FEATURED – Page 39

The Perfect Potholder {Father’s Day Tutorial}

June 4, 2014 by Amanda 4 Comments

I know the claim “The Perfect Potholder” is pretty bold!! I am a bit of a potholder snob. I can’t stand silicone ones, I don’t like them if they are too stiff or puffy, I also don’t like them if they are too thin. I love the cute quilty ones, but I am always afraid to use them. So I resort to my trusty terrycloth potholders…..behold:

Aren’t they beautiful! haha!! They’ve been used and washed at least a million times and I can never give them up…..until TODAY when I came up with a homemade version that is just as functional yet much more stylish. The trick is that I cut up a hand towel (or bath towel), layered with batting and quilted it. Are you ready for the tutorial? Here we go:

Supplies:

1 bath or hand towel (not kitchen) the thicker the better!

Fat Quarter Bibs and Ribs fabric – still loving it!!

Scraps of cotton batting

fabric for the binding

Therm O Web Spray n Bond

Begin by cutting the towel 8.5″ square

also cut the batting and fabric the same size, 8.5″ square.

Use the basting spray to baste all the lawyer together with the batting in the middle.

Quilt as desired. I made 4 of these and did vertical lines, diagonal lines and then criss cross. Using a cup, draw a rounded corner on each of the corners and trim along the line.

Cut the binding on the bias 2.5″ x WOF, or enough to sew around the potholder. Sew the binding to the back of the potholder then pull the binding around and machine sew the top of the binding down.

Seriously, tears of joy were shed over this project. I cannot contain my excitement!! It actually feels just like my old trusty potholders – YIPPEE!!!

Now that I knew they were a success, I got a little creative. Try rounding all the corners but the top left corner like this:

Then sew the binding like this:

Take the little tail and give it a twirl to make a loop to hang or to just be decorative or to just finish the binding nicely.

They are the perfect addition to my collection of Father’s Day Gifts!!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, Father's Day, FEATURED, gift, Therm O Web, tutorial, Uncategorized

Riley Blake Blog Tour {Baby Play Mat Tutorial with Matching Zipper Pouch}

June 4, 2014 by Amanda 23 Comments

I am so excited to be participating in the Riley Blake Designs Quilted Cotton Blog Hop.

6/10 – Nancy Zieman

6/12 – The Sassy Quilter

6/17 – Just Let Me Quilt

6/19 – Simple Simon & Co.

6/24 – Haberdashery Fun

6/26 – Sew We Quilt

7/1 – Jina Barney Designz

7/3 – Leigh Laurel Studios

7/8 – Riley Blake Designs

Today is my day for the blog hop so WELCOME and thanks for stopping by! I can’t tell you how in love I am with Riley Blake’s new quilted cottons. They come in a variety of patterns and colors. I choose the black chevron which has polka dots on the reverse side. I love giving hand made baby gifts but sometimes it gets a little challenging to create a new quilt from scratch for every baby gift; as much as my heart wants to. The quilted cottons are perfect for sewing for baby: I appliquéd some flowers, added extra wide binding and it’s an adorable play mat or changing mat or quilt for baby.

I also used what was left of the quilted cotton to make a diaper change zipper pouch. It holds all the essentials: diapers, wipes, sanitizer, etc. Continue reading for the instructions….

Supplies:

1 yard Riley Blake Quilted Cotton

6 fat quarters flower appliqué fabric

3/4 yard fabric for wide binding

Therm O Web Spray n Bond basting spray.

Download the flower patterns HERE (for large flower, you will have to enlarge on your computer – it measures about 10.5″ across)

Cut the quilted cotton 35″ x WOF (Of course you can cut whatever size you want)

Cut the 3 sizes of flower and flower centers out to make the pattern.

Pin the pattern pieces to the fabric and cut out.

Spray the Spray n Bond to the wrong side of the fabric appliqué pieces and place on the quilt. It is a bit of a challenge to appliqué on such a large piece of fabric – there was some pushing and pulling involved. I found it easier to spray baste the flowers after finishing sewing the one before.

Stitch around each flower and flower center 2 times using black thread.

