Wednesday 6 July 2016

La Passacaglia Update: July 2016

So much for #2015projectoftheyear. This is a large, slow project, but so very enjoyable. Sometimes it gets set aside for other things and that's okay. But when I am working on it, I enjoy every fabric selection, every fussy cut, and every stitch. This is my latest complete rosette:
Heather Ross plus bees Rosette
I've been dragging my feet with this one.  I attempted the single piece centre star, which worked out pretty well, but after adding the bees, I felt like this one just wasn't working.  Too light maybe? And I had no idea what to do for the diamonds in the next round.  I knew I wanted to use the strawberries, but just didn't know what to pair them with.  Then a brainstorm hit, and I pulled out the yellow beehive fabrics and the rosette blossomed from there.  At first, I thought I would end up changing out the centre bit with the frog and the green long diamonds, as I didn't think that the pinks and the greens worked with the outer ring.  But once I got it all put together, I loved it.  Sometimes I overthink things.

I think the small stars were really holding me up from hitting my stride with this pattern. I simply dreaded working on them. But I figured out two things that make them more efficient and therefore more tolerable. Previously, I would stitch each star point onto the pentagon individually, each with an individual thread. Now, I use one thread to sew the points on in a ring around the pentagon. Also, I only attach the bottom four when I am working on a large cog. The top point I attach to the double pentagons above so that there is more straight line stitching in that round, which is much more efficient!
Topless Stars......
There they are!
I have pieces prepped for the next round as well. 
My fussy cut game is on point!
I'll keep working away and will update as I go. It may be soon, it may be a ways off. That is the nature of this project! Follow along on Instagram with #ltslapassacaglia. And if you are working on your own, join the #LaPassPieceAlong!

To see more of this project, check out The Homemade Heart's La Passacaglia Quilt Index

Monday 4 July 2016

DIY Baby Carrier Teething Pads

I just got an Ergobaby carrier to do some baby wearing with Stanley, and the first thing he does once he is settled into it is start chewing and drooling all over the straps. This will not do. I can't tolerate crispy dried drool, but I also don't want to have to wash the whole dang thing after every few uses. I did a little googling, and sure enough, Ergobaby sells removable teething pads that you can snap over the straps. But seeing as my motto is "Homemade anything is better than store bought everything", and I have an abundance of fabric around here, I set to work making my own. And I took a few pictures along the way in case you want to make some, too!

First gather your materials. I used a wash cloth, some scraps of quilt batting, and some canvas (Cotton and Steel lions), plus four snaps. 

I used my 9.5" quilting square to cut the washcloth, batting, and canvas into two sets of 9 inch x 4.75 inch pieces. I fussy cut the lions so that they would be centred on the strap, so depending on what kind of fabric pattern you select, you may want to be mindful of that.
I adore these lions
Next, I layered the canvas and the quilt batting and did some simple straight line quilting on the diagonal. 

Then I layered the washcloth over the canvas, right sides together, and sewed around the perimeter with a quarter inch(ish) seam, leaving about a 2" gap to turn it right side out. Backstitch at the start and stop.


Then turn right side out, making sure the corners are pushed out really well. Press, ensuring to turn under the seam allowances in the gap.

Top stitch around the whole perimeter about 1/8inch from the edge. For quilting and top stitching I use a longer stitch length of 4.5.

Lastly, use your snap tool to attach the snaps in the corners. I placed the teething pads on the straps and lined them up to make sure I was putting them in the right spot. If you don't have a snap tool, you could use sew on snaps, or Velcro instead.


The nice thing about these is that they are reversible as well!
Lions or terry cloth.... babies like choices, moms like two sides to get gross before washing
This is a great solution to avoid having to wash your whole carrier frequently. Just unsnap the teething pads and throw in the wash!
The lions are Stanley approved