Creative Space

I was in the States for three and a half months this summer, and from about the third month on I began experiencing strong, recurring urges to create something with fabric. Alas, I had another month plus of transient, though delightful, living to endure before I would be reunited with my sewing machine, and so I just let myself enjoy the ideas swimming around in my head. I had found a plastic bag of denim scraps at a thrift store, already cut for a small quilt and costing under three dollars, so though they were a little heavy, I made sure to pack them in my carry-on. I knew this was a project that could go directly under my sewing machine needle when I arrived home. And so it did.

The laying-out stage is always a bit like putting together a puzzle

I ended up with this quilt top, along with the immense satisfaction received in just creating something. I wasn't yet sure what I would do with the quilt top, but it would make a nice picnic blanket sort of quilt when I could find some coordinating flannel to back it.

Soon to begin my month long intensive CELTA course, and knowing that all sewing would soon cease,  I hurried to sew this cashmere baby blanket for a dear friend's new baby boy.

And, some felted-wool potholders for Artist Son, who is living in a real apartment and cooking real meals for himself these days.

I also made a long longed-for ottoman/pouf/footstool  to use with my favorite reading chair. I used the basic pattern found on this site, though I modified it a bit. particularly by making it about 8 cm higher.

And then, CELTA. I lived in Amman during most of this month-long course and I had not a moment to sew during this time, let alone think of what I might want to sew. When I finished my course, I promptly got sick (no surprise given the stress and sleep deprivation) and then had "just life" to catch up on. I didn't do much sewing for Christmas, but I did manage to sew up about five of these denim-pocket purses for some sweet younger friends...

...a make-it-in-10-minutes gift card holder for Tayta...

...and I finally made a recycled linen dishcloth I was thinking about since a friend told me she had re-purposed linen in this way. This was a stocking gift for Tayta. My used clothing source marked their summer wear down to about $.75 per item in the early fall, so I stocked up on all the good linen I could find. I'm plotting pillow covers next.

While home for the holidays, Tayta spied my denim quilt top and shyly asked what I planned to do with it. It had crossed my mind earlier to give it to her, but I wasn't sure she'd like the colors, and that she might want the same style of denim picnic blanket I had made for her siblings. Turns out she didn't mind having something different, and she liked the colors, so my quilt top took on a purpose. Now to back it. We headed to the used clothes market and found five flannel shirts in somewhat coordinating colors. I showed Tayta my deconstruction procedure, so she did the hard part: cutting, and layout. I just sewed it up.

I taught her how to yarn-tie the quilt and she did that too. (I just noticed her reflection in the mirror. Lol!)

I bound the quilt with left-over flannel scraps. Nice to have that one finished and out the door!

This pillow had been percolating in my mind for a few months as I had seen something kind of similar on Pinterest. Oldest Daughter has turned into a Cat Lady (of the best kind) and adores her two cats, Winter and Autumn. And her birthday was coming up.

I drew up a paper pattern for the felted wool pieces, and then appliqued them onto the red felted wool backround. This was my first attempt at wool-on-wool applique and I found it so easy and rewarding. I look forward to doing more. 

As I finished this wool project and the wheels of my creative brain began imagining my next project, and then the one after that, I became overwhelmed with what an unorganized and unworkable jumble my sewing room had become. I had about twenty plastic tubs, drawers, and cupboards stuffed with fabric, which meant that I couldn't really see what I had, except for some wool stacked on a shelf. That visual encouragement kept me going, but the rest was a mess. It was a new year and time to take action.

I told Dear Husband of my desire to purge and organize and since he was very agreeable to at least the purging part, he set out to help me. What I really wanted was to get everything out of tubs, where I could see it and keep it organized. He got on the IKEA site and figured out the most efficient and inexpensive system that would work for my space.

I absolutely love it! With such a great design upgrade, I am now referring to this room as my studio rather than my sewing room. The green table on the left is a left-over first kitchen table, which Dear Husband transformed into a changing table when Oldest Daughter was born. The children grew, we moved house, and it became a plant table. We moved again and it became a sort of catch-all table but I couldn't bare to part with it. I actually moved it out last week, but Dear Husband said he would put a small work surface on it and I can use it for cutting fabric. It is just the right height.