To make the extra wide binding…. cut 4 strips 5″ x WOF. Sew together and press in half. Continue as you would with regular binding, only line up the raw edge of the binding 1″ from the edge of the quilt like this:

I machine sewed the binding so it would hold up nice in the wash. I am hoping this will be used more as a changing mat or crawling mat so it will be getting laundered often! I love how it turned out! This could easily be changed up for a boy – the navy and white chevron would be cute with anchors or fish!!

Of course I needed to sew a matching zipper pouch. I like the idea of having all the diaper change stuff in one handy pouch. I used one of my favorite tutorials from my good friend Jennifer. I changed the measurements from 9″x11″ to 8″x11″. The rest of the tutorial is exactly the same.

Cut (2) quilted cotton pieces 8″ x 11″

Cut (2) lining fabric pieces 8″ x 11″

Applique the smallest flower from the quilt pattern above to the side of one of the quilted cotton pieces. Then follow the rest of the tutorial.

I need one of these for myself!!

They make such a darling set! I can’t wait to give this to my friend who is expecting her very first baby!!

Thanks for stopping by! I can’t wait to see all the projects on this fun Blog Tour!!

Filed Under: appliqué, FEATURED, gift, Heat n Bond, patterns, quilt, Riley Blake, sewing, tutorial, zipper pouch

Got Ribs? {Father’s Day Apron Tutorial}

June 4, 2014 by Amanda Leave a Comment

The BBQ Father’s Day gift theme continues today with this BBQ apron using the Ribs & Bibs fabric line. BBQ and Ribs are a big part of our family traditions. I am so excited to give this apron to my dad who prides himself on his slow-cooked ribs. I’ve cut some corners on this project by ordering solid black chef’s aprons from Amazon – a 2 pack is about $10 and they arrive in 2 days! Here’s how you can make one:

Supplies:

Solid black chef apron

Fat quarter Checker Board Red

Fat quarter Open Pit White

Pig from Dinner for Two

Therm O Web Heat n Bond Lite EZ print sheets

Print the pattern in reverse on the Heat n Bond EZ print lite printer sheets – they make appliquéing letters a snap!

got ribs fathers day apron tutorial

Iron the letters to the wrong side of the checkerboard fabric.Then cut the letters out with scissors – this part takes a little while.

Iron a piece of the Heat n Bond Lite to the wrong side of the pig. Cut out the pig leaving a boarder of white.

Peel off the backing paper. Center the pig and the letters on the top portion of the apron. Iron in place. Top stitch around each letter and the pig. Yes, it’s a little tedious, but think of all the time we saved by not sewing then apron 🙂

Prepare the pocket by cutting a rectangle 15.5″ x 9″

got ribs fathers day apron tutorial.jpg_8

Press the sides and bottom in 1/4″

On the top edge of the pocket, sew a 1/4″ hem and then roll it to make a 1/2″ hem.

Pin the pocket into place and topstitch around the sides and bottom. Top-stitch again 1/4″ away from the first seam. This helps prevent fraying inside the pocket where there is a raw edge.

got ribs fathers day apron tutorial_11
Finally, find the center of the pocket and sew a straight seam to make 2 sections of pocket.

I made my husband close his eyes while modeling this apron so he wouldn’t see it – he is getting one for Father’s Day too!! got ribs fathers day apron tutorial_16

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, Father's Day, FEATURED, gift, sewing, Therm O Web, tutorial

Surf & Turf Towels {Father’s Day Tutorial}

June 3, 2014 by Amanda Leave a Comment

I just can’t get enough of the Bibs & Ribs fabric! Today’s tutorial goes nicely with yesterday’s napkins. There are lots and lots of dish towel tutorials out there…..they are all super cute with ruffles, lace, and trim. That just doesn’t work for the guys. These towels have no “fluff” and they are very manly.

Supplies:

Dish towels, pre washed & dried

fat quarter Lobster Tails

fat quarter Dinner for Two

Therm O Web’s Heat n Bond Lite

Begin by ironing the towels. As with most store-bought dish towels, they are not perfectly square or rectangle. Do your best to press the towel so it’s straight on the end.

