Stitching in the Barn

(If you're here from Sew Many Ways FAFF , welcome! If you want to follow me, I'll follow you back.) I received three postcards from my swap.  These are so awesome! I used clips to attach them to my design wall next to my machine right away. I think I'm going to hang a ribbon bunting to pin these onto. I've got these cute mini plastic clothespins I bought ages ago to hang them with. The pretty pink and green one with the embroidery came all the way from Australia! I'm really excited about these and about making more for the next swap.

(If you're here from Sew Many Ways FAFF , welcome! If you want to follow me, I'll follow you back.)   So with my top done I decided to use flannel for the batting this time. I basted it on with good old Aquanet hairspray, unscented. I then quilted each hexagon in a different motif. I just made some up while others were inspired by free motion quilt-a-longs online. Then came the hard part, cutting it in half to get two postcards.  This was pretty tough. I realized I should have made it longer in the middle than the ends. I cut it fairly close. I first drew on a 4" x 6" rectangle to get the best parts in then I trimmed them up. Since I'm new to this, I experimented on the finishing by doing binding on one. I made it with my 1/2 inch single fold bias tape maker. I pinned it around the edge and stitched it on by machine through all the layers. The other one was finished with a zigzag stitch around the edges. I liked both finishes but the st...

I sent out my fabric postcards last week for the swap. I made two more for a total of three so I should get three back. I used these postcards to try out a no mark method of sewing hexagons together that Jacquie over at Tallgrass Prairie Studio posted. It made sewing hexagons super simple and fast. I started with my Bits & Bobbins scraps and cut some hexagons with the small hex template from Marti Michell. I used set H template 52a which makes a 1.5 inch finished hexagon.  First I sewed a strip of them straight across. This actually already has two strips pieced together and I'm in the middle of the third but the idea is the same. The previous stitching lines make the 1/4 inch from the end marks, as long as they are accurate. You're basically stitching the seams in order starting on the side touching the previous piecing on the top or left then to the next counter-clockwise until it's attached. Above, the light blu...

I have a Live Journal account where I'm a member of a community that has a fabric postcard swap. I missed out on the first two rounds, because I didn't really sew last year. They recently announced the third round and I'm ready to participate.  This is a no stress swap which means it's been announced that the postcards will be mailed at the end of February. Near the end of February, a post will be made and you sign up and say how many you already have finished. So if I have 3 finished by then, then I can sign up for 3. The host will gather all the snail mail addresses then divide them out, you get the addresses where to send your postcard and mail them by the due date. If you don't have any ready to go, you just don't sign up, therefore no stress.  Fabric postcards are a great way to make small samples of new techniques that are useful. I made this one after they first announced it.