Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Rollup and Shoofly


Here is my weekend project. It didn’t take all weekend, but it took longer than it should. I bought the booklet Pockets and Rollups for My Red Cape by Edyth C. O’Neill last year. I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for it because the pattern instructions were pretty sparse. Photos or drawings would have helped. It took some sewing and unsewing to finally figure out what I was supposed to do. To be fair, there is a lot of other informative text about textiles then and now and some nice photos in the book.

I feel really stupid! I just picked up the book to start giving the missing instructions (I was looking for the pattern piece letters) and FOUND DIAGRAMS on one of the pattern pages. Are you kidding! There was nothing in the text in the part titled "Instructions for making Pockets and Rollups" to refer to diagrams on the pattern page. Bother! Okay, so I'll just show you how I made the little clasp for the button.








I made a 1/2" wide strip much longer than I needed - about 2 1/2" long. I pressed it in half and then half again.






Pinned it - probably should have used my little applique pins, but they were upstairs.






Then I topstitched it. I had to coax it along some by manually advancing it and then pulling the back thread because the feed dogs didn't have much to grab.





Trimmed it and attached it to the rollup before sewing on the binding. Then I trimmed it again.

The size of the loop was just big enough for the button to slip through.






This was intended as a gift, but I think I'll have to make another one.  The top fabric looks a little odd. There is another flower below and to the right of the flower showing, but it is covered by the first pocket. I'm also not happy with the color of the binding and the blue pocket. Also, the gathered pocket is a little too loose. I guess I'll just have to keep it for myself ;o)












The Shoofly is in the machine. I’m just doing some simple free motion quilting. I liked the designs in Eva A. Larkin's book Free Motion Quilting Made Easy and auditioned some of them on butcher paper (drawing the block pattern first).









It seemed like most of them were either taking too much brain power to execute or too many stitched points coming together at the center so I ended up with this.

10 comments:

  1. You have really found your way through a few tricky projects, well done. I like the needle roll. I am in a needlecase swap at the moment and am on the look out for interesting little projects.

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  2. Pretty sewing rollups! I actually own that book and haven't taken closer look at it yet. lol Thanks for a nice tute :) I will have to give it a try some time! Your free motion quilting looks very nice, too.

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  3. Had to laugh about your pins! Somedays I lose track of how many times I go up and down the stairs! I think you are being a little too hard on yourself about your rollup project, it looks fine. Your quilting is very nice!

    LaDonna

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  4. You're crazy, Maureen! I think the rollup is perfect! I love the different fabrics you used! It is totally 'giftable'!

    And the quilting on your Shoofly is going to be wonderful! Very smart drawing it all out on paper, first! I need to do that! Thanks!

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  5. I think you're too close to the rollup, Maureen. With a pair of fresh eyes, like Regan above, I think it's a lovely accessory and would be a welcomed gift.
    I like the quilting pattern you're using on the block. I HATE quilting designs that get too close to the convergence of a lot of seams. That runs me into trouble, breaks my needles, makes skipped stitches, etc.
    Your stitchin' looks great.

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  6. Cute roll up - I think I have that pattern!
    Yours turned out sooo cute!

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  7. I like the roll up but understand how the first one might not be as nice as you'd like it.
    Love the quilting you are doing. Sometimes we need something a bit simpler.

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  8. Your little sewing keep is lovely, sometimes we are our own worst critics! Good for you doing your own free motion quilting, it looks great, how come mine never looks that good LOL!! I have the same machine as you by the looks of it, I bought it for just that purpose, so it has a bit of a charmed life! my vintage machines get more use, they sew a better stitch for piecing etc.

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  9. I didn't make one until someone sold them-a friend of Edyth's makes them. I was at an antique show. So, after that I made some, changed some and designed my own mini roll up for a doll. A mini pocket, too! Your story inspires me to make some more. The possibilities are endless! Thank you!

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  10. I didn't make one until someone sold them-a friend of Edyth's makes them. I was at an antique show. So, after that I made some, changed some and designed my own mini roll up for a doll. A mini pocket, too! Your story inspires me to make some more. The possibilities are endless! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete