sewing machine seam guides DIY

I've tried many different types of sewing machine seam guides.

 I've tried a magnetic one 

But my machine is plastic and the metal plate isn't big enough

I tried using masking tape

But it curls up and there is no substance to it to keep the fabric straight

I've tried a foot with a built in seam guide 

But I just can't seem to get the hang of it 

I just couldn't find the one that worked for me. 

Then one day during quilt can Bonnie Hunter mentioned the technique she uses. She uses a thick piece of plastic like a hotel key card or a shop loyalty card and attaches it with these 

They are made by scotch and are easy to reposition with no damage to the surface. This pack contained 18 1x1 inch squares and I used one square cut in half for my seam guide so it's not expensive. Plus I can think of 100 other uses for the rest! 

And this plastic card that my new phone sim card came in is perfect! 

The sticky tabs make it really easy to take off the guide for things like quilting that don't need the guide and also to remove the front of my machine to access my front loading bobbin. It is thick enough that it creates a nice edge to butt your fabric up against and extends beyond the presser foot to keep fabric straight as it comes out too. I'm really pleased with it. One of the cheapest solutions but definitely one of the best! 

Flower arranging

So the house move is completed give or take about 6 boxes left to unpack. For a little break this week I decided to work on a few finishing touches. Our previous house was all neutrals and while this house is mostly neutrals the living room has a feature wallpaper featuring orange, gunmetal grey and silver flowers. 

We already had teal cushions as that was our feature colour previously and I wanted to keep those. Then we have the one completed cushion I made in college and the pile of 3 UFOs which had a strong teal colour theme and a minor orange colour theme. They are absolutely perfect and it's like they were designed with this situation in mind, how's that for luck! 

I wanted a dried flower arrangement to go in this vase that my husband had since before we met. So I pulled together all the dried flowers I already had and added a few extra in cream and orange and made up this arrangement for the living room 

and this arrangement for the hallway 

They add a lovely extra splash of colour and help the house feel more finished. A job well done I think. 

settling in

So we are almost settled in at the new house. We have about 5 boxes left to unpack and lots of things floating around that haven't found a permanent home yet but we've only been in a few weeks so I'm really pleased. 

The new house is gorgeous and has a massive kitchen with a dining area 

And a back garden more than 4 times the size of our old house which means there is plenty of room for Sam to play safely and it gets lots of sun so I can get lots of rest sat out in the sun. 

My sewing room is taking shape nicely. Its quite a bit smaller than my old one but I still have one so I count myself lucky. 

and yes as usual there is a definite pink theme going on! 

covert robin swap

A couple of months ago I signed up for my first ever swap with the covert robin swap. I was really nervous but my lovely friend Samantha reassured me that I'd be ok and to just throw myself in. So after a bit of cyber stalking I decided on a library bag as my partner mentioned trips to the library. All that was left was to decide on a design and colour scheme. I chose a natural colour palette that complimented the cowboy fabrics I chose. I attempted this star pattern using English paper piecing and appliqued the finished star onto the front of the bag. 

My second gift was this hand made seam ripper made using fimo. It has an off white base with brightly coloured stripes running around it. 

And of course I couldn't resist making one for myself too in a lovely marbled effect of pinks and purples with a little added sparkle. 

All that remained then was to add a piece of welsh flag fabric, some chocolate and a letter. I've heard it has arrived safely with it's recipient and she liked it so my first swap was a success. 

Finish a long Q2 to do list

OK so in order to try and shrink the giant pile of UFOs overflowing from under my desk I've decided to enter the Finish-a-long link ups for the year here. 

For quarter 1 with a little help from Sammy I pulled out all the UFOs and sorted them into piles of urgent and non urgent. Then I added projects that I had the fabric for but hadn't started and added those too. This list seemed a little ambitious but I decided heck why not go for it! I managed to complete 3 things on my list so I have quite a few to roll over to quarter 2 and I've clearly not learnt my lesson as I'm starting this quarter with a massive list of 13 things! 

