Bunny Rose & Co

Accuquilt Week 11 Recycled T-shirt Skirt with Roses ( for a little girl)

This is a little bit of a stretch for me, but I have it on good authority (a mommy with 3 little girls), that these are very popular.  I keep seeing so many ways to recycle old t-shirts and saw these flowers made from hearts some where on the internet. I have been searching for days to find the site and I can't. So if you know who started this... please let me know so I can link to their site and give them credit. Both of my sons wear t-shirts until they are so ripped or stained that I have to sneak in and take them away. I got lucky and happened to find a white t-shirt my son didn't want any more and a red shirt that was way past it's prime. 

I have these two Accuquilt heart dies and knew these would work great!

Here are the dies:

The top is Heart #10 and bottom is heart #8 small.

I don't think it matters what heart shape you use. The larger heart is 4" across and the bottom one is 3" across. You could easily use the GO heart die as it has 3 sizes. You could also use the #6 heart shape on the Accuquilt site. Just look under applique dies.

 Cut out a bunch of hearts from both sizes from an old t-shirt.

      

Lay out the other t-shirt measure up from the bottom the length you want plus 2". Cut off just under the sleeves. Because the t-shirt has a bottom hem, this will be the bottom of the skirt.

Iron it nice and flat. Turn under the top raw edge 1/4" and then again to 1 1/2".

 

Sew close to the inside edge. Leave a space for the elastic. Sew 1/8" along the top edge.

Measure your child's waist and add 1". Pin a safety pin on one end and thread through the waist band. I pin the other end to the opening to keep from losing it. Overlap the ends and sew along the two edges.

Pull the elastic back inside and sew up the opening. Ease the elastic evenly around the skirt top. Divide the skirt into 4 sections and sew across the elastic to stop it from turning. Make sure to back stitch on both ends.

And here is the skirt finished.

These turn out so cute your daughters and granddaughters will be raiding dad and grandpa's closet for more t-shirts!! So watch out!

Ok, on to the the fun part. Making the hearts into roses is a little interesting.. I just twisted the heart and brought the two top rounded parts together kind of like a fortune cookie. 

 I also took the large heart and just kind of folded upon itself.. get creative. When it looks like a flower to you.. you have it.

Put matching thread into your sewing machine and I just tacked them down in a few places. I have a lock stitch on my Bernina and that's what I used. Lock.. a few stitches and lock again. You could also do this by hand. Don't worry about sewing everything down. Just enough to keep the shape. Lay out a few and see what you think.

 

You could layer them on top of each other or just do them one at a time. I use both the large and small hearts and sometimes layer them together.

My Mommy friend came in and said she liked them like this.. so that's how I did it. Get creative! you could also cut some from a green t-shirt and have leaves.

Hope you liked this.. I wish I had granddaughters. I would be making these forever. You can also do this on a plain knit top if you want. Have fun and recycle when you can!

Accuquilt week 8 The Fan Quilt

Ok, I hope you enjoyed the last project. This week is a larger quilt project. I'm realizing I cannot finish a quilt in a week. So, today you get to see the basic block idea and then come back tomorrow and I'll show you how to put it all together..Yeah I know it is a sneeky way to get you back here again... But I promise next week will be a smaller project and I'll show all of it.

OK, here we go for this week. This is a quilt that is the perfect size for picnics or the beach. I use mine similar to this for going to outdoor concerts.

The dies I used are: Crescent Border Spacer die #2 and the layered Ovals. I used the largest one for this quilt.

The Crescent Border Spacer die set comes with two dies:

You can layer the plain one over the scalloped one.. I just used one for this quilt.

So here it is:

Here it is with a different fabric pattern:

 

I have been looking at the crescent border die for so long wondering if this would work... I hope you like it. Come back tomorrow and I'll show you how to sew it into a quilt the easy way!   
 

Finishing up the block of the week project

Ok, so you have made all 4 blocks right? No... well I'm working on some kits, so stay tuned.