Cut a strip of lobsters.

Cut an equal sized strip of Heat n Bond Lite. Fuse it to the wrong side of the lobsters.

Peel off the backing and iron it along the edge of the towel. (normally I would cut the fabric and press the seams under, but we are focusing on quick and the Heat n Bond does just the trick!)

Locate the “Surf and Turf’ words in the fabric.

Fuse a piece of Heat n Bond to the wrong side. Cut around it with scissors. Peel off the back and press into place on the towel.

Top stitch around the lobster strip and the surf & turf.

I love that all my Father’s Day gifts will coordinate. Can’t wait to see what’s for tomorrow’s tutorial!!

The lobsters totally make me smile 🙂

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, Father's Day, FEATURED, gift, Therm O Web, tutorial

BBQ Napkins {Father’s Day Sewing Tutorial}

June 2, 2014 by Amanda 1 Comment

I am so in love with this fabric line from Blend designed by Maude Asbury called Ribs and Bibs. It screams Father’s Day. I normally don’t sew for the men in my life but this year is totally different because of all the inspiration this fabric has given me! Don’t you just love it!! I wish I had yards and yards to make table cloths with! Every day this week I am sharing a tutorial using this fabric line.

Of course Father’s Day is in June – during one of the busiest months of the year. The holiday has to compete with end of the year final projects, class parties, class field trips, graduations, and the list goes on. The tutorials I am sharing are projects that can be sewn quickly – because who has time in June for anything extra?

I am the world’s messiest eater – I really mean it. When I go out to dinner with my husband, I have a pile of napkins at the end of the dinner and my husband doesn’t even have one (because I used it for myself). At home I eat with a kitchen towel on my lap – it just saves paper 🙂 When our family gets together to eat ribs or BBQ paper napkins just are not enough – and even cloth napkins leave something to be desired. That’s when I decided to purchase “Bar Mop” towels and turn them into BBQ napkins. Bar Mop towels are available at any home store in the kitchen towel department. They are slightly smaller than normal kitchen towels, and not a traditional washcloth. They provide the right amount of absorbency for BBQ sauced fingers!

Let’s get started….

Supplies:

Bar Mop Towels – pre wash & dry

fat quarter Ribs & Bibs “Open Pit” in brown fabric

fat quarter Ribs & Bibs “Checker Board” in red

Therm O Web Heat n Bond Lite

Begin by cutting a piece of the Heat n Bond and ironing it to the back of the Open Pit fabric.

Cut around each image leaving a little bit of brown boarder.

Peel off the backing paper and iron it to the corner of the bar mop towel. Keep in mind the heat n bond won’t permanently adhere to the fuzzy towel so it needs to be sewn on. The Heat n Bond will hold the image in place temporarily and it will prevent fraying.

Sew around each image with a straight stitch.

Iron another piece of Heat n Bond to the wrong side of the checker board fabric. (This is a little bit of a “cheater” way to add an accent strip to the towel.)

Cut strips of the checkerboard 2 squares wide. Peel off the backing fabric.

Iron it to the bottom of the towel and top stitch around the strip. Now make enough for everyone coming to your Father’s Day BBQ!!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, Father's Day, FEATURED, gift, gifts, Heat n Bond, sewing, Therm O Web, tutorial

The Ava Quilt

May 29, 2014 by Amanda 2 Comments

I love to personalize baby quilts when I give them as gifts. I came up with this quilt for a friend who is expecting a baby girl named Ava. I choose the colors based on the nursery colors of Red and Pink. This is a fun, fast quilt to make! and you can create your own pattern based on 3 types of blocks!

All seams are 1/4″

Supplies:

An assortment of coordinating fabrics. I used about 12 different fabrics. I think the more the better for this project. Go ahead, get scrappy!

