Marsbarn Designs...

felt flower barrettes, or what I did when I should have been washing pans.

This is another little project I've been working on.  It's one of those fun little things that feels self indulgent to work on.

 

The sweet little felt flower pieces are from FIX Designs, a small business in New Zealand.  They have the fastest international shipping, EVER.

Kirsty introduced me to them because she's a big trouble maker an amazing artist who tempts me with all kinds of projects.

How is it that handwork done for fun is delicious, but mending is tedious?

I would have made more of them, but when I returned to the store to buy more barrettes I found the grocery store had been completely reorganized, and all of the hair do-dads had been discontinued. Conspiracy?  Probably not.  But, I have now washed all the pots and pans.

Ladies Art Friday

Last Friday two friends came over and we had our first Art Day.

The idea is to play with a new medium or project, and see what happens.  There isn't a set project, per se.  It is more of a set out supplies and see what transpires kind of thing.  This meeting we played with needle felting.  

 

Now it is true that I've dabbled before, but honestly I'm still trying to figure out what I'm doing and I don't seem to do this craft without company.  We ate homemade coffee cake, drank coffee, chatted, and worked out lots of aggression by stabbing wool with barbed needles.  It was pretty much a perfect morning.

 

By the end of the morning, there was an owl,

 

and angel,

and a wee little birdie.

We're meeting again on this Friday (November is crazy busy, so only two of us will meet.) and we're going to tackle some felt ornaments.  I'm braking out the ornament kit I bought last year, but never took out of the mailer. We'll use it as a starting point, and see what we end up with.  

Mini Dice Bags

Just so you know... and in case you're interested...  

I've started making two sizes of my square bottom draw string dice bag.

 

The Mini Dice bag is oh so cute, and very useful to boot.

I have had the occasional complaint that my regular dice bag size (4 1/2 by 4 1/2 and 5 inches tall) is too large and causes a gamer to feel compelled to buy more dice.  (Dice Inadequacy, it can be a real problem.)  The Mini bag is an easy on the wallet fix for this.  You can still carry a good number of dice, but not feel the need to add to your collection.

 

Here is the Mini with three sets of poly-dice in it.  See?  There is still room for a couple of sets more, but there isn't a dire need for more dice.

 

Here are those same dice in a regular sized dice bag.  There's a whole lotta room going on.  You can see the need for options, right?

For those non-gamers out there who are wondering what all I'm going on about, I also use these bags to corral my balls of yarn when I'm knitting.  And really, the new bag is mega cute.

Okay, I'll get off my soap box, if you are interested in more info look over here.

Fiber Fungi, a Mushroom Stuffy Tutorial

This has been a busy (understatement) week,  as Book Fair week always is,  but I feel like I've done fairly well.  I've had an answer for every meal, including treats for tea time, the laundry was done, and I remembered to buy cat litter.  I've been sewing (6 dice bags, 4 fairy skirts, and a costume cape),  and I've gone to bed before 10:30 each night this week. 

So.  Here I am with a couple of hours before the final melee of the fair begins, and instead of napping, or cleaning, or being sensible, I am putting together a tutorial for stuffed mushrooms.  (The fabric kind, not the edible ones.)  Why?  It's my treat at the end of the week.  Yes, I am that kind of fiber geek.

This tutorial is more about methodology than a precise pattern.

 

I trace and cut out a circle in the fabric I want to use for the top of my mushroom.  This circle doesn't need to be perfect.  Here I'm using wool flannel that I've felted (or fulled) in my washing machine.  You can use just about anything, but be mindful of your fabrics tendency to fray.  I heartily recommend light to medium weight home felted sweaters, since this type of felt has more stretch than commercial felt, but will not fray.

 

Find the center of the circle and mark it on the wrong side. 

Working on the wrong side, sew wedges into your circle.   You can be precise and mark quadrants (quarters or eighths or whatever floats your boat), or just start sewing.  These seams are what make the shape of your mushroom.  The more seams you put in, the narrower your shape will be.  Play. Have fun! Mushrooms aren't perfectly shaped.  Funky is good in this project.

Here I wanted a rather flat mushroom top, so I made 4 shallow tucks.

