Class planning for 2020

For many people November and December are times for winding down, preparing for holidays and Christmas, spending time with family and relaxing.  But this is not the case for travelling textile teachers.  This time of year is when class proposals are due for both Houston Quilt Festival and Birmingham Festival of Quilts.  So I, like many of my peers are busily putting together new classes, making samples and preparing step-outs and handouts.  I have just gone through this process for a London show I am teaching at in March, so thought I would share one of the projects I have made for that program.

This project is made entirely on an overlocker (serger) and the technique is very adaptable to lots of different looks.  I made a quilt as you go messanger bag from charm squares and six strips from a jelly roll.

Here is the project photo

I used black and white fabrics from Byndees Precuts.  These are from the 10 inch charm squares which I cut into half square triangles.  I then found a heap of offcuts of wadding and cut them into ten inch squares and then half square triangles.  I tried to keep a mix of light and dark and through in two squares of the hot pink for some lift.

Then I made sandwiches of the wadding and two fabric triangles.

Then it was off to the overlocker.  I took two triangle sandwiches, one light and one dark and stitched them together along the long side.  Repeat this until all the triangles are back to squares.

These squares are then joined up to sets of two and formed into the front, back and lip of the bag.  I then joined two sets of three strips from the jelly roll to make two long, long strips.  Next, I used the two fabric strips on either side of wadding cut to the same size and stitched the sides of the bag together.

All quilt as you go and made in a couple of hours.

If you would like to make this in a class, you can see me in London or organise for the class to be run with your group or guild.

 

Using Multipurpose Cloth

Last week I did not post a blog, not because it was the long weekend, well partly because of that.  We spent the weekend building a fence and I did not have the capacity to think, or move nor the time, so took the weekend off.

This week’s featured product is made by Roc-Lon and was originally designed as a black out curtain lining, but it is one of the most fabulous and versatile surfaces to work on. If you want to use it to line your curtains, it blocks light, acts as an insulation for heat/cold and noise. Those exact characteristics are what make it so versatile.

Multipurpose Cloth is 30% Cotton and 70% Polyester. As such, it can be dyed with transfer dyes and stained with Procion dyes (colour will only be light, soft and drifty due to high Poly content). The surface is mildly suede like and it takes all sorts of paints and colour products really well. The first thing you can do with it is apply paint. The cloth is quite solid and heavy but maintains a soft drape. This means that you can use this to add body but still be malleable and can be shaped. It is completely washable, so depending on what you are making select a paint with sufficient colourfastness if it is likely to be washed. The cloth takes Lumiere Paint like it was made for it.

Most importantly, the Multipurpose Cloth can be cut with scissors or a rotary cutter and can be sewn on the sewing machine or hand embroidered. Due to the polyester content, the cloth will not fray, so you can be a bit lazy on how you finish the items you make with it. It makes great baby shoes and bags, sturdy cloth dolls and baby toys. It can be stitched into quilts or garments. Imagine a painted, embroidered and embellished vest front for example.

So, paint, stencil, stamp, spray and sponge layers of colour over the surface with pretty much any paints and colour products. You can glue fabric or paper elements directly on the surface, foil or apply embossing powder.

Once decorated (or not), the cloth can be stitched into a range of different items. As the cloth is water resistant, it is great for household items such as placemats, bowls, wine and lunch box covers, picnic wear, peg holders and more.

The cloth is heat tolerant, so you can add image transfers, embossing powder, foils, iron on decals and more. It also means that the cloth can be used for lampshades and other functions were indirect or diffused heat will be present. Most importantly it can be ironed.

Although the cloth can be the base fabric for pretty much anything, my favourite uses for it are dimensional embellishments. You can cut the cloth with any of the die cutting machines, so can make anything from very precise and detailed appliqué elements to dimensional stars, flowers, hearts etc to stich or glue onto a project. Lots of brightly painted stars would make a great baby mobile.

For a huge range of very quick and easy projects, go to the Roc-Lon website listed below.

http://www.roc-lon.com/useful_info/cloth_projects.html

I am carrying the cloth in the 54 inch width, so if you want metreage you can order it. Have fun with this awesome surface.

Here are some pictures of me colouring it and a bag I made from the painted fabric

Painted with Lemon and Hot Fuchsia Dye na Flow

Pearlescent Magenta and Metallic Gold Lumiere and Pink and Orange Liquitex Paint sponged on all over the surface

Multipurpose Cloth painted with Pearlescent Purple and Pearlescent Turquoise Lumiere Paint with Gold Embossing powder melted onto the painted surface.

AND finally the bag I made from it all.  As this is all waterproof, I can use this for a towel and swimmers or a great nappy bag.  I have four pockets on the outside.  Although this is not lined, I could easily have lined it and perhaps made the bag reversible.  In a different shape, it could be a lunch bag or so much more.  Easily washed, Multipurpose Cloth is extremely versatile.