A Stitchy Trip to Pirmasens, Germany

Tags

embroidery, etsy, finished project

I’ve really enjoyed stitching maps for the shop as a way to combine travel and handmade. I usually concentrate on places I’ve been but a few weeks ago I was contacted for a custom order of somewhere I’d never even heard of: Pirmasens, Germany. The customer wanted a map of the little German town for her mother-in-law, who grew up there. What a sweet gift!

I did some research to familiarize myself with the town before stitching, and ended up falling for it. The next time I’m in southern Germany with time to kill, I’m heading to Pirmasens! Near the border of France in Rhineland, Germany, it’s a small city with a population of 40,000. Their claim to fame is the manufacturing of shoes: they even have a shoe museum!Besides that, it looks like a thoroughly liveable city, with cute old buildings, street markets, lots of events, plenty of parks. That dotted yellow line on the map is a pedestrian-only zone passing shops, cafes, squares, and historic buildings. What a nice place to stroll on a sunny day! (All images below are from Pirmasens city website.)

The map ended up being 8×10″ in nice dusky colors: maroon, mustard, and forest green. I love how it turned out–what a great virtual trip to Germany!

Have you ever been to Pirmasens?

Finished Dresden Plate Quilt

Tags

finished project, quilts, sewing

I did it! I stitched the last stitch on my massive by-hand quilt yesterday. What a job.

I think I should call it my “Holland Plate Quilt.” Dresden Plates are the name of the circular-star pattern, but since I finished this in Holland… it makes sense.

This is so not perfect. I know it looks pretty good from these pictures over the interwebs, but this thing is just riddled with mismatching seams, things that don’t line up, places I didn’t measure well enough. And my poor hand-quilting skills make me sure this is just going to fall apart. But hey, whatever. It’s done.

This is a queen size quilt, with 30 blocks. I mostly followed the Dotty for Dresden pattern found in Material Obsession II, with some of my own tweaks (probably would have been better just to stick to the pattern…).

I checked back on my own blog and found out that I ordered the fabric last February–this took me almost an entire year to make! With breaks. I cut out all the fabric and sewed the blocks and plates together in Portland (with a machine, not by hand) then I shipped everything out to Amsterdam, which took a few months to receive. Once I got it, I started appliqueing the dresden plates to the quilt. Then I made the “quilt sandwich” and started the actual quilting. Finally, yesterday, I finished!

I put a few fun secrets in, like the tiny Christmas tree I stitched on Christmas Day. And when I ran out of fabric for the border, I threw in a swatch of Liberty of London I bought in London. My favorite part was an afterthought, actually. I stitched a row of Amsterdam-inspired canal houses on one edge, and I’m pretty much in love with how that turned out. I also added a “signature” to the back.

I finished this just in time, as we are currently experiencing a cold snap all across Europe–a frozen wind from Siberia has been sweeping down and turning everything to ice. Seriously, it is. That’s not even a metaphor. This quilt was perfect to cuddle under last night, making everything warm and toasty.

I’m so in love. And do dang proud of myself for finishing!

A Few Things Homemade

Tags

clothes, finished project, sewing

January is the best time to be crafty. It’s cold outside, so I bundle up with a blanket and a mug of tea, put on a random movie or documentary, and sew to my heart’s content. I mentioned awhile ago that Jesse is now a knitter, and since he doesn’t have his own blog to brag on, I’m doing it for him. (Especially because I get good results out of his knitting.)

When we were in London I bought a length of Liberty of London fabric, and soon after managed to craft it into a lovely scarf. It was nothing fancy, I just hand-rolled and sewed the edges. I love it, and I love that I have leftover fabric! Here I am trying to model the many ways I can wear it, without laughing. I like it best as a long scarf/cowl, or as a fun turban for those bad hair days.

And below, a few of Jesse’s recent accomplishments.