I've tried to put them in priority order this time and hope with some calm time ahead now that the house is almost sorted from the move I can at least make a very good dent in the list. 

1 -  Mum and Dad's blanket 

I bought 2 fleece blankets, one plain beige one cream with beige spots, to make a fleece patchwork blanket for my parents. I cut the pieces and then forgot all about them so the plan is to get this assembled for their wedding anniversary in April. 

2- bedroom curtains 

We need bedroom curtains as the room is just too light with just the roller blind. Here is the lovely fabric we have bought. I've started marking out the cut lines but I was so nervous of making a mistake I pushed them to the back of the UFO pile but I really need to tackle them. 

3 Bags for Sam bedroom 

I definitely need to make a laundry bag for Sam's bedroom and am considering a bag for out of season clothes as wardrobe space in his new room is limited. I found an old Thomas the tank duvet cover that will be perfect for the fabric and cut out the pieces for 1 of the bags but need to google adding a drawstring as I'm not so sure on them which is why they are a UFO

4- Jersey strapless top for holidays 

I made a few shired dresses and tops a few years back but they are looking a little past their best now and one or two are too small so I've bought some gorgeous jersey fabric to make myself some more ready for holidays at the end of April. Here is one of the originals when it was first made. I've since learnt how to do shiring on the machine effectively so I need to finish off this top properly and start the 2nd. 

5 -  Finish my patchwork top. 

I started this top a little while ago and I can't wait to see it finished as I love the purple patchwork. Very sorry for very blurry photo don't quite know what happened there. 

6- Japanese folded bag 

I made this bag a couple of years ago in college but after only a couple of uses a few of the seams are coming apart so my task is to re-sew the seams that are coming apart ready for holidays at the end of April and actually be able to use this bag rather than just moving it around my sewing room and avoiding the dreaded hand sewing task! 

7-  Finish the cushions for the living room sofa

I made this hexagon cushion for part of my college coursework in the 2010-2011 year. I started making some other cushions out of the same fabrics but using different patchwork styles but they have been sat in a ziploc bag ever since. It's about time I got them finished! 

Here are 3 that I've started. A log cabin type block, a 9 patch block and a rectangular cushion with 3 grandmother's flower hexagon blocks to be appliqued on. I may stop at 4 or carry on depending on how much fabric I have left but my goal is to complete 3 making a total of 4. 

8- New quilt covers for our bed

To do: 

* applique initials onto pillowcases (heat and bond templates made but not yet cut from fabric)

* 4 pineapple blocks, 2 per quilt (halfway through 1)

Here is a basic sketch of my original plans. They have changed slightly now but the general idea is still the same.  The plain quilt covers I bought are a lovely cerise pink (yes we have 2 separate single quilts. not conventional but we prefer it) and the fabrics I have are a lovely mix of pale pink, greens and browns which match the bargello runner I made in Q1. (I just used bright colours on the sketch so they would stand out) 

9 - Stack n whack 

The fabrics for the blocks are all cut out and 4 of the 8 blocks are assembled.

To do: 

* Assemble the remaining 4 blocks 

* Decide what I'm doing for the central block

* Cut sashings and join together the 9 blocks 

* Quilt and bind 

10- CD Holder Damian

I seem to be constantly finding scratched CDs where they have been in hubby's car and not looked after. So I decided that I'd make him a load of CDs via itunes so that they can be easily replaced if they get damaged as they won't be originals but he will need something to keep them tidy. I've cut out the parts for this so assembling it should be a nice quick job. 

11- Alter my jumper

I love this jumper but it's a little bit on the tight side and a lot on the the short side. I cut the hem off and was going to add a fabric frill but when i pinned it on it just looked strange so now I'm thinking of adding some lace to increase the length and maybe a panel in each side to increase the size?? I'm not really sure where I'm heading with this one. 

12 - Sam innotab bag

I'm not 100% sure of which fabrics I will use for which yet but currently thinking it will be the striped fabric with the red fleece lining and the Thomas tank border strips as pockets. 