But as I promised, today is to show you a new way to sew all this together and quilt as you go. Here is the finished top.

 

First, some basic instructions:

1. All seams are 1/2" and you will need a walking foot.

2. What ever you do on the front, you do on the back. I'll call it "top" and "back" for reference. WOF means width of fabric (from salvage to salvage).

3. Batting will always (except for the last border) be cut 1 inch shorter than your fabric.

Ok, lets get started. Here is the fabric I used. Sorry about the dull colors, I"m still camera challenged. 
The two green fabrics are for the back and the blue, black and purple are for the top.

 Fabric needed:

Back fabric for blocks: four 9" x 9" blocks , batting: four 8" x 8" blocks

Sashing: Top and back fabric, 1/2 yard each,  batting, scraps at least 1 1/2"  wide and up to 24" long. You will need 2 @ 8" long, 3 @ around 19" long, 2 @ 22" long and 2@ 24" long. You will probably trim these later,but longer is better. Cut Sashing into four 2 1/2" wide strips wof from both top and back fabric.

Inner border: top and back fabric, 1/3 yard each cut into four strips 2 1/2"  wide, wof.  Batting, scraps 1 1/2" wide and up to 30" long, you will need 4 strips.

Flange: 1/4 yard, cut into 4 11/2" strips.

Outer border: Top and Back fabric: 1/2 yard, cut 4 strips 4" wide and wof. Batting, Scraps four strips  3 1/2" wide and 32" long. Binding: 1/4 yard, 4 strips 2 1/4" wide x width of fabric.

Layer your back fabric 9" square with a 8" batting square.

Then lay your quilt block on top. At this point you need to secure it however you want. I use basting spray. Then sew around your applique pieces with what ever stitch you like. I used a blind hem stitch with clear thread. This is your quilting as you are sewing through all 3 layers. Do this with all 4 blocks. FWI, as I said in the first post about this, I used a fabric glue for my applique pieces, not doing that again. It didn't hold down the fabric very well and I missed a few places. I would suggest using a fusible web. Use which ever is your favorite.

Second: Cut from both back and top sashing fabric 2 strips 2 1/2" wide and 9" long. Cut from batting scraps 2 strips 1 1/2" wide and 8" long. Lay the back fabric right side down, then batting then top sashing fabric.

 Mark your quilting pattern and using your walking foot, quilt the two pieces. An important note: Your seams will be 1/2" wide. So I marked 1/2" from the edges before marking my quilting pattern so I wouldn't sew past it when I sewed everything together.

This is what they look like from the back after I quilted it.

 
Sew this to two of your quilted 9" blocks to connect them. Match up the right sides of the sashing and block sewing a 1/2" seam allowance and seams will go to the back of the quilt. Repeat with the other 2 blocks and sashing piece.

Measure your two sections and cut your next 3 strips 2 1/2" wide per your lengh measurement from both top and back fabrics. Cut batting strips 1 1/2" wide and 1 " shorter than your fabric lengths.

Quilt your sashing strips and sew onto the quilt block sections. Seams go to the back. Repeat this step with the remainding 2 sashing strips.  This is what your quilt should look like from the back.

 Kind of funky huh.... Anyway, measuring your quilt as you go, repeat steps with your inner border fabric. Strips from both top and back are 2" wide and measure for length. Cut batting strips 1" wide and 1" shorter then fabric strips. I didn't quilt these because they were so narrow. I did sew a basting line on each end to hold them together as I sewed.

Ok, now cut 4 strips from your flange fabric, 1 1/2" wide and measure two sides of your quilt for length. Fold the strips right sides out and iron. Cut 4 strips from each of your outer border fabrics, 4" wide. Measure 2 sides of your quilt for length. Cut 2 batting strips same length minus 1" and 3 1/2" wide. Layer your batting on the back fabric with one edge matching.

This is so when you sew your binding on, you will have 3 layers to sew through. It is hard to hand sew binding with only 2 layers of fabric.

