Back To Owl Project: Day 93

Making The Facial Disk

Each phase of making the owl is practice with size, shape, and character of this barn owl.

Tonight I cut out a pattern for the heart-shaped disk that is so typical of this variety of owl.

Also cut a pattern for the beak, and went through some decision-making about the eyes.

(Please return HERE to see barn owl's beginnings if you haven't seen it yet.)

Here is what transpired this evening:

After drawing and cutting out the paper pattern, I chose the soft brown sweater for the edges of the facial disk.

A barn owl's face is light in color except for the brownish edges, so I needed a light piece in addition to the brown one. This will be placed on top of the brown one.

This owl also has some brown areas around the eyes, so I added brown triangles to represent this.
I am testing the buttons that I wanted to use for the eyes.
These are large, black and mottled.

Trying another button. This seems to look more like the photo I have here.
(Without the brown around the eyes...just testing to see what works!)

I like this better.
Here I have just placed the pieces where I want them.

Now the hand-stitching is complete.
This project is one of the reasons I need needles!
All the stitching on this project is by hand.

Up close.
A face that not only a mother could love!
So endearing.

More tomorrow. Perhaps a finished Barn Owl.

Good Night.

Needles! : Day 92

This Is For Those Lovers Of Hand Sewing Needles

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

I am off on a tangent tonight. Couldn't help myself because of a wonderful thrift store find!

For those of you who are into all manner and size of needles (for sewing everything from those vintage handkerchiefs and dresser cloths to crewel embroidery to the latest of new stitches), here is a healthy dose of all-you-can-take-in needle memorabilia.

When I was at the thrift store I discovered this modest little Zip-lock bag full of needles.

You may not understand this, but I became very excited even before I actually opened it.

As you know, I incorporate manual stitchery into many of my projects.

Needles are vitally important in my work, needless (eek!) to say. Thus a hint of why sewing needles are so important to me and mean so much to me.

You may find that some of these remind you of your grandmother's stash of needles carefully pinned to papers or nestled gently in a needle keep.

Here is the treasure trove of needles that was waiting  JUST for me in the thrift store:

Some on foil papers.

The ones on the far left had orphan sizes added, being too large to fit in the spots allotted to them.
Every needle needs it's special place.
Interesting to note the carefully designed packages.

These are "hosiery mending kits"with silk thread and special sticks that look like book matches which are meant to be moistened and touched to each end of the "run" to stop it.
These I have never seen before.
I'm inclined to think these from the 1940's.

Sweet packaging.
The one on the far right: Queen Royal Silver Ey'd Sharps 5/10 Warranted

Here I opened up the paper cover.
The needles are pinned through a fine muslin fabric.
This is typical of many of the papered needles.
I love this!

Three Woolco needle packages.
These are made by the British Needle Co Ltd, Redditch, England.

I can't get over the sweet packaging!
This is the back of the Crowley's Lion Brand...

...and this is the front.
The one on the far right is also Crowley's but doesn't have the outside cover.

These are so intriguing I needed to share them all!

More!

These are some of my favorites.

The inside, to expose the little wool fabric swatch for the needles.
It's wool because those little vicious moths have found it and started munching!

Another to join the previous one.
More moth holes.
Ah, the vintageness of it all!

Another interesting note:
I checked a website that sells these vintage finds, and though I paid a pittance for these ($1) there is likely about $25-$30 worth of steel and paper! But the joy is in the find, and I'm happy.

Hope you enjoyed at least some of my adventures.
Now I need to start cleaning up these delightful treasures so I can actually use them.

Back to Barn Owl tomorrow.
Come join me!

Owl: Day 91

A Barn Owl Joining My Project Blog

For Tuesday, April 19, 2011

On April 14, I received an e-mail from Mossy who has instructions for How to Make A Good Listener.

I loved the idea, so am inspired to follow her lead and make an owl.

If you want to make one, too, go to her blog HERE for more information.

Here are the beginnings of my owl:

The sweater I'm using.

This is 50% Lambs Wool, 40% Angora Rabbit Hair, and 10% Nylon.
So very soft!

The instructions say to use a sleeve for the owl body.
This is the sleeve next to my printed directions.

Instead of cutting a separate base, I decided to gather the end of the sleeve.
I like how it turned out.

This is a little bag of plastic filler I made to give the owl some weight so it won't fall over when finished. These are small, plain white plastic beads just for this purpose.
Remember the blue flowered fabric pattern from the Scissors Case?

The owl "sleeve" now has the bag of beads inside and is standing alone.
Tomorrow I will continue to some more interesting parts of little new owl.

