Disney Quilt Swap Part 1

Before baby Stanley was born, I signed up for the #disneyquiltswap on Instagram. Since it didn't ship out until the beginning of April and baby was due mid February, I figured I would have plenty of time to plan, construct, and mail a mini quilt plus some extras to my partner.

My partner likes Mulan, especially Mushu and Crikee, so I dreamed up a mini quilt based on the first time they meet Mulan. That means fire, a dragon in shadow, and snarky quotes!

I created the background from 2" squares of yellow, orange, and red fabric placed in a gradient. Then I cut out silhouettes of Mushu and Crikee and used raw-edge appliqué to attach them to the quilt. I had to do a bit of embroidery for Crikee's legs and antenna, since they are way too skinny to cut out of fabric. 

Mushu

Crikee

I chose to use part of the Mushu quote "I'm not tiny, I'm travel sized for your convenience." I dropped the "for your convenience" simply because that was way too many letters to cut out! 

I had a brainstorm to try to make the quilting for this mini look like flames to evoke that first meeting scene even more. So using orange and yellow variegated thread, I free motion quilted flames all over the quilt. I used a black backing fabric to let the quilting pop. Last but not least, I made a quilt label in the shape of Mickey. 

The back with flame quilting

Mickey quilt label

Before mailing, I made a couple extra to include. I made a Beauty and the Beast needlebook complete with a rose needleminder, needles, wonder clips, and scissors. 

Front

Inside front

Inside back

Back

And because my partner likes Yzma from Emperor's New Groove, I recreated this scene:

I made an Emperor Kuzco flea, and painted two boxes to match the scene from the movie. This is such a fun and funny scene, that it deserved to be honoured with crafting! 

Then, with four days notice, I was informed that my partner had been kicked out of the swap! I had to start all over again for a new partner with less than a weeks worth of time and a newborn! My original partner contacted me and we agreed to do a private swap between the two of us, so this package still got to go to its rightful home.

In return, my partner sent me an Ariel mini quilt in the shape of a shell, a Mr. Tumnus cross stitched mini, and some awesome Harry Potter items. This was a super fun way to swap, as we knew that each other was sending to us, so we were able to post sneak peaks and get excited about our packages. 

Mini by Alyx Hashman

All these fabulous goodies!

Stay tuned for my next post showing what I made for partner number two!

Mini Mini Quilt Mania

Make Modern Magazine is hosting a mini mini quilt contest this month. Quilts can be no bigger than 6" square, which you would think would be limiting. But dang, I made one last night and the ideas just kept flowing!

When I first heard of the contest, the first words that came to mind were Mouse House. So I decided to run with it and create a mini mini with those words in mind. I knew right away I wanted to use the mouse on the bike from Mice on Bikes by Lizzy House. I explored my fabric collection for inspiration and started cutting and glueing away. In the end, I had a scene with the bike mouse leaving his house under the watchful eye of the cat in the moon. 

Mouse House

I laid the mini mini out with a tape measure and some sewing supplies to prove the size (5.5" square!). 

This morning I was all fired up to make another. Today I made a mini Polaroid block using a scrap of Briar Rose fabric left over from my B Rosie quilt. I embroidered Spring 2016 under the "photo", to replicate how people used to write on Polaroids, and I accented the photo with some French knot pollen dots. I finished this one with some mini pompom trim. 

Spring 2016 Polaroid

Again, I set up a little scene to show the size (3x4"!). I have a few other ideas rattling around in my brain, so this likely isn't the last mini mini quilt you see out of me!

The Small World Mini quilt: pattern tested

When I saw the Small World mini quilt that Leasa of ProjectLeasa (@projectleasa on Instagram) made for her partner in the #disneyquiltswap2015, I instantly swooned. 

Leasa's original mini quilt, courtesy of her @projectleasa Instagram

The whole concept is adorable, the bright colours are so eye catching, and I had recently been to Disneyland and loved every minute of it - including the Small World ride. 

It's a Small World ride Disneyland,  Christmas 2014

Small World all lit up at night

So when Leasa decided to write the pattern for it, I followed along closely, so exited for it to be release so I could make my very own. Lucky for me, she put out a call for pattern testers, and I was one of the six quilters she selected to help her to make sure the pattern works as written, and edit anything that may need reworking. 