Lay the top border fabric next and then on the side where the batting does NOT match, add the flange.

Pin your flange down and sew a 1/8 seam to keep it in place.  Sew two of your outer borders on. Measure for the last two borders and repeat this step. You are almost done! 

Cut 4 strips of binding fabric, and bind your quilt like usual.

This is what the back should look like now. 

Next you want to cut all those seams like a typical rag quilt. I use these Fiskars craft snips.

 
Start anywhere you want and clip your seams open on each side. Like this:

Sorry for the raggy looking nails. I'm not a high maintence girl and certainly not in the public eye much. Then clip your seams about 1/4" to 1/8" inch apart. Make sure you don't cut through your sewing seams.

Ok, Ok, it looks like I cut past a seam here. It is the basting seam I sewed the flange down with. See the black thread.. that is my actual seam. Do this with all the seams on the back of your quilt.

Then I spray the dickens out of the seams with water and throw it into the dryer with some other wet clothes and let the seams fray.    

Here is the finished project from the back.

And here it is from the front.

Now a little note here. I usually would not use this method with a small wall hanging like this. I would do it with a large quilt. But I wanted to show you the technique. I will probably use this again later for a larger project. I hope you enjoyed this. Next week, we work on a larger quilt using only 2 dies.

See you later!  
 

 

Accuquilt week 6

Ok, here is the 4th block in our block of the week patterns. I hope you have liked everything so far. Everyone is loving the quilt in the shop so even though my iphone isn't the best camera, the real thing looks great. I have been asked by several customers to make kits, So I'll see what I can do. If you don't have an Accuquilt and are interested, I will try to put a few on Etsy when we are all finished.

Ok, today we are using 5 dies. Here they are:

Petal Play, Flowers and Leaves #2, Funky Flower #3 (Go Die Available), Squirrel (Accucut site), and Funky Flower #1 

And here is what I did:

Very simple but they look great together. I used Picasa 3 (available free via Google) as a way to store and manipulate all my picutures and they have this cool application called Collage. Here is a collage of all 4 blocks with the fabric used.

Not too shabby if I say so myself. I used a black Kona Cotton to lay the blocks on when I took the photos. I like it so much I'm going to use it for sashing.

So, all four blocks are done. I'm working on the finished project. Come back tomorrow and see it all done. A little suprise is in store. I'm doing it as a quilt as I go project. I do it a little different from most and I think you will like it. So come back tomorrow to learn how I finished this all off.   

Want a quick way to go back and see all the Accuquilt posts so far? Look on the right side of my blog and look for "categories". Then click on 52 weeks of Accuquilt. It will start at the beginning of just Accuquilt posts.

And thanks for being here! I'm having so much fun!

Accuquilt week 5

 It is time for the third block in our block of the week. One thing I love about using these dies is I get to be really stingy with my fabric. I can use the littlest piece of fabric. Something like this:

I hate to waste anything. It is amazing how much you can squeeze out of the left over scraps.

It has to be a pretty small piece to get into the kitty bed bag. Oh! You don't know about the kitty beds? I actually stole this idea from someone else and then couldn't find them to give them credit. So..... forgive me big time if it is you. If you know who started this, tell me and I will let the world know it was their idea. I either use an old pillow case or make one from "special" fabric I know I'll never use... "special" meaning OMG why did I buy this... you have some. I know you do. Anyway, I either line a trash can with it or put it on the back of a chair, and throw all my teeny, tiny scraps in it. When it is full, I sew it up and Wah La... a kitty or doggy bed. It is washable and nice and soft. Don't have kitties or doggies? Give them to your local humane society for the adoptees. Here is a picture of my current one. I have it on the back of a chair. It is almost full and my stray kitties that live behind my shop will be thrilled to get a new bed.

Ok, I get so off track... did I tell you about my ADD!! Oh yeah it runs in my family big time. 

Ok, here are the dies for this week:

Petal Play -sunflower again.. my fav, top right: Flower-Petal, Center, Stem and bottom right is Flowers/Leaves #2

  
 And here is the block.