 

Here it is right side out.

Lay your top on the fabric for the bottom of the mushroom.  Put right sides to right sides.  Pin around the edges, and then sew along the edge.  Be sure to leave an opening along one side.  Your seam allowance should reflect your fabric.  I generally use a scant 1/4", unless I know my fabric will fray.  Trim the underside fabric to size.

Turn your mushroom top right side out using that opening you left when sewing around the edge.  Stuff with stuffing of your choice.  I used fiberfill for this one.  Do not overstuff.  You want your mushroom to be full, but squishy. 

 

You have a choice now.  It is time to hand stitch the opening.  You can either use little stitches to invisibly whip stitch the opening shut,  or you can use larger stitches and go all the way around for a more rustic look.  This is also a last chance to finesse the shape of your mushroom.  As you stitch around the top you can tuck in bits that you don't like. 

 

Now for the stem.  For this mushroom I used two pipe cleaners bent double and twisted together.  You can use more or less depending on the shape of your mushroom top.  Take the fabric meant for covering the stem, cut a strip 2" longer than your pipe cleaners and about 3" wide.  Fold in half with right sides together.  Now, sew a seam that will make a channel just wide enough for your pipe cleaners.  I start wide, test the size with my pipe cleaners, and then make it narrower if necessary.

 

Once you have the proper dimension, trim the extra fabric, and turn the tube right side out.  Then feed your pipe cleaners into the tube.  The bent end will slide more smoothly than the rough ends.  You will have one inch of fabric hanging loose from either end of the pipe cleaner.

Choose one end, trim the extra to about 1/2", fold this over and use a needle and thread to stitch it down.  Now, choose the spot in the bottom of your 'shroom for the stem.  Using a sharp scissors cut a small slit at your chosen spot.  This cut should be small, you want to have to work to get the finished end of your stem into the hole.  It will be a tight  fit.  Push the stem in at least 1".  Now you will need a needle and thread to anchor the stem in the mushroom.

After knotting your thread and anchoring it in your mushroom, start sewing on the stem.  Take a small bite of mushroom top, push the needle through the stem (between the pipe cleaner wires), and then take a small bite of fabric on the other side.  Continue to sew, going back and forth through the stem, taking small stitches on either side.

Now, roll up the extra fabric on the bottom of your stem, and neatly stitch it shut.  Voila! You have a mushroom!

Now I made a mossy rock to nestle my mushroom into.

I made my rock similarly to my mushroom top.  

I started with a flat piece of fabric cut in an amoeba shape, and sewed in a couple of shaping darts on the wrong side.  

Then, I put a running stitch around the edge of the amoeba using strong double stranded thread.

 

Then cinch the drawstrings until you have a little lumpy purse.  Carefully push stuffing into all of the corners and niches of the rock you are making.  I wanted my rock to look organic and asymmetric, and those lumpy shapes take longer to fill lout.

 

Now you have a rock!

But the bottom still looks like this, and you need a weight to stabilize your composition.   I used flat rocks in the bottom of mine, but for a flatter bottom you could weigh down a recycled jar lid.  Whatever you use, you'll want to slide it in as you sew on the bottom.

I cut a larger than needed bit of fabric for the bottom, again using a felted fabric will mean you can leave the edges raw without worrying about raveling.

I hand stitched the patch on the bottom, cutting off the excess fabric as I went.  Then I slid my stone in the pocked, finished the stitching, and tested my rock for balance.

 

The mushroom is added to the rock via the same method as you attached the stem to the cap. Make as small of a slit as possible, wedge the stem in, and stitch it on.  Then bend and twist the wire stem of your mushroom until it is at the rakish angle you most desire, and you are good to go.

Now, if anyone makes a mushroom following my tutorial, would you please email me a photo so I can see it?  That would be so very kind.

tulle-ing about

All I want to do is stay home and play with my tulle.

Really.  I just want to stay home and make fairy skirts. Tulle is my momentary love. It is so forgiving, so bright, so fun, so full of instant gratification.  And honestly, in these days of busy, busy, busy I need all of those things.