Handwarmers for himself:

A hat for me (which I love so much! The soft color! The cabling! The lacy holes!):

And an orange cowl, expertly modeled by the man himself:

And, because I am so very lucky, he’s starting on a new hat for me tonight. I am repaying him by (still) working on our quilt. One day it will keep us warm…

Goodbye and Hello, Years

Tags

Amsterdam Blogs, bikes, embroidery, finished project, London, Prague

It’s New Year’s Eve, and I can already hear the pops of fireworks going off this morning. Rumor is that Amsterdam is a pretty crazy place on this night every year, and we’ll be off to enjoy the spectacle later, though I doubt we’ll make it to 5am.

I’m not going to do any full Year in Review or New Year’s Resolution posts, so instead here’s a quick snapshot of things.

Something I’m better at now than when we arrived in Amsterdam:

Biking. I feel so Dutch. My beat-up bike is pure workhouse to me now, and I can carry heavy bags in one hand while steering with the other. I can bike in heels, boots, and flip-flops. I can even ride on the back of Jesse’s bike, which is extremely popular here.

Something I accomplished this year:

Crewel Embroidery, Woodland in Wool from Embroidery Companion

I made this forest scene for my dear friend, and since Christmas is done I can post it now! I really loved working on this with thick crewel wool, and following the colorful designs. The animals even turned out better than expected. I think I need to find more patterns like this.

Something I hope to accomplish next year:

My big goal is to finish my quilt. I’m hand-quilting it right now, stitch by stitch, every night before bed, and it’s actually moving along. I have hope!

Something I hope for next year:

Traveling. This first semester a lot of our money went to getting here, getting settled, getting residence permits, and all that. It got quite expensive. Next semester we’re hoping to budget a lot more of our money towards travel of the international variety. Plans are in the works to places like Edinburgh, Morocco, and Scandinavia! I’m practically gurgling with excitement.

While we wait for the big trips, I’d like to try to see more of the Netherlands. We can reach exciting new cities within 2 hours, so why not head out to see more? Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, and Dordrecht are all a quick trip away and make perfect day trips.

And, lest I get too much wanderlust, Things I feel blessed for:

Traveling to Paris, Prague, London, and calling Amsterdam our new home. Supportive family and friends back home. Friends in the city. Getting better at embroidering. Learning words in Dutch. Trying new food and exploring our city. Jesse getting his master’s in one year. Life.

View from Prague Castle

At the Tower of London

2011 has been pretty good to us, and I have high hopes for 2012. So Happy New Year to you all, and may the next year bring wonderful things!

News From the Crafty Front

Tags

embroidery, finished project, quilts, Scandinavian Love

In my last post I mentioned all the Made by Hand stores in Amsterdam–now it’s time to update a few of my own made by hand crafts!

First off, I finished this embroidered pillowcase I’ve been working on forever:

It shows up in my trusty Embroidery Companion book as the Karin curtain design, but I bought a plain pillowcase from Ikea to use instead. I am in love with the Scandinavian feel of this, and the cheery red with the stoical partridges (I’m guessing they’re partridges. What do you think?). I might fill in the middle with more designs, but I’m going to take a break from this for awhile first.

Next on my list is a Dresden Plate quilt that I promised myself I’d make here. I had all the pieces cut out in Portland, I sewed the front blocks and the entire back together. Now I need to applique the Dresden Plates to the front, and then quilt it. By hand. I’m beginning to think this was way too ambitious, and I was most likely out of my mind when I thought this was a great idea. But I’m determined to do this, so I’m doggedly sewing. Truth is, I love the repetitive, mindless work while we’re watching tv (my friend got me hooked on BBC’s Gavin & Stacey). Here’s the work-in-progress, draped over a chair. I still love the fabrics I chose, and I just keep thinking how cozy this will be when it’s done! Happy thoughts…

The last project isn’t mine at all, but Jesse’s. He’s decided to pick up a new hobby, settled on knitting the past few weeks, and has been knocking it out of the park since then. He’s already finished two things! He’s also spouting knowledge about purling, decreasing, dropped stitches, and what a yarn’s ‘loft’ and ‘wpi’ mean.

