A Little of This and That

So I'm still working away on my Twisted quilt. I don't think I mentioned this in my last post about this fabulous pattern that it does require an awful lot of cutting! The pattern calls for layer cakes, so not having my fabric already cut down to 42 10" squares I had that to do, then I had to cut 32 2" strips, and then cut those strips into 2x14 1/2 strips and 2x6 1/2 strips. I was pretty satisfied (that is, ready to sew) at that point, but there was still more cutting to do! At that point I had to cut the 10" squares into four pieces--essentially 2 triangles and 2 pentagons. You do this by cutting an "X" through the center of the 10" square. After doing that 42 times, I had this:

Only after doing all that was I FINALLY able to begin sewing. Phew! Now, did I mention there's also a lot of pressing in this too?! The (very clearly written and most excellent) directions tell you to sew the shorter white strip to the top left peak of the pentagon (see picture below:

and then to sew the small triangle to that white strip. It does not come out as a neat triangle, however, and has to be trimmed down. 

These pieces are then sewn together to create one block, which when put next to another block creates this: 

Lining up the two pieces was a bit tricky at first, but once Sue showed me the trick of how to line up the two sides, my assembly time sped up considerably! All well worth it, mind you, but definitely labor intensive!!

12 down, 30 to go!!

On other fronts, I realize that I haven't ever really reported on my Christmas gifts. Part of that is that I was so intently focused on sending out holiday gifts in a timely way that I forgot to take pictures. Oh no!! I was hoping that folks might send me pictures of their gifts, but their lives are as busy as mine, so I'm giving up on that hope! Fortunately, some of the gifts never left the house, so I realized that I could report on at least those gifties!

Karen has been known to fling her iPad off the bed in the middle of the night, so at her request I came up with a solution: an iPad bed cozy! I had read a number of tutorials on iPad cases, and I bases my cozy roughly on those, but I added a long, reinforced strip of duck cotton that attached two cases to each other, so that a case could hang from either side of the bed for each of our iPads. I found this totally fabulous Julia Rothman fabric from Windham that I thought was just perfect for the project!

I also used Julia Rothman's fabric for the interior as well--typewriter keys! I had to go back and make the first case a bit bigger, because I realized that you really want to be able to get an iPad in and out of the case without struggling against the fabric--especially when it's late at night! You want it a bit snugger when it's a carrying case.

Now, for the cute shot of the day, a pic of my girl Sophie waiting for me to come home from Emily's fabulous retreat a few weeks ago!

Sewing Room Tour

I've been settled into my new house for a few months now, and I just realized that I haven't shared any pictures of my fabulous new sewing room! It's still a bit of a work in progress, but I thought it was time that I had a tour!

My new sewing room is about 4 times as big as my last one--yes, the last one was quite "cozy!" In my new room I actually have room to lay out a queen-sized quilt on the floor (at least when the pups aren't trying to lounge around right in the middle of the room!). 

This room is a combined sewing studio/office space, so I have set up my desk and computer in one corner:

The desk top is from an old (very heavy) finished board I found in the throwaway pile at work. I attached some Ikea legs and it was good to go! On the desk I keep my patterns in binders and cardboard magazine holders. The wooden case on top of the desk is a divided office mail box (on its side) that I found at our university surplus store. Only $10!

The big monitor is perfect for catching up on my TV shows on Hulu. . . . it's positioned perfectly so I can watch it from my sewing machine but also look out the window at life passing by:

The sewing table is a great find from a local rummage sale . . . Karen transformed it from the laminate top with some fabulous red paint. On the ledge behind the sewing machine are my first machine (a 1970 Singer) and a great vintage Underwood typewriter.

I posted a while ago about these great old bookcases I found at a yard sale over the summer. I knew right away that they'd be just perfect for my fabric and such! These cabinets are about 100 years old, and came from a local vintage furniture store where they were built-ins. They're five feet tall and five feet wide. 

Aren't these fabulous?! I was a little shocked, however, at how quickly I filled them up! I have yardage stored in the right cabinet, wrapped around acid-free, fabric friendly boards I got online (they're originally intended as supportive inserts in comic books for collectors, go figure!). In the left cabinet I have my fat quarters, all stacked by color (of course!).



And here are the goodies that I have stored inside:

I've fallen in love with Mason jars, and I use them for storing spools of ribbon, zippers, selvedges, and fabric scraps. I found the fabulous vintage blue ones (on the left) with a zinc top I found in an antique store near Yellowstone. I still can't bring myself to put anything in the vintage blue ones yet! Sigh. 

I found the rest at a local thrift stores (only $1 each people!) or (the two on the right) at my local Walmart (under $10). I have found that I'm so much more likely to use my scraps and selvedges in my regular sewing when they are accessible like this. Plus, they look pretty!

I also took all the pretty shells I've collected over the years, and I put them in a jar too--a great way to display them without adding too much clutter!

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In my last sewing room I had a small (12x17 inch) cutting mat that shared space on my desk. As a result, when I'd sit down to do work on my computer I was always pushing aside scraps of fabric. Such a pain! One of the things I'm excited about in my new sewing room is my cutting table and extra large cutting mat! 

The cutting mat, which fits the table perfectly, is 45x36 inches. So awesomely huge! I have a small ironing surface I made from a piece of wood, batting, and old fabric, which I keep handy to press my work as I cut. 

As full disclosure, before I took these pictures I removed all the clutter that was stashed under the table!! Karen is going to build me storage shelves which will fit beneath the table and hold all my extra things: batting, my scrap basket, knitting, etc. I can't wait! 

And last, but not least, I have my favorite chair and ottoman, which is perfect for knitting, finishing quilt bindings, reading, playing guitar, and napping! 

Thanks for taking a tour of my space!