I did recently receive a lovely compliment from one of my Dice Bag clients.  He accused me of ruining his perception of customer service. Now he'll expect too much from everyone else he deals with.  

You can only do what you get done

The book fair is trundling along.  Business is slow so far, but between the economy and the plethora of illnesses cycling through the school I can't say I'm shocked.  I've heard from a fifth of my volunteers that they have sick kiddos at home.  One family heard definitively that they have H1N1, and others just have the snotty cold that played at our house last week. Anyway, nothing to do but wash your hands and roll with it.

Today is a chore day. The laundry is humming along downstairs and I have a kitchen to clean.  Fairy skirts are coming together. (Tulle comes in so many bright, happy colors.)  Oh, and Christmas dice bag orders have started to roll in!  So much to do, so little time. I have to keep my mind on what is getting done and what has been done already, and let go of what isn't going to happen.

it is moments like these that make me believe I am an artist

 

Friday I spent some lovely moments sewing a bit of wool whimsy.  Sure, you could call it soft sculpture, or art, or a pin cushion (if you had to)... but really it was just a couple of hours spent making something with no plan, no pattern, no measuring, and only a hazy idea of what I wanted it to be when I was done.

I had these lovely materials calling to me, and a need to just create something by instinct.

 

I think this is the fiber arts version of a wandering road trip, where you just let the wind guide you to parts unknown.  I think I will cut this amoeba and sew it a bit here, and stuff it, and tweak it, and bend it, and then... I felt so much better about my week. The sick sweethearts, the impending book fair, the undone chores, and the untouched pile of market sewing, it all fell into perspective.  

And best of all, I had a birthday gift for my Mom that I could be proud of.

(I've made up a tutorial for the method I used to make my mushroom. It is here.)

Steampunk! Fabric!

Steampunk. I get a lot of requests for steampunk fabric, which just does not exist.
What is it? Think alternate future that is run on steam and funky elegance.
So, what's a girl to do, when people keep asking for something you cannot get?
Why you call up a fabulous artist and commission some art, that's what you do.

 

Donnie Bruce drew these images for me.  

 

And very soon, I shall have fabric featuring the patterns.  (Oh Yay!)  Spoonflower is printing it up, and I'll let you all know when it is ready to go.  I will, of course, be selling dice bags made of this fabric in my shop.  

Working with Donnie was effortless, and exciting like Christmas.  You should all go out and commission your own images!  

*All images in this post are copyrighted by Donnie Bruce. 

best laid plans and poorly set zippers

There were plans for this weekend.  They were good ones, too.

Dinner with the family of Sweetheart G's new friend and a visit from Bunny and Claude, were the highlights, but there were other things we wanted to do as well.  Then Little e came home sick from school on Friday,  and the weekend emptied of commitment like a high school fling when college starts.  Little e has that cold that's been making the rounds.  The one that cruises through children, but stymies adults.  She complains of a sore throat and a bit of snot, but really the only even slightly alarming sign of illness in her is her lack of continuous motion.  We cuddled on the couch for more than twenty minutes today.  Grand M stopped by today (to drop off more Macs (score!)), took one look at my littlest monkey lying horizontal on the couch, and knew illness was present.

So, I've been sewing.  

What was I thinking when I cut out two dozen zippered pouches?  Was it insanity?  How could those fabrics seduce me so easily?  (Come on, just cut one more...) I vaguely remember picking out fabrics and setting a limit.. but then it gets hazy and suddenly there was this stack of cut fabric mocking me. 

Oh, and zippers are still a struggle.  I'm still waiting for that Zipper Skill slot to materialize... why did I waste all those skill points in kazoo all those years ago?  (Sorry, my inner geek slipped out there. It must be time for bed.)  

you have me woolly in the brain

Temptation.

Behind those doors lurks temptation. 

Oh Pendleton... you taunt me so..

With your rolls and rolls of lovely wool by the yard, you call me onward.. but I can withstand the temptation of $35 a yard of woven art because I have no purpose, no need.  But then there are the flat folds of sale, remnant, or discontinued patterns and I waver.  Do I need suiting?  Can I work with jacquards?  

It is a really good thing that the last day of the sale was today, because I could feel the abyss opening at my feet...