Being Organized

Posted on May 29, 2014 by treshabarger

I decided I’d had enough of the disorganization in my sewing room. There was only a narrow path to the sewing area between stacks and stacks of stuff. Just stuff! I spent two days going through everything, sorting like with like and then putting it all back.

Now I can’t find anything. If I can’t see it while standing at the doorway, I don’t know where it is. Here is my serger thread rack, hanging on the wall. It was already there, before the reorganization effort. (Thank goodness!)

Now if I could just find my serger . . .

A serger thread rack hanging on the wall

I think I need a few more spools, don’t you?

Mola Butterfly

Posted on April 11, 2014 by treshabarger

This is my second Mola book cover. I created my own design for this one and used Asian fabrics.

A Mola book cover with a butterfly design

Mola Butterfly

Inside

Ready to write

I learned the Mola book cover technique in a class at Sew Much More.

Mola Book Cover

Posted on April 1, 2014 by treshabarger

I recently took a two-session Mola Book Cover class at Sew Much More, taught by the fabulously talented Edie Kemp.

First we sewed our design through seven layers of fabric. Then we cut out the designs, choosing which fabric layer to expose.

The Mola book cover design is sewed and a few sections have been cut away to show the bottom layers

Design sewn and starting to cut away the layers

More of the design cut away

Here it is, all cut out, squiggly quilted, embellished and sewn around the edges. The instructions called for it to be bound in the traditional quilting manner, but I liked the zig-zag sewing a lot, so I went around the cover’s edges three times. Then I figured out that the binding also served to attach the closure loop. Oh.

It’s always something, isn’t it? Especially for people who don’t follow the instructions. That would be me, in this case. I read the instructions; I just didn’t follow them.

Book cover quilted, embellished and edges sewn

All dressed up

I managed to add the pen/pencil holder, per the instructions.

The inside

And here it is with the composition book inserted.

Ready to write!

Fortunately for me, it stays closed without the loop and button closure.

Ready to carry

Mardi Gras Quilt

Posted on March 4, 2014 by treshabarger

In honor of Mardi Gras, I present my Mardi Gras quilt.

In February, I took a two-session class at Sew Much More, taught by the talented and gracious Terri Waddle. The class instructions said to bring several single-color or tone-on-tone fabrics. In my stash of about a gazillion pieces of fabric — a slight exaggeration, but not by much — I usually have zero pieces that are plain or tone-on-tone. My tastes run to fabrics with bright prints: flames, lightning bolts, dogs, cats, and roses, for example, and anything batik or Asian.

What’s an art quilter to do?

Fortunately, my friend Shelly gave me a fat quarter set of — TA-DA! — some really nice single-color fabric for Christmas. Just in time! Once I saw how bright the quilt was with my new single-color fabrics, I named it my Mardi Gras quilt.

Pattern ready to be traced

Fabric legend, very important

Starting to come together

Only one more piece!

Quilted and binding finished. It’s a miracle!

Disappearing Nine Patch Auditions

Posted on February 13, 2014 by treshabarger

I recently completed a quilt top, using the Disappearing Nine Patch pattern. The sewing was easy. The hard part was laying out the blocks and deciding which arrangement to use. Here are a few possibilities that I considered. (I had to move the dog bed out of the way.) I wish I had taken photos of the blocks before I cut them up. Oh, well.