December 7, 2016
Transfer Embellish Stitch
Greetings, Earthlings,
We have taken your leader. Fear not. We do not intend to destroy your fabric stash, sergers or craft rooms; we only … What do you mean she’s not your leader? … Ok, we’ll do a few tests and toss her back. In the meantime, enjoy…
Jen Fox and Sarah Case here to talk about one of our favorite projects from our new book “Transfer Embellish Stitch: 16 Textile Projects for the Modern Maker“. We are so excited to share this project from the book, which just came out in October with C&T Publishing / Stash Books.
Our book is based on the idea of taking a motif and transferring it onto fabric using a variety of methods (freezer paper stencils, plastic stencils, fusible web, and embroidery transfer paper) and then embellishing the project with a technique such as fabric paint, deColourant, embroidery, appliqué, and reverse appliqué. We provide motifs on a full sized pull out in the back of the book, and we encourage thinking outside the box and mixing and matching the techniques to create a project that is unique to you!
A display of book projects at a local fabric and quilting shop.
Transfer Embellish Stitch has three different categories of projects: Wear, Live, and Give. The storage baskets are in the Give category — they would make such a great gift, either on their own or to hold other gift items as a gift basket. The baskets are so versatile and can be used to corral bath items, small toys, crafts, and more! Think toy cars, balls of yarn, fabric precuts, crafts in progress, socks, hand towels… the list goes on.
The Orbit Storage Basket project from the book Transfer Embellish Stitch.
In the book, we use the “orbit” motif for our baskets. You can use any one of the motifs from the book, or make your own. The orbit motif is repetitive, and can easily be modified to wrap all the way around the basket. Or, choose another motif from the book, and feel free to rearrange elements from the motifs to create your own design, or just use parts and pieces from a motif.
A student makes her own winter themed motif. The top shows her cutting the design out of freezer paper, below is the painted canvas fabric.
The project shows how to make a stencil out of freezer paper. If you haven’t tried this before, it’s an inexpensive and easy way to make a stencil. You trace your design onto the dull paper side of the freezer paper, cut out the pieces to make a stencil, and then iron with the plastic shiny side down on your fabric. The freezer paper sticks to the fabric so that when you paint your motif, the edges stay crisp and clean.
We love the idea of making multiples of the basket and color coding them for different storage needs. You can even get creative with the motifs and make your own custom stencils following the instructions in the book.
Recently, we hosted a class and each person made their own basket. We loved seeing how some people used the motifs we provide in the book exactly, some modified or only used portions of the motifs, and some created their own motifs.
How would you use this storage basket? What motif would you choose, or would you make your own?
Thank you for joining us today to learn about this project from our new book, Transfer Embellish Stitch! You can learn more about us by following the links below.
Instagram:
@case_and_fox @jenfoxstudios @sarahcasedesign
Websites:
www.jenfoxstudios.com
www.sarahcasedesign.com
Hey! what day is it? And why am I feeling so delightfully woozy? … alright, whoever took my amygdala, give it back right now!
PS. Thank you Sara and Jen for this introduction to your book. Love it!
PPS. I’ll be back with my unembellished story of embellishing.
Tags: applique, book, customize, embellishment, embroidery, fabric paint, fabric transfer, freezer paper, stencil
October 24, 2016
How to Not Make a Needle Case
A month ago, I joined/co-hosted a sew-along for the Bionic Needle Organizer Wallet and before I knew what was happening, I was ink deep in toner.
This whole thing started with the fact that this needle case, an add-on pattern for the Bionic Gear Bag Notions Tote, requires that I use “freezer paper“. I suspect this thing is contraband and not allowed to cross the Quebec borders. How else can one explain why I can’t find it any grocery store — large or small — or any of the big-box department stores?
The instructions also suggest I can use one of the other great tutorials on the interwebs for transferring a design unto fabric — every single one of which requires that I print with an inkjet printer. So…
- Bought inkjet transfer paper.
- Inkjet printer has an error I can’t find online.
- Tried to print it on my ex’s laser printer.
- Spent a week cleaning melted plastic out of his printer and hoping he wouldn’t notice. (He did notice I was at his house a lot.)
- Gave the transfer paper to my friend to print on her inkjet.
- Her printer ran out of ink.
- Her hubby refused to pay the outrageous price for replacement ink and got a (gasp!) laser printer.
- I grab some embroidery thread, regular Sharpies and Sharpie pens.
- 3 days later, I end up with this:
So I gave up on that project and turned my attention to the next sew along. This time it was for the Needle Holder Project Pouch. I really loved the way this one looked, and the instructions were pretty good too. It even comes with a video tutorial on YouTube.
From all accounts of the people who made it during the sew-along, consensus is that it turned out great! Of course, I wouldn’t know because, well, more shit happened along the way; not the least of which was that I still didn’t have an inkjet printer, and freezer paper is still nowhere to be found in Quebec. (I was not going to pay more than $20 to have it shipped to a Walmart store near me. I’d rather take a road trip to Ontario or New York State.)
The results: both sew-alongs bombed from my end. The Bionic Needle Organizer has joined other scraps and fabric discards as stuffing for cat beds, and the Needle Holder Project Pouch is sitting in a fresh bin of UFOs (unfinished objects). And, I’m still using a magnifying glass and reading glasses to figure out which needle to put in the machine.
Is it any wonder I need to see my optometrist this week?
PS. Although it’s pretty fugly, I finally just bought this one from Amazon. Enough with the UFOs already!
In Canada:
In the USA:
Tags: bionic gear, fabric transfer, inkjet printer, needle, organizer