Nicola Foreman Quilts
  • BLOG
  • BAGS
  • CUSHIONS
  • QUILTYSTUFF
  • QUILTS
  • TABLERUNNERS
  • WALL HANGINGS
  • CONTACT ME

Lecien Journal Covers

30/11/2014

1 Comment

 
I had some Lecien fabrics left over from other projects, and decided to make some small journal covers. I didn't follow a commercial pattern for these, as I just used bits and pieces of fabrics and lace trimmings and buttons. I've popped a 2015 diary in these, A6 size (they're small enough to easily fit in a handbag without taking up too much room!) and they're ready for Christmas gifts.
Picture
1 Comment

A Boxful Of Bags...

29/11/2014

0 Comments

 
I've been busy sewing in the evenings, making more bags for Christmas gifts. I used the pattern Anna's Sminkepung by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa (no, I don't read the Norwegian instructions, I just follow the very detailed diagrams!) and a selection of pastel florals from my huge stash of Lecien fabrics. These were quilted very simply, using Auril thread 40wt in colours to match the fabrics, then I added some lace trimmings as decoration...
Picture
Picture
...these are trimmed with Prairie Points at the side of the zipper, in fabrics that match the zipper binding. I really liked this range of Lecien fabric, and may have to replenish my stash of fabrics and zippers and lace soon!... 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
...and here they are altogether. It's been tricky getting decent photographs as it's been too dark in the mornings before I go to work, and definitely too dark when I get home in the evenings, so I had to wait until today to get this photo-shoot completed. I'm planning to spend the rest of the day sewing as I'm getting ready for a  Christmas Craft Fair that's tomorrow, so I'll share some pictures later!
Picture
0 Comments

Christmas Craft Fair - Only 1 Day Left!!

29/11/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Well there's only one day left for sewing and quilting and generally getting ready for my stall at a local Christmas Shopping Day. There'll be lots of stalls selling all sorts of handmade crafty goodies - scarves and hats, and bags and cushions, and jams and pickles - and of course I'll be there with some of my quilty stuff too. If you're going along, please stop and say hello!!
0 Comments

Scrappy Embroidered Cushion

21/11/2014

0 Comments

 
I was clearing out sewing corner, and found a few scraps of fabric left from a quilt that I'd made earlier in the summer (it was called "Down In The Garden" by Leanne Beasley). I'd already made a cushion for my sister with some of these scraps, and had just enough fabric left to make another one. I traced a stitchery design (also from the same quilt pattern) onto a couple of plain pieces of fabric, and then it all together randomly. The stitchery design was then completed by hand...
Picture
Picture
...the cushion top was layered with a muslin backing and a piece of Quilters Cotton Dream wadding (select weight) in between. This was quilted very simply with straight rows 1/2" apart, using my walking foot as a guide. I've used my favourite quilting thread for this - Aurifil 40 wt - and a Schmetz top stitch needle size 70. I really like the ribbed effect of the quilting, and the Aurifil thread is just wonderful to sew with. Once the quilting was completed, I added some machine-appliqued butterflies...
Picture
Picture
...the bodies and antennae were then added (this was done very simply with back stitch). A spotty binding finishes this off, hand stitched to the back of the cushion, and one of my labels is added to the back too. i really loved this pretty yellow Lecien fabric that I used for the top half of the cushion back...
Picture
Picture
...and here it is - another scrappy cushion completed!
Picture
0 Comments

Vintage Pillow

16/11/2014

2 Comments

 
I've been playing around with a selection of white and cream fabrics, and lace trimmings, and printing vintage pictures onto fabric (I always use EQ printable sheets that I buy from my local quilt shop, Quilters Haven). I made a scrappy log cabin block and added more fabric in random shapes and sizes until I had a piece that was approx  18" square. Once I was happy with the layout, it was layered onto a piece of muslin with some wadding inbetween (I used an off-cut of Quilters dream cotton wadding, select weight that was left over from another project) and spray basted the layers together using 505 spray. I quilted the layers together, and free motion quilted a large angular spiral on the log cabin block...
Picture
Picture
...once the quilting was completed, I machine appliqued the vintage picture into place, and stitched a few vintage buttons randomly. 3 rows of lace trimming were finally added. The front and back of the cushion were layered up, and the binding was added...
Picture
Picture
...I used 2 fabrics for the back of the cushion (I think this adds a bit of interest to the back, and like things that I make to look pretty on the back as well the front!) and used a concealed zipper as the closure. This looks really neat, and had a small label sewn into the side seam too...
Picture
Picture
...and here's the finished cushion. A plump feather cushion is used to fill this out. It was time for a quick photoshoot this morning, as it was raining when I finished this yesterday, then it needs to wrapped up for my baby sister who has a birthday coming up!
Picture
2 Comments