HeatnBond® Lite
SpraynBond® Basting
Cotton batting

Cutting Instructions: There are 3 componants to this quilt: 4 1/2″ square, 4 patch, and a strip set of 3

STRIP SET measures 4 1/2″ x 8 1/2″

Cut 2 strips 1″3/4″

Cut 1 strip 2″ (this will be the center of the strip)

Piece the strips together WOF so the 2″ strip is in the center. Press seems and cut in 8 1/2″ segments. You will need 10 of these. I made 2 different versions. Depending on the width of your fabric, you can get 4 or 5 strip sets out of a WOF.

4-PATCH

Cut 2 coordinating strips WOF x 2 1/2″. Sew the two strips together length wise, then cut in 2 1/2″ segments. Press seams to one side. Sew two segments together to form a 4-patch. Make about (23) 4-Patch blocks from different fabrics.

4 1/2″ BLOCKS

You need about (54 to 60) 4 1/2″ blocks depending on how you lay out your quilt.

ARRANGE THE QUILT

This is how I arranged my quilt. You can mix it up how ever you like; that is what’s fun about this pattern. I did put (1) 3-strip set in each row. There are 12 rows: 9 blocks across and 12 blocks down.

If you are appliqueing a name or word in your quilt, cut a piece of fabric 12 1/2″ x 8 1/2″. If your name is larger, you may need to make adjustments. Remove 6 blocks to make room for the applique piece.

Follow these instructions to use Heat N Bond lite to applique the name:

I used a straight stitch to applique around the name – I went around each letter twice.

Once you have appliqued the name, piece the block into the rows:

Now you are ready to assemble the quilt. Sew the blocks together row by row. Then sew the rows together. Make sure to alternate how you press each row so the seams match up perfectly. I use pins at all the intersections.

Quilt as desired! Finished quilt is 36″ x 43″

Filed Under: FEATURED, quilt, Therm O Web, tutorial

Sunglasses Zipper Pouch Tutorial

May 10, 2014 by 1 Comment

Today I am sharing my tutorial for a zippered sunglasses case over on the Therm O Web Blog. What is great about this zipper pouch is the lining is made of flannel so it is soft on the lenses. I love this fabric – it’s the “blue” version of the Clementine fabric by Blend. It screams summer to me.

Here you can see the gray flannel inside the pouch:

For the zipper pull, I took apart some owl earrings and used a split ring to attach the owl to the zipper pull. I always am on the look-out for cheap dangly earrings!

It’s not too late to sew up one of these in time for Mother’s Day. It should only take about 30 minutes!

For a slightly different version……

cut a 1″ square notch out of each corner of the bag when it’s in this stage:

Open the notches, and match the seams, sewing a 1/4″ seam. This gives the bag a “bottom” and allows the pouch to stand up. I can’t decide which one I like the best!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, FEATURED, gift, mother's day, Therm O Web, tutorial

Bread Blankets: Flour Sack Towel Tutorial

May 8, 2014 by 6 Comments

I have had it in my mind to make these “Bread Blankets” for sometime. I bake a lot of bread, rolls, and especially our secret family recipe Orange Rolls. I like to cover my rising dough with a light weight flour sack towel. The white towels are so plain and boring, so I decided to embellish the towels. The Clementine fabric from Blend lends itself so well to my orange roll making – so I knew I wanted an orange on the towel. Since the recipe is my mother-in-law’s, I decided to send her one of these Bread Blankets for Mother’s Day.

Supplies:

2 1/2″ x WOF strip of fabric for the ruffle

Small pieces of fabric for the appliqué

22″ lace

Heat n Bond Lite Fusible appliqué

Flour Sack Towel

Orange pattern, download HERE

When you open your flour sack towels, toss them in the wash and dry them, then press them. They will be very wonky.

The towels are much larger than the cookie sheet trays or a bowl of rising dough. Cut the towel as desired, I cut mine 26″ x 20″. Sew a rolled hem on both sides, then sew a rolled hem on the top and bottom.

Cut your ruffle fabric 2 1/2″ x WOF

Sew a rolled hem in the bottom:

Gather the fabric using a ruffling foot – or you can gather by hand.

This will make extra ruffle. Cut the ruffle 1/2″ longer than the towel on each side. Fold the ends of the ruffle in 1/4″ and 1/4″ again and sew a little seam.

