Saturday 29 September 2012

Using Up Scraps!

As a crafter I hate to throw anything away and usually end up saving even the tiniest scrap of fabric or card or whatever in the fervent belief that it will be just the ideal thing to complete a future project.  I also have friends who share this philosophy.  We keep (or give away to the like-minded!) mountains of what other people would consider to be rubbish!  Consequently a few months ago I was given some scraps of fabric.  My friend Dawn had made some bunting and these were the bits left over.  Common sense would have dictated that they went in the bin but I looked at them and an idea started to come together in my head.  These scraps would be perfect to use in crazy patchwork.  I dragged out my fairly ancient and frankly rather unloved sewing machine and set to work.  Now, over the years I have had a difficult relationship with my sewing machine.  I dream up wonderful ideas of the things I could make, my sewing machine throws a wobbly, spewing out yards of knotted thread rather than the perfect stitches other people seem to achieve with their machines and I get cross, put the machine away and give up.  Despite having to do lots of unpicking and resewing, the crazy patchwork gradually came together although my machine let me down on so many occasions.  After listening to yet another tirade of swear words and sewing machine related abuse my husband finally took pity on me and we went shopping for a new machine.  Rob was keen that I have a machine that would allow me to do the things I wanted to be able to do but he also had a budget in mind.  We set off to see what Sewfine in Watford had to offer.  I took my patchwork along with me along with another project I'd been working on and showed the sales lady what I wanted to be able to do and she pointed me in the direction of a Janone machine which she said would be perfect for me.  She spent ages with me going through all the features, the whole experience was revelatory.  I never knew such machines existed.  The only snag was that I knew it far exceeded the price Rob had set.  With a heavy heart I left the shop muttering that I would have to think hard about it and would get back to them with my decision.  When I got home I did some research on the internet looking into other machines and seeing if I could find my dream machine at a better price to no avail.  It was all very depressing.  Rob and I chatted about the situation and he said I could phone Sewfine up and order the dream machine if I really wanted it.  Well, since then I have had an epiphany as far as machine sewing is concerned.  I love it!  I never thought it could be such fun.  I completed the crazy patchwork and decorated all the seams using one of the many new fancy stitches at my fingertips then I made it into a cushion front and found some pink fabric to match in my stash for the back of the cushion cover.  Although I must admit I was very tempted to keep the cushion myself I decided to give the cushion to Dawn a few weeks ago and I believe she now has it in her bedroom along with the bunting.

The cushion front made from crazy patchwork using scraps.





The back of the cushion.




2 comments:

  1. you would be correct its in my room bunting I afraid has been nicked and is now in Brys uni bedroom.

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  2. I can't believe you let Bryony pinch your bunting!

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