Make a simple tote bag with quilting to add structure with Maureen Cracknell. We have new Riley Blike Chevrons in stock!

We love this gathered clutch tutorial from Noodlehead. Pretty in any fabric.

This quilted pillow is such a striking design. Tutorial here.

This simple tool apron could be used for crafting, gardening, or whatever your mom is into. Tutorial on the Purl Bee.

Another great tutorial from Noodlehead- the open wide zippered pouch. A mom can never have too many pouches.

Make this fun clutch for coupons or other goodies using a charm pack. Tutorial on Moda Bake Shop.

And of course, a Sewn Studio gift card always makes a great gift for the crafty moms in your life! Pair with a fat quarter bundle and a new sewing book and you’ve got brownie points guaranteed.

We’ll start with books. One of my favorite books on free motion is Free Motion Quilting with Angela Walters. This book is a really great starting point. She walks you through getting started and includes some great free motion designs.

Another great book is Natalia Bonner’s, Beginner’s Guide to Free-Motion Quilting. Tons of great tips and design ideas.

Both of the above authors have blogs, which I’ve also linked above. One of my favorite free motion patterns is on Elizabeth Hartmans blog, Oh, Frannson!

We also offer a free motion class. It is a 2.5 hour class that covers everything that you need to get started. This month, it is offered April 25, 10:00-12:30 and April 29, 6:00-8:30. The cost is $40 and you only need to bring thread! Call the shop to register. 513-321-0600.

If you’re unable to take a class, my best advice is to pick up a book at practice, practice, practice! Its ok if its not perfect. We are humans, not machines, and we are the ones controlling the length of the stitch every single time. Stitches are going to be slightly different lengths(sometimes more than slightly) and that’s ok! Have fun!

-Millissa

the dress above is one of the new spring patterns from Oliver + S, the roller skate dress (pattern currently available in the shop). the main dress fabric is a lovely denim from Robert Kaufman, which i also used for another roller skate dress for my own daughter… this lighter weight denim is perfect for spring dresses and made a great base for the raw-edge appliqued hem.

using this raw-edge house applique template and tutorial from the Oliver + S blog and some of my favorite fun novelty prints, i created a rainbow town border that has me wondering what this would look like in my size!

*we’re now featuring mini fabric packs of these novelty prints for only $6.99 each!*

what other kind of fun can you have with novelty prints? well, here are links to some of my favorite finds:

whip up a kid’s messenger bag or diaper pouch & changing pad for your favorite little ones with these tutorials from Craft Buds.

be inspired by i-Spy quilts, building blocks, and story book project ideas from Care of Obsessively Stitching (for crafterhours).

this i-Spy hexie quilt from Jennifer at Ellison Lane Quilts is a fun take on the traditional charm-square-style i-Spy quilt, and the Circle Time Toddler quilt pattern from Among Brenda’s Quilts is another fun take on the traditional i-Spy style.

this big block table runner from All People Quilt is perfect for large scale novelty prints. for smaller prints, the sweet & tiny keychain from Mommy’s Nap Time would be just right.

Ellison Lane’s quick and easy kindle case tutorial is the perfect way to feature a coveted favorite print, while Faith at Fresh Lemons Quilts made these quilted pillows to showcase some lovely Heather Ross prints.

the fun chair print on this snappy toddler dress from Prudent Baby would make any toddler (or parent) smile.

Jenny from The Southern Institute recycled novelty t-shirts into pillow covers, which is a perfect project for beginners.

and don’t miss these sewn studio tutorials using novelty fabrics: simple fabric doll tutorial and favorite fabric ornament tutorial.

what have you made with novelty prints? share your favorite project ideas in the comments, and don’t forget to share pictures of your projects in the sewn studio flickr group.

xo, rachael

appliqued play tent by A Little Gray

Oliver & S Roller Skate dress with applique

woodland circle applique quilt

Finding your applique shapes:  Basic silhouette shapes, with less detail are best for machine applique.  I like to find my shapes using google images.  You can limit the results of your google image search by adding, “clipart” or “coloring page” after your search word.  For example, if I wanted a butterfly applique shape, I would type “butterfly clipart” into the google image search engine.  Right click on the image and save it to your computer, print the image at the desired size.

