Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Sew What?

Here's what:

These little needle books in honor of Presidents Day.  I had to wait until I gave some to friends before sharing them here.


Look at those handsome devils.
I realized these were a perfect size for a little book.
You can bet I'll be on the look out for fabric that lend themselves to needle books~


Making the prototype and figuring out cutting -


Morning work station - so much easier to do when everything is pre-cut.


Front - crooked (which is why it is mine and not a friends)


Inside.  I used ultra suede.  A little thick, but the color was good.


Back - a little heavy on the glue - again, that is why it's mine.


You can make your own if you follow the general instructions of the coffin needle case on the tab at the top of the blog.

Finished the hand quilting on this:



I'm thinking I'll bind it in red.

Here are flying geese units that I'm trading with Susan and Jill (the cupcakes).  We're going with solids and modern/bright fabric.  I know, a departure for us!

I recently realized you can get the streak of lightening with these - a real ah-ha moment for me.


and finally thanks Anna for the Moda fabric.  If you need moda, Thimbleanna is your go to gal!


I ordered 90" wide, so no pieced borders or backing - yahoo!

See you on Friday for a new blog feature I'll be calling:
Fun For Fridays

16 comments:

Jan said...

Another great post & project! You know you've created a secondary market for the Presidents' Fabric, don't you?
Your applique is so good, and I love the way you made your initials and numbers.

libbyquilter said...

oh. my. quilty. goodness~!
all of that hand stitching has jump started my creative brain~!!~it's just so very gorgoues~!!!~ and yes, the way that you've signed it is truly amazing.

and those little needlebooks . . . must make me some of those~!

thank you for such a great post. i'm looking forward to what you have in store for us on Fun For Fridays.

:-)
libbyQ

Sujata Shah said...

Oh my friend!
You are so clever with these projects. Love this idea of little gifts for friends.
That lightening quilt is going to be a stunner. Can't wait to see more!

Janet said...

Your hand quilting is so very lovely. I've been studying how you tied in the corner feathered wreath. I'm still struggling to figure out how to quilt some areas in my current project. I like how you included the year :0)
Looking forward to Friday!

Pinkadot Quilts said...

Everything looks so neat and organized, I am envious!
Cute needlebooks and love the idea of extra wide for backings and borders, why make it harder if you don't have to?

Thimbleanna said...

Those little needle nooks are adorable - what a perfect fabric! Congratulations on the finished quilting, thanks for the shout out (!), and I can't wait to see what you're up to for Friday!

Lee Prairie Designs said...

Great post Barb....Love your needlebooks! The Presidents fabric was perfect for them!

Congratulatins on your beautiful quilting project too...wonderful!

Carolyn :-)

Karen said...

A creative use of the Presidents' fabric. You are one creative quilter! I see lots of gifts there.

You changed your header picture. I loved the eagles but change is good.

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful post once again, the needle cases are
so cute and your quilting is to die for.

Barb I have the Jo Morton fabric that you have in your little needle case in red and green, happy to send you some if you like.
What colour is your moda fabric please

Nifty Quilts said...

Very cute needle cases. And your hand quilting is absolutely gorgeous! Love those lightning streaks too! Lots of great inspiration here. Thanks!

Kim said...

Oh my! look at that beautiful hand quilting....when can we see the whole quilt? I love the way you added your initials....it looks fantastic!

Happy Sewing

Janet said...

Your needlecases are fabulous, I love them. Congrats on finishing the quilting, that's a big moment and it's to die for gorgeous. Wow, you guys are doing brights, I'm thinking how much fun that little departure will be.

regan said...

Awesome post, Barb! Love the little needle cases....they are sweet! And you hand quilting is stunning! The designs you've done are so beautiful, and flowing.....gorgeous! And yeah, I'm really liking the streak of lightning with the flying geese units! Who knew!?! lol

Maureen said...

Perfect use of that presidential fabric. You have lucky friends!
Your quilting is lovely and finished before the next olympics. Good for you!
Fun flying geese. Look forward to seeing what you all do with them.

Barb said...

That is a wonderful way to use that fabric....love it!

QuiltSue said...

What cute needle cases. If you carry on like this you'll soon have different ones for every month/holiday/important date!