A Do it Yourself Christmas 2013

I just looked at the calendar and had a bit of a shock. Thanksgiving is almost on top of us and we have only six weeks left till Christmas! Where did the time go? There's so much to do, and so very little time!

I'm not the least bit interested in decorating with those expensive, but poorly made items that fly off assembly lines in some far away factory. Not only that, but for the special people in my life, I want to give gifts made by my own hands. I know I'll be be sewing right up to the very last minute, and I will definitely be visiting several of Craftsy's pattern shops to search through the fabulous ideas of some of my fellow designers.

If you are also looking for ideas, I hope you'll drop by my Craftsy shop to see what there is to see. Each of my patterns is easy to make. The piecing is simple and applique is a whiz with quick fusible web.

Just a Few of My Patterns

Ideas For Your Holiday Sewing

I've divided this blog into several very short idea sections. There are decorating ideas, projects for a few special people, and some super fast, last minute gifts. Check them out. You may find something you like. And if you can't find everything you need, do visit the shops of my fellow Craftsy designers.

Decorate Your Home

Set a pretty table, or hang a cheerful wall hanging. My pattern shop has four holiday table runners or wall hangings that make up quickly.  A free pattern, "Two Christmas Table Runners", was posted last December.

Table Runners or Wall Hangings

Scatter mug rugs everywhere. These are perfect for your small tables or your desk. They are just the right size to hold that holiday cup of cocoa and a cookie or two. Mug rugs also fit beautifully on a shelf or in a display amidst your Christmas cards.

Ready for Takeoff

Special Gifts for Special Folks

What to give the new mom? What about a pair of cute bibs and a matching burp cloth?

Elephant Walk

A new apron might be fitting for your favorite cook. This one fits all sizes. 

Coffee Break Apron

Mug Rugs for Everyone

Choose a mug rug that has personal significance for the recipient. Roll a special mug rug, put it in a pretty cup, and you'll have a very thoughtful gift.

Left: Heartthrob and Sunshine Brew  Right: Four Seasons

Several mug rugs were made specifically with children in mind. There's something to be said for having your own little snack mat. Your littles might enjoy "New Toys" or "Just Ducky".

Last Minute Gifts for Desperate Moments

This happens to all of us. You suddenly discover that you are short a gift or two at the very last moment. Don't panic!! Sew up a few of my "Zoom-zoom" coasters. 

If your gift is going to someone who sews, you can throw a mug rug kit together in minutes. Print off a pattern and cut fabric scraps for the piecing, background and border. Add a bit of trim, a spool of thread, a piece of batting, and toss everything into a pretty box. You'll have an instant gift that every sewist will appreciate.

Mug Rug Kit

May you enjoy happy holiday stitching and may all of your projects be done on time!

Tutorial: Making a Heart Shaped Yoyo

A heart shaped yoyo is made very much like a round yoyo. The main difference si that it begins with a hearth shaped template. The finished yoyo will be half as wide and half as tall as the template. For a two-inch (2"x2") yoyo, you'll need to start with a four-inch (4"x4") heart.




Instructions:

1. trace around the template directly onto the wrong side of your yoyo fabric and cut out the fabric heart.

2. You'll be working with two strands of thread, one on each side of the heart. A strong thread, like a hand quilting thread, is best for this, but this time I substituted and used a double strand of medium weight thread.

3. Begin at the top center of the heart and work down one side only. Fold the fabric over 1/4" and baste with a long basting stitch. Work from the top center of the heart to the bottom center. Leave 2"-3" tails at either end. 

4. Use a second length of thread to baste the opposite side of the heart. Again, leave tails at top and bottom.

5. Starting at the top, begin gathering the fabric to form nice round curves at the top of the heart.  

6. Take both strands of thread at the bottom of the heart and gather from the bottom up. Adjust gathers as you go to keep the heart shape attractive.

7. Pull all threads tightly into the center of the heart so that there is little or no gap where the gathers come together.

8. Thread a large eyed needle with all threads. Making sure that your heart is centered and has a nice shape, push the needle through to the back of the yoyo. Pull tightly. With the same thread, make another stitch that goes up through front and down again through the back. Make a knot, tie off, and trim the thread.

9. Attach a button to the center of the heart. I like to catch some of the gathers in the stitches as I do this.

Done!!

Seven Tips for Fusible Web Applique

Some of the earliest quilts in the American tradition were made with beautiful hand stitched applique such as seen in this amazing Baltimore Album quilt from around 1845.

I love the smooth perfection of hand applique. When done well, it's simply gorgeous. If done poorly, though, it looks pretty awful. Unfortunately, my hand applique skills fall in the second category. Downright horrid! Sigh...
I don't have the patience this lovely work requires and I don't have the skill.

But, all is not lost! There is another way to add applique to quilts.  It's fast and looks quite acceptable!

Fusible web to the rescue!!

I ADORE fusible web. I use it on all of my mug rugs and many other quilts, as well. Here are a few of the tricks I've learned and some the products I've used with success. I hope you find these little ideas useful.

1. Buy the right fusible web.

There are so many kinds of fusible web on the market that a person can easily become confused. For quilts you definitely want the lightest weight, stitchable, paper backed, web you can find. This isn't the only good product out there, but I've had excellent luck with Pellon Wonder Under 805. 