"heart-coloring-page" applique shape

"flower coloring page" applique shapes

If you are looking to applique a letter or number, a good place to find your applique pattern is in whatever word editing program you have.  Pages or Microsoft Word.  These programs allow you to pick your font and font size.  Print your pattern. Of course, you can also freehand draw the applique image of your choice or trace any household object.  I trace my cereal bowls every time I need a circle shape.

Preparing your applique shape: Once you have your applique image and the fabric that you want to make the image from, you need to prepare the fabric.  I use a heavy duty double sided adhesive, usually Wonder Under.  This product is paper on one side and has a bumpy texture on the other, the bumpy side is the glue.  Trace your image onto the paper side of the Wonder Under, cut loosely around it.  Place the glue side onto the wrong side of your desired fabric and iron for at least the count of 10 in each place.  Cut the image out.  Peel off the paper side of the Wonder Under.  You can drag the tip of a pin across the paper to tear it, making it easier to pull off.  Your applique shape should now have a shiny surface on the wrong side of the fabric.  The shininess is the glue.

shiny glue side of the Wonder Under

trace shape onto paper side of Wonder Under

iron Wonder Under onto wrong side of fabric

The shiny glue side of the applique after removing the paper side

Place the shiny side down onto the right side of your project to be appliqued, press for at least the count of 10 in each spot.  Your shape is now permanently adhered to your project.

iron applique shape onto project, right side up, glue side down

Preparing your foundation fabric/project: I like to use a lightweight fusible interfacing on the inside of whatever I will be appliqueing onto.  This gives the heavy stitching something to hold onto and helps to prevent fabric snags and tears.  Cut a piece of interfacing slightly larger than the size of your applique shape and put it on the inside (wrong side) of your foundation fabric or project.  Again, the bumpy side of the interfacing is the glue side, so place the bumpy side down.  Use an iron to adhere the interfacing.  It only take a few seconds of heat in each place.

Stitching your applique:  There are multiple ways to stitch your applique.  Zig zag satin stitch, straight stitch and hand sewn blanket embroidery stitch are a few of my faves.

Zig Zag Satin Stitch:  This look is created by using a machine zig zag stitch with a decreased stitch length.  I like to decrease my stitch length to 0.5 or 0.6.  You could go lower than that, but I feel like it increases the risk of creating a jumbled mess of knotty threads underneath the project that almost always leads to a tear in your project.  You should always test your satin stitch on scrap fabric before you use it on your final project.  Find the stitch length that works best for you and practice it a bit before moving on to project.

Check out this tutorial for sewing around the curves of your applique!

decrease stitch length to 0.5 or 0.6

Straight Stitch:  This look is created by using your standard machine straight stitch about 1/8 of inch inside your applique shape.  The raw edges of the applique shape will fray a bit, but not past the stitch line.  This gives the applique a more casual look.

straight stitch applique 1/4 inch from raw edge of applique

Sewn owner, Julie Bossert, made this fantastic US map quilt and quilted it with straight lines 1/4 inch from each states raw edge.

Blanket Hand Embroidery:  The applique below was stitched with Perle cotton embroidery thread.

Here is a tutorial for using blanket stitch embroidery on your applique:

blanket embroidery stitch applique

 Here’s a roundup of my favorite applique projects from the interwebs:

Sewn customer, Nikki, made this awesome applique quilt using a pattern from Elizabeth Hartman‘s book, Practical Guide to Patchwork.

Ballet shoe applique shirt by Make It and Love It.

Hexagon appliqued tote bag by V and Co.

Raw edge applique tree skirt, by The Red Pistachio 

Happy Sewing!!!

-Heidi

We love Laura‘s version using Anna Maria Horner’s newest line, Field Study. (Which we now have some of on the clearance wall!)

