have revised the instructions from what we used before.

The original directions are just fine but the way we are doing them now is a lot faster.

Here are the original directions and below are the ones I am using now. 

Wheelchair Bags - revised July 16, 2010


Finished Size: 18” wide by 15” deep

Cuts:


Using Quilting Cottons:


5 pieces approximately 19” x 16” – for the body – 2 for the exterior, 2 for the interior and 1 for the pocket (only three needed for heavier weight fabrics)

2 pieces approximately 13” by 5” – for the straps

Sewing – ½” seam allowances

Pocket – Fold pockect fabric in half, right sides out, lengthwise and attach to one exterior piece by sewing a divider line to make two or more outside pockets.  Press if necessary.


Layer fabrics as follows, carefully lining up the edges:

One lining piece right side up
One lining piece wrong sde up
The pocketed exterior piece right side up
The unpockected exterior piece wrong side up

Serge the sides and the bottom of the bag being sure to catch the pocket in your seams.

Turn right side out by turning the exterior unpocketed piece to the outside.

Press if necessary.

Serge around the top making sure that the exterior and interior fabrics are caught in your seam.

Make the straps by folding the pieces lengthwise, wrong sides together then fold the raw edges into the center.  Press if necessary.  Sew the straps together along the ong sides twice.

Fold the serged upper edge to the inside and pin the straps close to the corners. 

Sew around the top edge twice securely fastening the straps to the top.

Optional - top stitch the side and bottom seams for extra security.

Press, if necessary, add a label and distribute to all those that could use this useful little bag. 

I believe these can also be used as walker bags but I have not tested them for this use. 

Here is a shot of some of what we did today:

And here is the view outside our workroom:

I wonder how we get anything done!

Easy Way to Hang a Small Quilt

I seem to have a plethora of small quilts laying about here. I solved part of the problem by hanging some on slim curtain rods above the cutting table:

For these I added little sleeves behind the quilts to hang them from the rods. There are lots of instructions on the web for adding sleeves. The best part about this arrangement is that I can change it out whenever I want, five of the six are from swap partners I will never meet and the one that is mine (the little brown one on the bottom left) is a constant reminder to read and FOLLOW instructions... when the instructions are important.

There are some drawbacks to this method of displaying little wall quilts. First of all, you need a quilt that can have a sleeve sewn on without disturbing the front of the piece. Each of these quilts had firm quilted lines to hide any stitching from adding the sleeve. There is also the issue of putting holes in the wall to put up the rods. In general I don't mind hanging things on the wall but I hate having to fill and paint them over if I ever change my mind about the idea or the use of the room.

I think I have come up with a way to display these little gems without any regrets.

The quilts I put up today were completed without any idea how to finally use them. Almost a big mistake but I think I solved it.

Supplies:

Fabric for hangers about 6" x 6" - should somewhat match the backing and/or the binding

Dowel rod - approximaely 1/2" round, as long or longer than your quilt top

Wood cutting tool - saw, exacto knife, tree branch loper etc.

3M Command Small Wire Hooks

First cut fabric into two 3" x 6" strips. Fold the strips into two 3" squares. Fold once more on the diagonal. You will now have a nice clean diagonal fold and two raw edges on each piece.

Sew the triangles on the top corners of your quilt, with the raw edges overlapping the binding about an eighth of an inch. You now have little holders on your quilt for your dowel.

Measure your dowel rod by putting one end into one one triangle and mark the other end about 1/2" from the end of the other holder.

Use your cutting tool ( I use tree branch lopers) to trim the dowel to the correct length.

Following the instructions on the package for the the small wall hooks, proceed to hang your quilt. I love these little hooks as you can use your pliers to snug up the hook to hug you dowel rod more firmly.

In all cases, a little pre-planning would have made this an easier process. If I had thought of doing this before adding the binding there would not have been any raw edges. On the other had, the raw edges didn't seem to be a problem when I washed the quilts.

There is one issue that makes me hesitant to recommend this method and that is that wood can absorb moisture and damage a quilt with seepage. I don't think that should be an issue here in that the dowel rods are kiln dried and seem very stable, however, if that could be an issue for you, you could shellac the rods before using them to seal the wood even further.

I hope your weekend is going well and that you are not drowning in all the rain I have been having around here.