A Stitch in Time

At the beginning of the year, I resolved to make a journal quilt each month, and to make a postcard sized companion piece to send to my good friend, Gay, in North Carolina. My January journal quilt was made from selvedge scraps and expressed my sentiments about my stash and how big it had grown - it also featured a dear little miniature Olfa rotary cutting pin. I only had one of those, so had to decide what to use on the companion piece for Gay.


Well I had a little treasure I wanted to use. I bought this little needle case on Ebay. It opens up to reveal a row of needles - very sweet.

Trouble is it just didn't fit with the rather modern looking journal quilt. After considerable dithering, I came to the conclusion that I needed to make a more old fashioned looking piece to reflect the vintage of the little treasure - so I turned to crazy patchwork and a suitable, more classic phrase. I had planned on tucking the little case into a pocket just below the piece with the text on, but that didn't work, as it stuck out too far and obscured the text. I dithered endlessley, and eventually decided to start again - but I just didn't want to leave the piece, as I liked it, so decided to push ahead - I just needed to figure out how to get it to hold the needlecase.



So, I decided to put it on the back. But then I had to figure out how to attach it. I decided on a little envelope - it was a toss up between lutradur and sheer heaven - but I went for the latter. It looked a bit raw in its natural state, so I gave it a spritz with Moonshadow Mist, then attached it by making holes with my trusty Japanese screw punch (which I bought, before they doubled in price!) and stitched it with some perle cotton.
Voila!!
I was going to wait until Gay got this in the mail to post, but a) I suspect she is beginning to think I was never going to get to finish it, and b) she complains I don't post to my blog often enough - well I have to have something to post don't I? So here it is!! Miss you - wish you were closer so we could have our play days together.

Hedebo stick and ring

Well of course as soon as I mentioned Hedebo sticks I just had to go off and find the one my husband made. This was his first attempt, and actually, it isn't quite right. The rebate, or depth of the ridges (or whatever the proper technical term is) isn't deep enough, so the rings slide off. Although once he understood what the problem was he duly went back to The Shed and made one exactly right - except I haven't got that one, as I gave it to my friend Annette who started this all off in the first place, wanting to make Hedebo daffodils. This one is 13cm long.

I used the very bottom of the stick where it widens out to the handle to make this ring. I haven't quite got it right where I ended off (at about 9 o'clock) - maybe I needed one more stitch, or maybe the tension where I started and finished isn't quite right. This is 1.7cm across (1.1cm across the inside)

I think these little guys have potential, especially combined with machine stitched rings using the Flower Stitcher foot , and maybe some free form rings stitched on Romeo - I think I will file that thought away in my 'things to explore further' file. I know what I can call the finished piece - going around in circles - although I am more inclined to go off on tangents- hmmm, I think I see a theme emerging for my 2007 Journal Quilts - the first of which I haven't made yet, but I have until 31 January, and I hate to waste a good deadline!