I used the leaves on "flowers and leaves #2 for the flower petals, stems and little circles. The larger blue circle on the big flower is from flower/petal, center,stem. the green leaves are of course from petal play. 

Only one more to go! See you next week.  
 

 

Accuquilt week 4

Ok, I'm back. I have a confession. I have already made all 4 blocks. I had to make sure they looked good together. I even used a program called Picasa by Google and made a really cool collage of the blocks with the fabric in the back ground. Nothing like a little teasing huh. Well on week 4 you will get to see them all together. Not sure if a quilt will actually be made.. but you will have a really good idea how they look. I'm kind of excited. But you only get to see them one at a time. So there!

Ok, here are the dies used this week.

 

See, some you remember these from last week? I told you so. Anyway, from left to right: On top, Flowers and Leaves #3, Petal Play-Sunflowers, botton left is Funky Flower #3 which is also a GO die, and the bunny is Rabbit #4 Sm. I don't know if it is on the Accuquilt site but he measures a little tiny bit past 3 inches wide. So check. Otherwise you can find him on the Accucut site.

Ok, here is the block for this week......

Yes, I know, my Iphone still sucks as a camera. But it is only a matter of money. As you can see, I used the flower, leaves and stem from Flowers and Leaves and some leaves from Petal Play-sunflower. The flower centers are the small flower on Funky Flowers #3 and well, the little bunny. I put "her" in because of my name. Yes, it actually is Bunny.

Until next week...

 

Accuquilt week 3 Start of 4 blocks

Hi All. I'm so jazzed about all the positive comments I have been getting. My mind has been going over time with design ideas. This week I decided to start a block of the week pattern. There will be 4 blocks total. I'll let you know which dies I used and show the block.. you should be able to figure it out from there. While putting these blocks together and looking to see if they are Studio dies and or GO dies, I noticed something very cool for all of you with studio dies. When I first purchased my studio diecutter and my numerous dies, Accuquilt was just Accucut. They sold mainly to schools and scrapbooking. Somewhere along the line some one ran some fabric through and the angels began to sing. So all of my dies were "Accucut" dies. There are two different catalogs for dies and let me tell you, the Accucut catalog has even more dies that can also be used with fabric. So warning.... in the coming weeks, I may show you a die that is on the Accucut site and not necessarily on the Accuquilt site. The die name is the same but the item numbers are different depending on the catalog you order from. So I'll leave them out.  It just means lots more fun and ideas for all of us. So if for some reason you can't find it on Accuquilt, go to Accucut. Most of the time it will just be a different size offered. But sometimes it will be a die not shown on the Accuquilt site.

Ok here we go for week 3's design.

I started with some of my favorite batik fabrics. I'll use them for all 4 blocks with a little bit of a dark brown I use in two of the blocks. Sorry I don't have it pictured here. The greyish pink batik in the background is for my background blocks. Now, you are cutting out some tiny shapes and have to decide how to get them to stay on the back ground fabric. You have some choices here. You can use a product like WonderUnder or Seam a Seam and iron it on the back BEFORE running it through your Accuquilt cutter. Or you can use a glue product like a stick glue or liquid glue product like Roxannes. Whatever works the best for you. For this project, I'm going to use a stick glue and see how it does. I'll let you know later when I go to sew everything down. But you need to decide this now before cutting out your shapes.

 

I used 5 different dies for my first block. Now don't get all stressed... I know it's a lot of dies but I do repeat some of these as I go along.  It just goes to show, you can't have too many of these things. Here is a picture of my die stash. I could easily triple this if money allowed.

The dies used are from left to right: Petal Play-Sunflower,Layering Die-Oval, Flowers and Leaves #3 and bottom is Heart #9 Sm. I'm showing the back of the dies so you can see them better.

The Petal Play-sunflower die is one of my favorites for leaves. So far I have not made a sunflower with it. I used the holes and stem from the Flowers and Leaves #3 die and the smallest oval from the layering-oval die.