Here you can see how gorgeous it is on a bed with Wendi’s Amy Butler version.

If you can’t hang in there for all nine blocks, just one large swoon is just as striking as a wall hanging like Kristin’s version.

The darker background color on Clare’s bed swoon gives it a rich feel I love!

And just four blocks with a fun border makes a great throw size. Great green and purple combo by Sarcastic Quilter.

You can learn to piece a Swoon block at Sewn! This is the perfect class for those of you that have taken the beginning quilter class and want to take your skills to the next level. Or if you have basic quilting experience but want to try something new and different. The class is this Saturday, March 9 from 9:30-1:30 am. We’ll be making one block in class. From there, you can decide if it becomes a mini quilt or the start of a large bed quilt! Call the shop at 513-321-0600 to register today!

Jessica

perhaps you want to make your very own beautiful washi tunic? or one of any number of lovely patterns that take advantage of this simple technique.

first, what the heck is shirring? shirring is simply gathering cloth with rows of parallel stitching. and what makes gathering lots of of lines quick and easy? elastic thread!

we’re now carrying these spools of Gütermann elastic thread in the shop… $1.99 for one 10m spool, and it’s perfect for gathering, smocking, and shirring. armed with a spool of this, you won’t need any special tools or supplies to get shirring.

first, how does it work? you will only use the elastic as your bobbin thread. the top thread will hold the slightly stretched elastic in place, allowing for it to cinch in the lines of fabric. because the elastic is not fully stretched, it will still be able to stretch further which makes putting on/off garments easy, and waistbands comfy.

we use Brother machines in the shop and they prefer a slightly different method than most other brands of machines. but don’t worry… we’ll cover both methods.

prepare for shirring on a Brother machine:

1. wind elastic thread on to a bobbin, without any stretch, by hand.

2. remove your bobbin casing from the machine.

3. tighten bobbin tension. to do this, simply tighten the screw on the bobbin casing (shown below). typically, one full turn of the screw is just about right. tip: make sure you keep track of how far you turn it so that you can turn it back when you’re done.

4. replace your bobbin casing and insert bobbin.

5. thread machine as normal. pull up the bobbin thread manually, even if your machine normally does that part for you.

6. set on a straight stitch, increase the stitch length (i like to use about a 3.5).

prepare for shirring on other machines:

1. wind elastic thread on to a bobbin, with slight stretch, by hand.

2. insert bobbin and thread machine as normal. pull up the bobbin thread manually, even if your machine normally does that part for you.

3. set on a straight stitch, increase the stitch length (i like to use the longest length).

stitching shirred lines on all machines:

1. before stitching on your garment, test your settings on scrap fabric. adjust length or tension as needed before stitching on your garment. take time to experiment on your scrap until your stitches are how you want them.

2. mark the shirring line on your garment. i like to use a water soluble marker to draw the shirring line so that i can follow that. for successive lines, adjust your needle position so that you can stitch by aligning your last row of stitching with the side of your presser foot.

3. when stitching multiple shirring lines, make sure to lightly stretch your fabric so that the lines don’t stitch over gathers in the fabric.

4. if your shirred seam with be encased by side seams, there is no need to backstitch. if this is not the case, you can either backstitch as normal or tie your threads on the wrong side of the fabric.

after you’ve shirred all of your lines, place a hot and steamy iron close to the shirred lines. the steam will help that elastic pull tighter.

tip: if you want your shirred line to be more gathered, you can pull slightly on the elastic thread to stretch it even more after your line is sewn.

and there you have it. shirring with elastic thread… pretty simple, right? have fun adding this high-impact, but simple, detail to your projects!

xo, rachael

yesterday i finished up our store sample washi tunic (made with Jeni Baker‘s Color Me Retro for Art Gallery Fabrics), and i thought it would be fun to put together a round-up of washi inspiration. click on the links below the photos for more info about any of these fabulous garments!

it seems fitting to start with a washi from Jeni herself….

