Q2 FAL 2015 - goal setting

 

My 2nd Quarter 2015 Finish-Along goals are:

1. Hand quilt my Meadow Quilt


2. Finish Nathalie's Sew Together Bag


3. Finish the Giraffe and make it into a wall hanging

4. Complete my bag testing for Geta

5.  Make this polar bear into a cushion cover
 

6.  Handquilt my Diamond in Diamond quilt


Linking up to On the Windy Side

Mighty Mouse Pincushion tutorial

Hello - I thought that I would share my tutorial for MIGHTY MOUSE (pincushion) that was originally posted on The Daily Stitch in 2013. I LOVE making these mice.  Here is one I recently made in pink mirror ball fabric!  So cute!

Mighty Mouse [weighted] Pincushion

You will need:
(1) 6 inch charm square [I used Anna Maria Horner ‘Field Study – Spotted in the Crowd Amelia’]
(2) beads or buttons for eyes
(2) 1 inch x 2 inch  [approx – adjust to how big you want them to be] felt rectangles for ears
(1) 6.5” piece of cord (or yarn) for tail
Needle and black thread
Polyfil toy stuffing

Steps:
1. Fold square diagonally, right sides together to make a triangle.


2. Sew along one open edge using small stitches, backstitching at the beginning and the end.


3. Clip corner near stitches and turn so right side out, making sure to use a pencil or chopstick to ensure a tidy point (the nose of the mouse).

4.  Trim off corner (you can trim right to the opposite edge if you want to make a better cone).


5.  Press a hem around the open edge.

 

6.  Baste stitch along this hemmed edge using strong thread (or doubled up thread).

 

7.  Gather thread so the opening is cinched slightly and add stuffing, making sure it goes into pointed nose.

 

8.  Cinch more and add stone if desired (helps keep the mouse upright on an angle).

 

9.  Cinch closed and secure thread.  Sew tail to the bottom near the closure. Stitch felt over this area if you feel the cinched area is untidy or not closed tight.

10.  For the whiskers on the nose, thread three pieces of black thread through near the nose tip and tie each side with a knot close to the body to secure.

11.  Add beads or buttons for eyes.  French knots would work as well.

12.  For the ears, take the felt pieces and trim the corners off so you have semi-circular tops.  Pinch the bottom of one ear together so the ear has some dimension and stitch these gathers in place.  Now stitch to the body of mouse.  Repeat.


14.  Adjust the stone in the bottom to get the desired angle of your mouse.

15.  Now you have a weighted mouse pin cushion!!  Enjoy!

 

Q1 2015 Finish Along - my results

What?  The first quarter of 2015 is already complete!?  Wow - I guess it is time to get a move on!  My sewjo disappeared in September so it is a miracle that ANY sewing has taken place this quarter!  I listed 10 projects to complete and I only managed to complete two.

Aneela Hoey's Fold Over pouch - needed to interface, sew together and post to a lucky recipient!
Yay - I completed this project and posted it to Germany for my 500th Instagram follower gift. When it finally arrived to Germany, the recipient loved it!  Fab pattern too!

Tea Wallets (Patchwork Please) - I prepared fabric to sew ten but still needed to cut the interfacing, then adhere, add ribbon, sew together, add buttons and tea.  I managed to sew four and even gifted them at QuiltCon2015!  Here are just two of them as I forgot to get pictires of the others.

There was another item crossed off my ever-growing to-do list but I can't say that " I " finished it.  This was my Cherry Charm quilt that I needed to baste, quilt, bind and label.  Guess what?  I gave the quilt top to Pennie of Tuppence Ha'penny quilts for her to finish and give to someone special that needs a warm hug from a quilt.  It is now her WiP! 

There you have it - 2/10 (well... 3/10) isn't too bad all considering!

Linking up to On The Windy Side 

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