Pin into place. You can position your ruffle where ever you like it, of course you can add more ruffles or change up the design. Stitch along the gathering stitch.

Pin the lace into place and sew using matching thread.

Print the pattern and trace it onto the Heat n Bond Lite. The pattern is already printed in reverse. Iron the Heat n Bond to the wrong side of the orange, leaf, and stem fabric. Cut out along the pattern line, peel off the backing and press into place. Outline stitch in black thread 2 times around the shapes.

Perfect for covering a delicious tray of orange rolls!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, FEATURED, gift, mother's day, tutorial

Citrus Churn Dash Table Quilt

May 7, 2014 by 1 Comment

Today’s Mother’s Day Tutorial is this cute Citrus inspired Churn Dash Table Quilt. I made this little quilt for my mom (I hope she doesn’t read my blog between now and Mother’s Day!) My mom is always asking me if I have a little quilt she can put on her table to decorate with and in my parent’s backyard are lemon, orange, and lime trees – sooooo when I saw this Clementine fabric from Blend I freaked out!!

I am so in love with this fabric – I want to rip out all my kitchen decor and replace with these fabrics. Here is a little close up of some of the prints I used in this quilt.

Let’s get started – you can make this project in a few hours.

Supplies:

fat quarters of spoon print, stripe print, and small fruit print

1/4 yard large citrus print

1/4 yard for binding

3/4 yard for back

batting

Finished Quilt: 25″

Cut (2) 7 1/4″ squares of the gray

Cut (2) 7 1/4″ squares of the stripe

Cut (4) 3 1/2″ squares of the gray

Cut (4) 3 1/2″ squares of the stripe

Cut (1) 3 1/2″ square of the center square, fussy cut if desired

Draw a diagonal line on the back of the 2 stripe 7 1/4″ squares

Layer them right sided together and sew 1/4″ along both sides of the diagonal line. Cut on pencil line.

Press toward the dark. These half square triangle blocks finish slightly larger than the desired 6 1/2″. This is so you can square the block up and it is nice and even. Lay it on a rotary mat and align the diagonal with the diagonal line on the mat and cut so it measures 6 1/2″ square. Do this to each of the 4 blocks.

Sew the 3 1/2″ squares in (4) sets like this: Press toward the dark.

Lay out the churn dash block and sew together in rows. Press seams.

Now all that’s left is to sew the boarders on. Cut the small fruit into 2″ strips. Sew sides, then press, then sew top and bottom. You don’t need to measure on this part. Use the block as your guide.

The large citrus print is cut in 4″ strips. Sew those on in the same manner as the small fruit strips.

Quilt as desired and bind.

I love it!!!!!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, FEATURED, gift, mother's day, quilt, tutorial

Mother’s Day Gifts: Zipper Pouch Set

May 6, 2014 by 2 Comments

These cute zipper pouches are a darling gift to give someone special this Mother’s Day. This tutorial is written by my good friend Jennifer. Jennifer is the one who takes me on crazy adventures to find fabric all over Southern California. She is an amazing sewist and writes a blog called Jennifer Sews Again.

Her tutorial for these zipper pouches is great – I followed each step and my pouches turned out perfect! These amazing fabrics are from Blend’s Modern Eclectic line. I love the prints!!!

I love the lining! What’s great about these zipper pouches is they unzip all the way so you can have full access to your items. I always take mine when I travel.

I love that they nest too!

And they make a nice set when paired with a fabric keychain!

Filed Under: Blend Fabrics, FEATURED, gift, mother's day, quilt, sewing, tutorial, zipper pouch

The Perfect Potholder {Father’s Day Tutorial}

Riley Blake Blog Tour {Baby Play Mat Tutorial with Matching Zipper Pouch}

Got Ribs? {Father’s Day Apron Tutorial}

Surf & Turf Towels {Father’s Day Tutorial}

BBQ Napkins {Father’s Day Sewing Tutorial}

The Ava Quilt

Sunglasses Zipper Pouch Tutorial

Bread Blankets: Flour Sack Towel Tutorial

Citrus Churn Dash Table Quilt

Mother’s Day Gifts: Zipper Pouch Set

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