Leasa wrote an excellent pattern that needed very little in the way of correction! It is very well written, the explanations are so clear, and there is the added bonus of step-by-step photos for literally every step! This is such a fun pattern to make; it is a traditional piecing pattern that includes half square triangles, curves, buttons, and embroidery. And although the pattern is labeled Intermediate Skill Level, the instructions are so clear, a confident beginner could tackle this project and be happy with their results. 

So, with no further ado, here is my completed The Small World Mini quilt top!

The pattern is now available at the PieceOLease etsy shop!

Charley Harper Swap pt 2: Outgoing

The #charleyharpersewnstudio swap wrapped up at the beginning of April. My partner finally got the package yesterday (it took 3 weeks to get from Winnipeg to Tennessee - ridiculous!) My partner said that her favourite prints are Foxsimilies, Family owlbum, and Mice Invasion. So I incorporated all of them into the package I sent.

A Charley Harper label to hint at what's inside!

First, the mini quilt. I waffled back and forth about what I wanted to do, until inspiration hit in the shower (where I do all my best thinking). I decided to recreate Family Owlbum as the main feature of the quilt. 

The original artwork

The owls were pretty challenging. I combined a few different techniques to achieve the final project. I used English Paper Piecing to make the large eyes and the baby owls. I used machine and hand applique to attach all the small parts, and embroidery to draw around the eyes. 

The owl family

I used needle turn applique to attach the portrait to the centre of a cream panel, and added four circles of the feathers fabric around the owls. Then I framed the whole thing using the twigs fabric as the corners. 

The front, before quilting

On the back, I attached a label made to look like a Charley Harper nest. 

This is my favourtie label ever

I wanted to make the circles really pop, so I left them unquilted, and did some free motion stiples around them on the cream fabric. And I did straight line quilting in the frame. I attempted machine binding for the first time for this project, because I wanted to try using a decorative stitch on the binding.  I prefer hand binding.  Maybe I'm just not very good at machine binding, but I wasn't thrilled with how it turned out.  

After quilting

Free motion stiples

Binding closeup

Love the pop!

In hindsight, I wish I would have centred the quilt label on the back to coincide with the owl on the front. It ended up half in and half out of the stiples, which I think is less than ideal. 

The back, post quilting

I made a few extras to include with the mini quilt. I made a needle book featuring Foxsimilies during my stay at 52 Quilters.

Those elephants were perfect for the inside!

I made a needleminder from the ladybug fabric.

And I made a pincushion/jar from the Mice Invasion fabric.

Jar and button courtesy of Grandma's hoarding!

I loved putting this package together for my partner. I enjoy Charley Harper's artwork so much, so it was a lot of fun to get to interact with it like this. Thanks Sewn Studio for hosting this super fun swap!

If you liked this post, you may be interested to see what I received in this swap!

Charley Harper Swap pt1: Incoming

And if you love reading about my love for Charley Harper, here's a few other gems for you.

Feelin' Good on a Wednesday: Charley Harper Love!

The Charley Harper Conundrum

The Charley Harper Resolution

Postcards from the city

My mother in law told me that she was wanting a small zippy pouch to hold a few small makeup essentials for on the go. So I made her one!

I just received my Cotton and Steel Club package in the mail this week, and in it was a print with postage stamps on it. 

Postage stamps are second from the top on the right

I thought it would be cute to make a pouch that looked like a postcard using those stamps. 

I used pinking shears to cut out the stamps I wanted to use, then fused them to the base fabric with fusible web. I top stitched over them, then used a couple of the fancy stitches on my machine to "cancel" them. 

Then I hand embroidered her name in the address spot 

I made a strip for the bottom, to look like  the stickers they put on mail if it goes by air. I used a line from the Heartfelt fabric that says "the little things", since that is what the pouch is used for! 

Then for the front of the postcard, I made a city scene with a print of houses, and a wrought iron fence from the Bluebird Park fabric line. 

And last but not least, I finished it off with a pink rose and brass charm for the zipper pull. 

The inside lining coordinates well with the outside colour scheme. 

I love how this bag turned out, and I think I may have to make myself one next!