What Happened?

It started out so innocently…I was anxious to get to sewing again after being away from it for a while and had a project in mind.  A good start don’t you think?  I decided to make a postcard to send to our cousins – the ones that hosted us for a weekend while we were in Hawaii.  A small project and the best part I could finish it quickly too.  I settled on a pattern I got from the internet – free graphics of hibiscus and leaves.  I printed the free graphics on paper, enlarged it and used it for the patterns for my applique.  Applique pattern acquired on this webpage
Next step – pull fabrics.  I decided to use batik fabrics as I love the way the colors blend dark to light values on just one piece of fabric.  These are the choices I came up with as a start for the postcard.  I always make adjustments to my fabric choices as I go along as sometimes the colors or values don’t play nice with each other when it comes down to the correct size pieces.  As you can see I did eliminate two of the greens and just selected different areas of the one green fabric for shading of the leaves.  I think the values work ok but will know more after I cut the pieces out of the fused fabric.

I cut the shapes and arranged them into a pleasing configuration.  I did use tweezers to nudge the petals and leaves into place as it is much easier than using my fingers.  As you can see, the final design is a little different than the free graphics design I printed. At this stage the flowers and leaves are just fused to the blue background fabric.  I cut a piece of Timtex larger than the finished postcard and fused the backing fabric to one side.  I quilted around the applique shapes then quilted the background with a combination of feathers and echo quilting.  I used silk thread as I love the weight and the sheen of the stitching.  When the entire postcard was quilted I trimmed the postcard to size and fused a message printed on cardstock to the back and trimmed it to size.

The last step was to zig-zag around the outside through all the layers.  I used burgundy thread – it is OK but after it was finished I wasn’t sure it was the right thread color choice but once the stitching is done with the paper cardstock it can’t be redone.  I sure wouldn’t want to try to hit the holes in the paper a second time and new holes would pretty much tear the paper.

I am sure you are still wondering about the title of this blog…..take a look at the photo below.  Disaster has struck my sewing room.

I will admit that just doing the postcard didn’t make this whole mess.  I left my finished cup of tea on the table, another lens for my camera in the small blue and black bag and an extra battery for my camera.  The bin that I pulled the postcard fabric is still sitting on a stool and is overflowing, boxes from new shoes with one of my purse/bags on top.  You know when you are in a hurry how you change bags and go on your merry way, well I never got back to it to take it to it’s storage place so there it sits.  Am thinking of doing another project where I need wide neckties so have 3 or 4 draped over thread boxes.  An open closet door and another purse/bag that got set aside after using it hanging on cupboard doors.  I really must put those bags away!  Peeking out behind the tea cup is a ball of yarn and a partially finished dishcloth. 

Of course I was using the sewing machine, iron, starch and the ironing surface but everything else could have been put away and I sure would have had a lot more room to work and not have to walk around an obstacle course to get to the iron.  I don’t know about you but when I am in a zone to create I just forge ahead and clean up afterwards.  If I stop to clean before I am done I just loose my momentum.  Maybe I will get it cleaned up before I get another project started….or maybe not.  I certainly won’t show this photo again anyway!

Lynn