Sunday 29 June 2014

Spiral Quilt - the first test

I started to design the layout of a new quilt.
Now I'm  testing one of the drawings. There will not be these colors and fabrics, but they will be somewhere close.


It's only a fragment. I stopped the cutting and sewing only to take these pictures. I keep working on it.

I have some problems to solve for assembling it. I don't know yet if I thought well all the steps. That's why I started this test at the 1:1 scale.
Back to it, then!

Have a beautiful week!



Thursday 19 June 2014

When Summer comes - Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial

In the summer hot days when I have to work in the garden or I am on holiday, I like to wear headbands or bandanas.
Usually, I buy them but yesterday I decided to try to make one. It was the end of the day and I didn't have the patience to start a new long-term project.
I took two pieces of fabric and one piece of elastic and within less than one hour I had a new headband/bandana.

Elastic Headband/Bandana-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com



First of all measure your head circumference. Mine is 21".

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

Materials:
For the main piece of fabric (the red one in the photo above) you may consider the length that covers your head from behind one ear to another. Mine is 15".

The elastic length = Head Circumference - Bandana length. Mine is 6".
Add to these lengths 1/2" seam allowances.

So, for 21" head circumference we need:
- one piece of fabric measuring 16" x 7" for the headband/bandana;
- one piece of fabric measuring 12" x 2 3/4" for the elastic's tube;
- one piece of elastic measuring 7" x 1".
We need also a safety pin or a loop turner.

Instructions:
Overcast the raw edges of the two fabric pieces.

1. The Elastic's Tube
Fold the piece of fabric lengthwise wrong side out. Sew the long edges together with a 1/4" seam allowance. Backstitch at the beginning and end of the seam.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
The Elastic Tube
2. Turn it right side out.
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
Press so that seam line is positioned at the center.
3. Insert the elastic into the tube using a safety pin.
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
The tube's seam line should have the same centered position when we insert the elastic.
Pin the tube ends with the elastic to keep them in place.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

Sew the tube and elastic ends together with 1/2" seam allowances. Backstitch at the beginning and end of the seam.
Set the tube aside.
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
This will be the center back of the tube.
4. Take the piece of fabric for the headband/bandana.
Place it right side down. 
On the short sides trace marks at every inch.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

Starting from one long side, fold the fabric piece like an accordion, finger-pressing the creases. The marks on the left and right sides should be guides to obtaining pleats with an equal width (1").
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com 

Pin the folded piece and iron it to keep the folds in place.

5. Place the folded headband and the tube like in the photo below.
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
The tube's centered stitch line should be up.
 6. Fold the two exterior sides of the folded headband over the tube. Pin them in place.
Sew them together with 1/2" seam allowance. Backstitch at the starting and ending points.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

7. Turn the headband right side out.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com

8. Repeat the step 6 with the other end of the tube and headband.


9. Turn the headband/bandana right side out.

Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com


Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
Ready to be worn folded as a headband...
Elastic Headband/Bandana Tutorial-abeeautifulday.blogspot.com
...and unfolded as bandana
TIP
If you don't like to see the overcast edges, you may hem them. In this case, you need to know from the beginning how wide will be, in order to adjust the measures of the fabric piece. 


Have a beautiful day!

I am linking to Finish it up Friday.  

Thursday 5 June 2014

Happy pouches for summer travel bags

Last days, among other things, I managed to sew a few pouches for my friends travel bags.


For two of them I used again one of Geta's patterns but with some twists: rounded corners and a squarish shape.



The third one has two different sides:



I made all three taller than usual. One reason was to make them roomy, as they are used especially for toiletry. Another reason was to break out the usual more or less rectangular shape of such kind of pouches.

The weekend is here, but it's rainy and cold. 
Let's hope that things will be better till Monday and I will have real reasons to continue to sew summer things!

Have a beautiful weekend!