Merry And Bright

15/11/2014

1 Comment

 
What do you do with a Christmas-themed charm pack? This one is called Merry & Bright and is by Sandy Gervais for Moda. I'd had this for simply ages, and it was perfect for this project. The stitchery design is by the Australian designer Leanne Beasley (the pattern is called Santa Wears Red Pyjamas) and has 3 different designs in the pattern). I traced this onto one of the charm squares with a Micron Pigma pen, fused a square of weaveline onto the back, and stitched over the lines with 2 strands of DMC thread. 16 squares were stitched together randomly. This was then layered with some Quilters Dream wadding select weight, and a piece of muslin for the backing and spray basted together ready for quilting...
Picture
Picture
...this was quilted very simply using straight rows, half an inch apart, using the edge of my walking foot as a guide. I used a Mettler quilting thread for this project, in a pale brown shade. The back was made with 2 different fabrics - "Garden Pindot" by Michael Miller fabrics, and "Winterwonderland" by Bunnyhill Designs for Moda. The zipper was inserted using a concealed zipper method - I don't really have a tutorial for this (I was shown how to do this years ago when I did dressmaking at school)...
Picture
Picture
...the binding was made with red/white spotted fabric and was made with a couple of 2.5" strips of fabric joined together with a mitred seam, and attached using the double-fold method. I pinned the front and the back of the cushion together, then machined them together an eighth of an inch all round before stitching the binding into place stitching through all the layers. This was then hand sewn into place on the back of the cushion using ladder stitch, and a red Aurifil thread. This shows the back of the cushion, and shows how smart these are with a concealed zipper...
Picture
Picture
...and here is the finished cushion, ready for Christmas. I've made a pair of these, but only had a chance to take this photograph before it started raining!
Picture
1 Comment

Sewing-Themed Lanyard

10/11/2014

0 Comments

 
I'm always mis-laying my thread-cutter, so I decided to make a lanyard to keep it on. I used some sewing themed fabric, some tape-measure ribbon, and a trigger clip. Initially I cut cut a strip of plain black fabric 3" wide, folded it in half and then folded the raw edges into the middle. I pressed the narrow strip this with a hot iron, opened it out, and used the fold lines as a placement guide for the ribbon. Rather than use pins, I used a Sewline glue-stick, and ran a line of glue onto the fabric. The ribbon was then pressed into place. I attached a strip of sewing themed fabric (again 3" wide) to the plain black strip, and sewed sewed the raw edges together to make one continuous piece...
Picture
Picture
...the tube was stitched together enclosing the raw edges of the ribbon. I re-folded it and pressed it again with the iron (Mr F got rather excited at this point because when he saw the ironing board he thought I was actually going to iron his shirts!) anyway, I then stitched along the edges of the tube, making sure I was also stitching along the edge of the ribbon. I stitched along both sides, giving a nice neat finish. A trigger clip with a split ring was slipped into place, my thread-cutter attached...
Picture
Picture
...now when I'm hand-sewing my thread-cutter won't get mis-laid. This is really useful, and I could also clip a small pair of scissors to this lanyard. If you don't have any split rings, a trigger clip can be added directly to the lanyard before you stitch the tube together.
Picture
0 Comments

På Quiltelaup - Red Batiks

9/11/2014

4 Comments

 
I've been playing around with this pattern "På Quiltelaup" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa and some red batiks. I never get bored of making this bag, and it really is such an easy bag to make, even though the instructions are written in Norwegian! This shows the inside of the bag - I used a mottled black fabric for the lining, with some scraps of left-over red batiks for the accents and also made a handy tab with a clip for keys. The instructions in the original pattern are for a plain lining, but the idea for this lining was based on a pattern by Elizabeth Hartman called "Perfect Quilted Totes"...
Picture
Picture
...when I finished this bag yesterday afternoon it was too dark to get a decent photograph outside, and this morning it's pouring with rain!!! Anyway, I managed to brave the weather to take some pictures, so here is the finished project. The Prairie Points are held in place with a decorative button...
Picture
Picture
...and here is the front of the bag - these batiks really were lovely to sew with. This was quilted with a red Aurifil thread. I've got a few more of these bags to make for Christmas gifts, so I need to get back to my sewing machine!
Picture
4 Comments