Cashmere on the left, cottons and linens on the right.

I just began a cashmere scarf for a friend, and it was so easy and enjoyable to consider the colors I might use as they were all right in front of me. Sometimes I stand in front of this shelf just to admire the colors and textures. And all recycled fabric.

Creative Space~Recycled Wool

 I've made a little more time for creativity this past month, which has refreshed my soul. I'll share my modest creations here as I have found the internet to be a wonderful community of sharing creators and I have been inspired in my own creative endeavors by what others have shared. That I may help to inspire one other person...

First, a casual portrait of my trusted sewing machine, a gift to me from Dear Husband on Valentine's day 31 years ago, and the machine is another 20 or so years older than that! He bought the used machine for $200 in our first year of marriage, a financial sacrifice for two students both working part-time. I continue telling him that it is the most thoughtful gift he has given me.

After the all the kids left after the holidays, I ventured into my cluttered, dusty, sewing space seeking inspiration. I found a somewhat forgotten plastic tub of ribbings cut from the wool sweaters I've felted over the years, and decided to turn them into a blanket. This project was a true use-what-you-have endeavor, as I used all the ribbings in this box, no matter the color. A few had to be trimmed and pieced a bit, but for the most part I just grouped them together by width and started sewing them into strips.

I love the way it turned out. It is a heavy blanket and will be perfect for our cold winter months--next year!

I pieced the blanket by zig-zagging the edges of the wool ribbings, which have been butted up against each other. I used lighter, finer ribbed ribbings for the binding pieces. And it true use-up-the-scraps-style, I used up all the lingering lengths of threads on my bobbins. This is about as random and free I've been with a project and I enjoyed it. 

It's found a home for now on one the beds in a spare bedroom.

A couple of good friends had birthdays this month, and so I sewed up a couple cashmere scarfs, using colors that they like to wear. 

The scarves are double sided, pieced using the same zig-zagging of butted edges that I used for the blankets. I zig-zagged the two scarf pieces together by putting the wrong sides together and topstitching with a slightly smaller zig-zag stitch. Finally, I trimmed the edges with pinking shears. The scarves are oh-so-soft and warm.

Felted Wool in the Kitchen

Necessity is the mother of invention, and if you saw my sorry looking potholders, you would know what inspired me to create these potholders from felted wool. My old potholders, brought from the U.S. as the offerings in the Jordanian market are pitifully (and dangerously) thin, were raggedy, stained, and scorched. A few weeks ago I found a very large, thick, oatmeal-colored sweater that just seemed to say, "make potholders from me."

I was able to cut thirteen 8 inch squares from the one sweater. I then cut 8 inch squares from coordinating medium/thick felted wool. I attached them first by straight stitching diagonal lines from corner to corner. I used masking tape as a guide for the first couple of potholders and then took off freestyle. I then zig-zagged the edges together, using a longer stitch so the edges didn't curl too much. (I pressed them flat when finished as I'm sort of particular about things like that, but you wouldn't have to.)

Here's the backside of the potholders. I choose not to put loops on them as I don't hang my potholders, but it would be easy to add those.

The wool potholders added a touch of coziness to my winter kitchen. Then, the wooden kitchen table looked bare, especially since I had recently removed the Christmas table runner. "Why not make a table runner from felted wool scraps?" I thought.

I made this by butting the edges of various sized strips together and zig-zagging them.

This is a good place to mention that having a rotary cutter and cutting board is very helpful for felted wool projects. I was pretty pleased with the results of this modest project as it was the first project I actually designed myself, rather than modifying of copying someone else's idea. I'm just not that original.

Here's a picture of a corner of my kitchen so that you can see how the runner coordinates with the valances.

One of the very practical reasons for my increased ability to create is a wonderful little enclosed porch just off the kitchen of our new home. Before we ever moved in, I had claimed tt for a creative space:

I am able to keep all my creative projects and supplies in one place and I can keep my sewing machine out at the ready all the time. Artist son is sharing the creative space this year as he works on his AP design portfolio. He likes to work near the hub of home life, which is our kitchen.


It is so nice to have all my "stuff" in one place--I know Dear Husband appreciates it too. If you've read along for awhile you may remember my "flower beds" in my old home: plant starts stored on the bunk beds in our former guest bedroom.