  

I used a 9" square of background fabric for all the blocks in the series. I actually had it designed for me as they didn't have that size 8+ years ago.

Ok.... drum roll please.........

 

 I'm down to my iphone for a camera. Hang in there with me will ya. 

So, that's block number 1. Hope you like it. Everyone that comes in the shop and sees it has asked me to make kits. So hopefully by the last block I'll have some done and put on Etsy.

Note: We are going to finish these in a quilt as you go wall hanging. I'll show you later how I do it. But important! You need to make sure you have at least 1/2" available around your design for the seam allowance. Yes, we will be doing 1/2" seams.

I'll see you next week! It will look great when it all comes together!
  

  

 

Accuquilt week 2

You're back! I'm so glad. I have been very busy with a new project using the Accuquilt strip cutter. You know you don't always have to make a quilt with the Accuquilt dies. I found this wonderful pattern for a tote called "Bali Bags" By Aunties Two. I used cotton cording and my Accuquilt 2 1/2" strip cutter to cut 40 strips from 10 different fabrics. You can also use Bali Pops or Jelly Rolls if you want. But if you are like me, you have a houseful of stash. These bags are fun to make and everyone, I mean everyone that sees one, wants one.

Ok, here is what the Bali Bag lookes like.

Sorry but my camera does not do the colors in these bag justice. Just add bright by about 75%. 

Ok, I started out with this:

  Notice no lines at the top? That is so you can cut continuous lines of fabric. When there is no sheet metal, there is no cut. So you can lay your fabric out like an accordian if you want and have a long long line of fabric.

Ok, here is what I got next:

 
Color overload I say! I have made 3 of the Bali Bags with these fabrics and can't keep them in the store. Darn! NOT!

If you don't want to spend the time to make a bag, you can just make a bowl the same way.

As I'm posting this, A customer just came in and bought this... I'm going to miss you Bali Bowl!

So, have fun using the Accuquilt Strip Cutter! Lots and Lots of uses. 

See you next week!!  

Furoshiki gift wrap

While stumbling around on the net the other day, I came across a wonderful website called furoshiki.com. Furoshiki is a Japanese gift wrap technique with cloth. Being a quilt shop, I thought it would be a great gift wrap for quilters. furoshiki.com  sells very pretty silks to do your furoshiki wraps in. But also on the site is a techniques area. You can see all kinds of ways to wrap gifts. Another place is Japan's Minister of the Environment's site . It is a quick page you can print out and add to your gift wrap for the next person. You can wrap anything from wine bottles to watermelon. Search the word furoshiki and all kinds of cool sites come up. There is even a youtube video on how to fold gift wrap in a few different ways. Check it out! 
 

When you go shopping, you can use this instead of another plastic bag.

Cutting continuous fabric strips for knitting

I looked and looked for a good tutorial on this and couldn't find one so I'm attempting this myself. Let me know what you think. First shore up the edge of the fabric so you have a nice clean edge.

I put the folded edge of the fabric at the top and the salvages at the bottom. Using your ruler, and rotary cutter, cut through only the top folded edge. Start at the bottom but not at the edge. Cut up from the bottom a little.

Move your ruler over every inch or however wide you are cutting your strips and cut up from the bottom and through the folded edge at the top all the way across your fabric. 

Ok, so I didn't do a great job of perfect measuring, but you get the point.

This is what your fabric should look like when you are done. Now open up your fabric so each end looks like this. You will then want to cut through every other joint.

Now do it again at the other end. But pull the first strip down so you can see where to cut. It will be the second cut over.

The first strip on the right is from the other side. I moved over two slits and cut... then skipped a slit and cut the last one.

You should now have one continuous strip of fabric. The joints will look like this.

I cut a little closer to the edge. Don't cut too close or you might rip the fabric and then have to join it together either by sewing or tying. 

So ends my first tutorial! Hope it helps someone out there in internet land!