13- Finish my PJ bottoms

This crumpled mess is my first attempt at making myself PJ bottoms. I started to sew them together but went a little wrong sewing 2 fronts together and 2 backs together instead of 1 of each so they need unpicking and restitching together. Once I start they shouldn't take too long but I'm procrastinating as unpicking is bad enough but unpicking jersey fabric is a nightmare!

Finish a long Q1 final update

So as you know I am taking part in the Finish-a-long quarter 1 

My list of tasks I hope to achieve can be found in more detail in this previous post. 

Today is my final update to see how much of this list I managed to complete. Sadly I haven't got as much finished as I had hoped due to ill health, a house move, other unexpected tasks and things taking longer than expected but I'm sure that if I hadn't started this I wouldn't have accomplished half as much and I can always roll these items over to next quarter. I ended up with 3 completed items so that is 3 entries into the competition draw but that wasn't the point of joining in and I'm definitely joining in next quarter. 

1- Strip piecing college coursework. 

To do: 

a) bargello runner for blanket box at base of bed 

I had a mistake with one section that I stitched in college as I had the 1/4 inch seam set wrong and I stupidly didn't check so when I came to join it to a section I did at home they were completely different sizes. That college panel has now been repurposed into a journal cover for my blog planner. 

The runner is now completed. I'm currently writing a separate post on this so pictures to follow soon. 

b) seminole strips to edge pillowcases. I didn't like how these looked so I'm now looking at alternative options

c) applique initials onto pillowcases

d) 3 x log cabin blocks for D's quilt I've changed my mind and decided to do pineapple blocks instead. 

e) 3 x dresden plate blocks for my quilt. I've printed out the templates but I'm not sure whether to do 2 pineapple blocks for each quilt or not. 

2- Finish the cushions for the living room sofa

Not even taken these out of the box I'm sad to admit but we've moved into the new house now so I have even more of a kick up the backside to get these finished. 

3 & 4 - Sam library bag and innotab bag

I've pulled out the fabric for the innotab bag but I've not made it yet. Sam went on a school trip to the library where they were given a library bag so I no longer need to make him one. 

5 - Finish my PJ bottoms

With this horrid weather I've been living in my onesies but I'd like to get these finished ready for holidays as they are a nice soft jersey and should be nice and cool. 

6. Alter my jumper

Not started this one either. 

7. Finish my patchwork top. 

Not started this one either.

8 - Mum's scarf 

Not started this one either but think I've changed my mind about how to make this so will probably postpone till her birthday in September. 

9 - Mum and Dad's blanket 

Need to get a start on this one pretty soon as it's an anniversary gift which is less than 2 weeks away! 

10 &11 - Japanese folded bags 

I have finished Tracy's bag and she loved it so now that she's received it  can finally share it with you all. There is a separate post all about it. 

Need to restitch the seams on mine ready to use as a beach bag for holidays. 

12 - Stack n whack 

I've cut all the patterned fabric for this quilt and sewn 4 of the 8 blocks. So I have 4 more blocks to sew and I then have to decide what I am going to do for the central block. I've bought a contrasting blue fabric for sashings and am looking forward to seeing it assembled. 

13 - Mum and Dad's cushions

Complete and delivered to a very happy Mum and Dad. 

Aprons

I love the colour of these aprons so bright and summery. this is the second lot of aprons I've made for a family friend's autistic granddaughter.  As she is mentally significantly younger than her age and size they were struggling to find young girly aprons to fit her so that's where I step in to help. So they are made to fit her nicely and are made slightly longer than usual to give as much coverage as possible. 

I got this lovely laminated cotton fabric from IKEA and its really reasonably priced at £4 per metre. The last lot I did was in the pink gingham and this time I went for the bright sunny yellow for a change. Although it doesn't fray I still hem all the sides just to give it a little more structure. Then I add a simple cotton tape for the neck and the ties. 

She did mention that she was sending one to school so I made one with her name on and 2 plain ones. 

The pictures aren't great but trying to find a floor space that isn't covered in boxes at the moment is proving virtually impossible.