Thursday, April 26, 2012

Nook Necessities

Well hello!  I haven't forgotten you all.  I've been writing blog posts regularly (ahem...in my head) and I'm practically bursting to share the luxurious spa wrap I designed (!!!), the Craftsy quilt blocks, the Irene dress collection, and so much more!  I've been busy busy busy with the sewing sewing sewing and all the words to talk about it are creating chaos in my head.  I wish there was an invention out there that would take my dictated words and blog them for me.  Blogging is the part I can't ever seem to get to.  *sigh*

I need a minion. Or a House-elf.   Or any creature that takes dictation and has above-average typing skills.  (I'm non-discriminatory.)

Anyway...

Several months ago, about the time the Barnes and Noble people launched the Nook Tablet, they were super awesome and gave us loyal customers who already had a Nook Color a very cool system upgrade (for free!) which included the ability to stream Netflix. Now, not only can my Nook Color read books and play Scrabble with me, it can also function as a teeny TV so I can lie in bed and watch bad reality shows from seasons past.  It was love at first download.

I also like to watch shows while I'm crocheting, and it's really hard to keep the Nook propped just so on your knee while also balancing a ball of yarn, hook, and a work-in-progress.

Ta-Da!  The Nook Easel!


I friend showed me a similar idea for an iphone stand.  I studied the picture, flipped it horizontal, took some measurements, and created this little gadget.  It's really easy.  If you can sew a straight line and follow basic instructions, you can do this.



Here's the back.  Yes, I sewed my label on upside down.  Oops.  That'll get fixed later.


Unfolded, it looks like this.  I wrote the instructions and uploaded them to Google for all to enjoy!  Click the linky here:  Nook Easel Instructions



Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Snuggly Baby Stuff

Baby blankets are fun.  They're small and quick and just when you're getting tired of repeating that stitch pattern, it's finished!


My husbands nephew and new wife are are expecting their first child later this summer.  The second they found out it's a boy, I jumped in the car and went yarn shopping.

This was a tricky project because the dad-to-be is an architect.  Being married to an architect myself, I understand how weird they can be about colors and lines.  So, I decided to go with color-blocking, and chose this pattern with simple details, clean lines and all that.

The colors themselves are an adult spin on the classic crayola box.  Instead of traditional baby brights, I went with muted shades.  A kid could (theoretically) snuggle under this thing well into their childhood without embarrassment or fear of mocking from their peers at sleepovers.


The stripes are made individually, then connected to the previous row with this neat little zig-zag bit.  This pattern is a freebie from Lion Brand Yarn.


Huh.  I wonder if the recipients of this blanket read my blog?  Well....if so, SURPRISE!   Hope you like it.  :-)

Friday, April 6, 2012

When Quilting Goes Bad

Have you ever looked at a travel brochure with white, sandy beaches and palm trees waving in the breeze?  Blue skies with white cottony clouds.  Not a soul in sight; just you and the warm sun on your skin.  Make you want to grab a margarita and hop on a plane right now, doesn't it?

And then you get there, and realize that the beach you so coveted in the brochure is actually covered elbow to elbow with  sweaty people and swarming sea gulls ready to attack and grab that hot dog right out of your hand.

I feel that way about the Craftsy Block of the Month right now.

The brochure promised FUN!  RELAXATION!  NEW SKILLS!  Instead I got frustration and seam rippers.

Ok, January and February's blocks were fun and exciting to make.  March is still in the to-do pile, and April made me jump out my seat with joy because the April blocks are all about hexagons!   I do so love hexagons.  Geometry is the only math subject I actually excelled at, because of all those lovely shapes with oh-so-many possible combinations.

Tingling with anticipation, and carefully cut out my hexagons and started on April's blocks.  

And then the swearing began.

I was instructed to carefully hand-stitch (gasp!) around each hexagon to turn it's edges under, and then glue them onto my background and applique them on.  Well...I have a little issue with the hand sewing.  1) I find it tedious, and 2) it hurts the carpal tunnel in my right hand, and 3) I thought we were going to learn to piece hexagons, something I'd always wanted to perfect, and this felt like cheating.

Being the rule-breaker that I am, I started assembling the blocks my own way.  Instead of hand sewing, I used Wonder Under on the backs of each hexagon, and fused them to the background fabric.  Then I satin stitched around each one with a big fat stripe of color.  Yes, the fabric puckered a bit.  No, I don't care.  When it's quilted at the end it'll even out a bit.  Besides, I like the way they are outlined now.  Sort of like coloring and staying in the lines.


(GAH!  The picture is upside down!  On my computer it's right side up, but when I load it here it flips.  This is the day for frustration, apparently.  Well turn your head to the side and picture the green strip at the bottom (like grass) and that other bit is the sun and rays.  Got it?)

On to block #2 for April.  It is two stripes of hexagons, again, hand-pieced and then appliqued on.  This time I tried using Anna Maria Horner's Super Circles technique, which is amazing.  If it works for circles it should work for hexagons, right?

You cut out your shape from cardboard, and cut a larger piece of aluminum foil.  Put your fabric on the foil right side down, put the cardboard on top, and carefully fold in the edges of the foil.


 Press it with your iron.  The foil gets hot, so let it cool a minute before unwrapping it.  



Out pops your shape, with the edges perfectly pressed under.


I made 13 of these little things, and then had to applique them on.  That's when things got really squirrel-y.   They kept shifting around and not staying in place, and the thread kept knotting up, so I just abandoned the whole thing and set off to crochet instead.

The moral of the story is:  Sometimes the Most Important part of doing a quilt block-of-the-month is learning what techniques drive you bonkers.  Better to figure that out when there is only one block to complete and not a whole quilt-full.