washi dress by Jeni / In Color Order

washi dress by Stephanie / The Crafty Kitty

washi dress by Jane / Buzzmills

washi tunic by Erin / Hungie Gungie

washi dress by Rae (the original) / Made by Rae

washi dress by Frances / Miss Matatabi

our first washi dress (or tunic) class will meet on wednesday evenings, march 13 and 20 from 6:00-8:30 pm. class registration is $99 (pattern included) plus materials. pre-requisite: intermediate sewist or confident beginner with some garment experience. as of the posting date, we still have a few spaces available! please call at 513.321.1600 if you are interested.

ready to give it a go on your own? washi patterns are available in the shop for $16.00!

and coming soon… a sewn shirring tutorial. you really can do it! easy peasy.

xo, rachael

A fat quarter is a quarter yard of fabric cut “fat” instead of “skinny”. A skinny quarter yard is cut 9 inches by 42 inches. Where as a fat quarter is cut 18 inches by 22 inches. A fat quarter is the same amount of fabric as a skinny quarter yard, but is often a more useable piece of fabric.

I love fat quarters. One of my favorite things about a FQ is that I can get a little bit of an entire collection without having to commit to buying a half yard cut, or more. For me, there is something very satisfying about having a little bit of everything, rather that a lot of one thing and this is the best way to do that when you are on a fabric budget.

So next, what do you do with a fat quarter? There are about a million schmillion options. I primarily use them in quilting, but I’ve included links to some of my favorite fat quarter tutorials.

Maureen Cracknell has a fantastic tutorial on how to make this apron with only four fat quarters!

Martha Stewart did it again!  A great use of a fat quarter, simply cover a flower pot or container to spice it up a bit.

Ashley, from Film in the Fridge, has put together a great tutorial for a ric rac napkin. The measurements can easily be adjusted for use of two fat quarters.

My favorite use of a single fat quarter is the Bapron, by Jessica at Craftiness is Not Optional. It seriously doesn’t get much more adorable than this.

And last but not least, the Made By Rae Buttercup Bag. What an awesome gift this would be, and just one fat quarter!

I hope that this gives you some inspiration to use up those fat quarters! If you need a few more, stop in to the shop. We have tons of coordinating bundles and are now also offering single pre cut fat quarters. Can’t wait to see you!

-Millissa

Click here for the PDF version of the schedule

materials required:

1/2 yard main pillow fabric
fabric scraps
17″ square of fleece or batting
freezer paper
sewing machine and notions

front of pillow: main fabric

1. cut pillow fabric into three pieces: one 17″ square for the front, and two rectangles measuring 12×17″ (for an envelope-style back).

2. mark a 17″ square on piece of freezer paper. draw heart, making sure to stay within boundaries of seam allowances, and cut out.

3. place freezer paper shiny side down on wrong side of pillow front and iron. (the freezer paper will adhere to the fabric until you peel it off.)

4. cut out heart shape from pillow front, leaving a 1/2″ seam allowance around cut-out in freezer paper. clip seam allowance.

5. fold back seam allowance along freezer paper cut line and press well to hold crease.

6. peel off freezer paper and press again.

front of pillow: quilt-as-you-go patchwork

7. use freezer paper to trace heart shape on to piece of batting or fleece. (make sure to trace with shiny side up so that the image isn’t backwards.)

8. place first scrap right side up and quilt with straight lines.

9. place second scrap right side down, aligned with raw edge of scrap one. stitch with a 1/4″ seam allowance.

10. press and quilt second scrap.

11. repeat with additional scraps until entire heart shape is covered.

pillow front: reverse applique

12. place the front main pillow fabric on top of patchwork and pin.

13. topstitch main pillow front close to the heart outline.

finish with an envelope back, and your pillow is complete!

fabrics used: Luxe in Bloom by Sarah Watson for Art Gallery Fabrics, Floressence by Art Gallery Fabrics, Oval Elements by Art Gallery Fabrics, Bloomsbury Gardens by Liberty Lifestyle, Out to Sea by Sarah Jane Studios for Michael Miller Fabrics.

wishing you a happy valentine’s day!

xo, rachael