Figgy Pudding Cushions

2/11/2014

0 Comments

 
One of my favourite designers for Moda is Basic Grey, and I love their Christmas collections. This one is called Figgy Pudding and it had been in my stash of fabrics for quite a while. I traced a stitchery design (from the pattern Santa Wears Red Pyjamas by Leanne Beasley) onto one of the charm squares, then fused a piece of weaveline onto the back...
Picture
Picture
...as I'd decided to keep this project very simple, I stitched the charm squares together in a 4x4 layout and then stitched over the traced design using 2 strands of DMC embroidery thread using backstitch. Muslin was used for the backing, and was spray basted to some cotton wadding, then the pieced top was spray basted onto the top of the wadding. This was quilted with a pale grey Aurifil quilting thread, and I used the walking foot as a guide to quilt straight rows half an inch apart...
Picture
Picture
...I didn't quilt over the embroidery. When the quilting was completed, I stitched an eighth of an inch all around the quilted piece, then trimmed away the excess backing and wadding. There were enough charm squares in the pack to make two of these large quilted squares...
Picture
Picture
...then it was time to make the back, with an enclosed zipper. I folded a piece of fabric in half, and placed the zipper back to front on the wrong side, near the folded edge of the fabric. The zipper was machined into place, using the walking foot (I hardly ever use the zipper foot for sewing in zippers!). This was then turned over, the "flap" pinned out of the way, and another piece of backing fabric machined into place along the edge of the zipper...
Picture
Picture
...the back of the cushion is placed RS down, with the front of the cushion RS up and then pinned together. This is then machined together using a longer than usual stitch, an eighth of an inch from the raw edges of the cushion top, through all layers, making sure the zipper has been pulled open. The excess pieces of zipper are trimmed away, making sure you don't trim away the end of the zipper with the zipper pull. The binding is then machined onto the front of the cushion, and then folded over to the back and hand sewn to the back...
Picture
Picture
...I really like using 2 different fabrics for cushion backs, and always use a concealed zipper so the cover is easily removed if it needs to be laundered. I love the texture on the front of the cushions that this dense quilting gives...
Picture
Picture
...and here are the completed cushions, with a plump feather pad tucked neatly inside. 
Picture
0 Comments

Candy Bloom Cushion

1/11/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Do you remember the "Circle Of Love" (designed by Rosalie Quinlan) stitchery project that I finished recently? Well I decided to turn this project into a cushion. The dresdens were made with a selection of Candy Bloom fabrics, (also designed by Rosalie Quinlan), and I wanted to use the same range of fabrics. I managed to find some Candy Bloom fabric online from Under The Mulberry Tree for the border, the backing and the binding...
Picture
Picture
...I quilted the front of the cushion very simply, stitch-in-the-ditch around the linen centre, then with straight rows half an inch apart on the borders, using a pink King Tut quilting thread. The back was made with 2 different fabrics from the Candy Bloom collection, and has a concealed zipper. The binding was machined into place, then hand stitched to the back . I'm really pleased with this one!
Picture
0 Comments
    Picture

    About me...

    Hi - welcome to my quilting blog! My passions are my family, my dog, my friends and sewing, not necessarily in that order! 
    ​​I live in Suffolk, not far from the coast, surrounded by the beautiful countryside.  
    ​If you want to share or pin any of my pictures, please link back to my blog.

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010

    RSS Feed

    Picture
    Picture

    Blogs I follow

    A Quilt Lady
    A Quilting Life
    Abyquilt
    Anne-Grethe's quiltblog
    Anne Marie Quilt
    Bente Malm Quilte-Design
    Bloom
    Cinderberry Styitches
    Daisy made it
    Dilly Dimple
    Karis Quilterier
    Evas Quilterom
    Erickaeckles
    Fantasia Yarns
    Gail Pan Designs
    Hanne's Quilt Corner
    Halfpenny Home
    I'm a Ginger Monkey
    J-quilts
    Just Jude Designs
    Kviltstina
    Leanne's House
    Liv Aagots Quilteblogg
    Lily's Quilts
    Litamora's Quilt & Design
    Lynette Anderson Designs
    Merete's Quiltestue
    Mona's quiltblog
    Pam's Paradise Stitching
    Pia Si Sia
    Random Ramblings
    Sigrun's blog
    Sølvi's blog
    U-handblog
    ZewNice

     UK shops

    These are the UK shops that I use to purchase my quilting supplies - fabrics and threads etc.
    Bramblepatch
    Buttonberry
    Coast and Country Crafts
    Craft Den
    Cross Patch
    Emma's Fabric Studio
    Fiona's Fabrics
    Glenroy Designs
    Halfpenny Home
    Hulu
    J-quilts
    KIS Quilting
    Patchwork Chicks
    Quilter's Cloth
    Quilters Haven
    Sew and So's
    The Eternal Maker
    The Fat Quarters
    The Quilt Room
    U-handbag

    Australian links

    Cookies and Cream Craft
    Homespun magazine
    Little Quilt Store
    Quilt Fabric Delights
    Under The Mulberry Tree

    Scandinavian links

    Lapp-Elisa Quilts HB
    Lappedesign
    Lappedilla AS
    Myquilt
    Northern Quilts
    Quiltegården
    Quiltekroken
    Quiltemagasinet
    Quiltespecialisten
    Sy-Sammen