Happy Wednesday to You!

Cable Purse Completed: Day 90

All Wrapped Up :-]

Today the Cable Purse is ready for her coming out party.

The button loop and the handles needed to be tacked down before stitching in the lining.
Here is the loop with the threads still hanging.

Here is Cable Purse.
She turned out rather well I think.

Loop and button together at last.

Since the loop is somewhat thick I needed to allow for that when I sewed the button to its place.
(I meant to take a photo of that, but couldn't get the angle in the small space.)

Basically the button is placed where I wanted it and a chopstick is placed on top of it between the 2 holes. Then I stitched up through the first hole and brought the thread over the chopstick and down into the second hole. This is repeated a few times, then the thread is knotted. THEN to make a thread shank under the button for the thickness of the loop, I brought the thread between the button and the fabric and circled the thread around the two threads under the button. Now it has a sturdy shank keeping the button up off the fabric. Then the loop can have a place to go.

If this seems a bit unclear, Martha Stewart has great instructions and diagrams for this.
Go HERE to see them.

Two Views of the Inside of the Purse:

Just as a little more information, the dimensions of this bag are as follows:

Width at base: 91/4"
Width at top: 7"
Base to top: 7 1/4"
Strap: 12" drop
(Thought you might like to know.)

To tell you the truth I didn't know what I would do with this sweater collar. In fact I didn't really feel connected to it at all. Now I really like it and think that it made a great little bag.

Hope you like the outcome, too.

Meet me again here tomorrow...

Cable Purse Continued: Day 89

Second Day Of Creating This Bag

Photos today are limited. My camera told me in it's inimitable way that the battery was low.

When that happens you have no choice but to put it into the charger and try to wait patiently for it to complete it's work. Sadly it just now was ready to put back into the camera.

Nevertheless I have a few photos to show you.

The project as it stands now:

I chose this button as part of the fastening system for the bag.
Embroidered with thread close to the color of the lining, and stitched such that a thicker loop can slip over it easily. (More about that later.)

This is the loop--a narrow section of the non-cabled part of the sweater.
It is just pinned in under the lining.

The lining is still just pinned in, as I needed to make those decisions about  the strap and fastener before being able to  stitch down the lining.

The strap is made with one of the sweater seams cut  from the body of the sweater.
It will be attached as I stitch down the lining.

And for tomorrow:
1-Stitch lining! You already know this of course :-]
2-This bag has lots of little sweater tufts that need munching by the sweater lint eater,
so I will be wrapping up the project by cleaning up those tufts.

Should be able to finish my Cable Purse tomorrow!

I'll see you then.

Cable Purse: Day 88

Beginnings Of Another Purse

For April 16, 2011

A start on a small bag was begun tonight.

It will take another day or two since (partly) the lining fabric needed to be washed first, so that put the project on hold for a bit of time. I didn't think ahead!

Here: The Process So Far... 

The remains of the sweater I am using. (She has given me many projects and parts of projects to date.)
All that's left is one full sleeve, a portion of the back, a very small portion of the front, the label hanging by a thread, and...

...a very BIG, thick-felted sweater collar.
This is the second very large collar on a sweater that I have used in the last few days.
Remember the pink Neck Warmer?

Here is the future purse with the cut lining that I chose.
This blue fabric is a medium weight cotton.

The collar is now hand stitched at the bottom to close the seam, and I have turned over the opposite side for a cuff at the top of the purse. It is currently pinned down for future tacking in place.

And a peek inside to see the lining, also ready for stitching in place.

Decisions Still To Make:

1-What kind of strap or handle
2-How to attach the handle
3-What kind of fastener to keep the purse closed at the top

Stay tuned for tomorrow's installment of Cable Purse!

Fortune Cookies: Day 87

Something Sweet To Eat?

Let's see what today's project brought to life.

This pattern is taken from a Martha Stewart idea (get sidetracked HERE to get the instructions).
A 4 1/2" circle is cut for the fortune cookie.
I didn't want to cut further into a great cocoa brown sweater, so I cut another smaller circle for a second cookie from my scraps.

Close view of the stitching to create the cookie shape.
(In Martha's version she uses felt and glue, but I didn't want to do that.
I just wanted it to be soft.)

And voila!
Two Fortune Cookies

Complete with paper fortunes...

The smaller cookie's words:
"Please don't eat us...we are too cute!"

The larger cookie's fortune:
"Ne'er will you become fatigued...

...from doing a Project A Day!"

I certainly hope this is true.  :-]

A lovely evening to you from me.