2. When cutting the web out, leave some space around the template tracing. 

When the fusible web is ironed onto the wrong side of your applique fabric, this space1/4" or so around the tracing makes it so much easier to cut the web and the fabric together on the template lines. Doing it in one step is so much neater as well. 

3. Protect you iron and ironing board cover.

Your iron works beautifully on the paper side of the fusible web, but should it accidentally touch the other side, you will have a messy, gummed up iron.

I often lay a piece of scratch paper on top of the before I iron the web onto the fabric. In this photo I just grabbed a handy Kleenex tissue.

Any edges of the fusing that may peek out will attach to the paper instead of the iron. I also lay a piece of an old sheet over my ironing board cover whenever I work with the web.

4. Remove the paper backing from the fusible web easily. 
Don't waste long minutes trying to pry a fingernail between under the paper to pull it away from the applique piece so you can fuse it to the background fabric. Grab a pin. Score the paper and pull it off. Slick, isn't it?

5. Use a stabilizer when stitching around applique pieces.
Sometimes, especially with small piece that are being appliqued, the zigzag stitching will pull and cause the background fabric to pucker. A stabilizer placed on the wrong side of the background fabric will prevent that from happening. There are many stabilizers available. They come on rolls and in precut packs. Some are water soluble, others are tear away. Choose whichever is most comfortable for you. Because I'm making so many applique projects, I buy my stabilizer on a roll.

6. Choose the best thread for your applique .

Thread comes in a variety of weights designated by a number. These weights become thicker as numbers decrease and thinner as numbers increase.  

50 weight thread is the standard all purpose sewing thread. This thread works fine for almost any sewing project, including machine applique. Special threads will have a different look and texture, but you really don't have to use them. 

A 60 weight thread will be finer than the standard weight. This is the one I prefer to use for most of my machine applique. It doesn't feel bulky and thick in the very close zigzag stitching and in a color that matches the fabric it blends so well that it doesn't stand out. I like to use a polyester such as Sulky's Polylite because it is strong and has such a nice sheen. 

A 40 weight thread is a bit thicker than standard thread. It's lovely when you want the stitching to stand out. I used 40 weight black thread on my Elephant Walk baby bib. This blanket stitch looks more like hand stitching than it would have if stitched with a lighter weight thread. 

7. When marking your fabric, use a good, removable fabric marker.

I have used chalk, air erase markers, and water soluble markers. Each of them has been fine for specific purposes. Recently, though, I happened across the marker than has become my favorite.

Marks made by this Frixion marker by Pilot will last as long as you need them, and, and they erase with the heat of an iron. Honestly, when you want you marks to disappear just press a hot iron over them and they'll be gone! Do test it first, though. I've never had a problem, but I've heard that the ink leaves a pale mark on some darker fabrics. The markers come in 8 colors, but I really rely most on standard black.

Spiced Sweet Potato Muffins

Yesterday I said that I was going to bake pumpkin muffins. Well, I lied. It wasn't intentional, but I did tell you a lie. 

First of all, I ran out of time to bake anything yesterday because I got carried away with my heart mug rug. The little problem I was having is solved, by the way, and just thinking about it makes me smile. I'll be posting that very soon. 

In my excitement, I totally forgot the baking until I was getting ready for bed. It became a goal for today. I tied on my apron and I was all set to bake up the pumpkin muffins. It seemed like such a waste, though, to open the big can of pumpkin in my cupboard when I only needed 1 cup. What would I do with the extra pumpkin? My mother had taught me well that food should not be wasted. And then it dawned on me that I had some leftover cooked sweet potatoes in the fridge. They'd been boiled in their skins, peeled, and sliced for a side dish. 

If you've read the "About the Author" section of this blog you'll already know that I can't stick to a recipe! I read several recipes for pumpkin muffins, did some combining, added here, altered there, and came up with this recipe, all my own, for Spiced Sweet Potato Muffins. 

The recipe makes a dozen, but I now have only 9 ½ muffins on a cooling rack in the kitchen. My son dropped by and grabbed one while it was still warm, and I watched nervously while he ate it. "It's okay," he said, reaching for another. I tasted one, too, and they are better than just "okay"! They are absolutely not bad at all. Do you see me grinning from ear to ear. Thought I'd share the new recipe with all of you.

Mixing up the batter.

Ready for the oven.

Spiced Sweet Potato-Buttermilk Muffins

Recipe by 2 Strings

Ingredients

2 cups white flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

¾ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ginger

¼ teaspoon cloves

½ cup brown sugar

¼ cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons molasses

¼ cup softened butter

2 large eggs

1 cup cooked, pureed sweet potatoes

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¾ cup buttermilk

½ cup chopped walnuts

course granulated white sugar for topping

Directions

1.            Preheat oven to 400° F.

2.            Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or line with paper cupcake liners

3.            Puree cooked sweet potatoes in a food processor

4.            In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves together. Set aside

5.            In a large bowl, cream sugars and butter.

6.            Mix in eggs, one at a time with mixer on medium speed.

7.            Add molasses, vanilla, and pureed sweet potatoes. Mix with mixer on low speed just until blended.

8.            Using a wire whisk or fork, mix in flour in two batches alternating with buttermilk. Do not over mix.

9.            Stir in walnuts.

10.        Divide mixture evenly among the twelve muffin cups.

11.        Sprinkle the top of each muffin with coarse granules of white sugar.

12.        Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

13.        Cool on a wire rack.