The first is this big scarf in a chunky gray wool, and the second is a maroon cowl in soft fluffy wool. I am thrilled by this new hobby, and have already created a small list of items that I would enjoy wearing if he were so kind as to make them. Don’t tell him I said this, but he’s so cute when he does something like this.He gets a really concentrate-y look on his face, and he will rip something out and re-do it three times to make sure it’s to his specifications. It’s worked out well so far.

So, if anyone is in the market for a new scarf or hat, Jesse is working through projects like wildfire and needs some commissions. You can find him on Ravelry here. If you need a new quilt (and would like it in the next 10 years) you’re out of luck. Make it yourself. And not by hand.

Craftiness So Far

Tags

embroidery, finished project

You didn’t think I abandoned my craftiness when we started traveling, did you? Not at all. While I’m saying goodbye to sewing for awhile, I stuffed an arsenal of embroidery supplies into my suitcase. There’s nothing more comforting on a dark rainy night than putting on my pajamas, making a cup of tea, and settling in with my embroidery and a movie. I know, I’m 80 years old, apparently. Sign me up for “A Cat A Day Calendar” right now.

Past that, though, I really do love it. It takes so much concentration and at the same time it’s something I can zone out and just do by rote. I’ve managed to finish a project I started way back in January–laughingly I posted on this very blog that I would finish it by Valentine’s Day. Only 8 months later…

This is based on the Blackwork Sampler from Embroidery Companion, by Alicia Paulson. I changed the color and widened it to a rectangular shape. I love how this turned out, with the bright red against the snowy white. It’s not perfect, but with all those intricacies, who can tell? I’m not sure if I want to put this out now or store it until Christmas.

Next up in my embroidery hoop is the ABC Daisy Chain Sampler, also by Alicia Paulson, and is my first foray into crewelwork. Stitched in thick woolly Appleton Crewel Wool, the texture of this is amazing. I love how it pops out. I’ve already learned new stitches, and am getting better at my french knots and satin stitches.

The other day I went on a little walk, and in between bursts of sunshine and showers I found a little embroidery/knitting store, and a quilting store. It felt so nice to wander around those places of possibility. I had the familiar feeling of having so many things to do and make. It felt like home.

Evening on Mt. Tabor

Tags

art, clothes, finished project, Portland, sewing

I know, you Portlanders are thinking, “But Mt. Tabor is here, and you’re there…”

It’s true, these photos were taken over a month ago in Portland, but they turned out so good that I wanted to share anyway. One of our friends, Bonnie, had asked me if I wanted to do a little photo shoot with her, as she is always looking for more faces to photograph. You can see her lovely project, “30 Faces in 30 Days,” over at her blog, Mosslandia Creative.

And since I am always looking for better photographs of the clothes I make it was an easy “yes”! I took the Scandinavian Folk Skirt that I recently finished sewing up to Mt. Tabor with her, and we tried a few different things. When I put that shirt with the skirt I feel like I should carry a milk-pail around, and lead a cow to market.

Everything I know about modeling I’ve learned from America’s Next Top Model, so blame Tyra if these aren’t supermodel quality. And be sure to check out the rest of Bonnie’s portfolio here (her travel photos are spectacular!). She also does weddings, events, portraits and more!

Scandinavian Folk Skirt

Tags

clothes, finished project, Scandinavian Love, sewing

I finished one last project before I have to pack up my sewing machine, and I love it! My finished results keep getting better and better–I’m a little sad I have to take such a long break from sewing. Will I forget everything I’ve learned?

I call this my Scandinavian Folk Skirt, because of the colors and the lovely berry pattern. I found the fabric at Bolt Fabrics up in NE Portland and immediately fell in love. With the way the lines are set, a skirt seemed so perfect for the pattern, and it turned out just right. It hits below my knees and is pretty full, so I feel a little like a milkmaid. I need to get some blond braids–can I order those anywhere?

I know, another Instagram picture, after I just promised that I wouldn’t go crazy. On Monday night I went out with a friend for a fun photo shoot on Mt. Tabor and I can’t wait to show off those pictures, but until then this is all you get.

The pattern is from a Burda magazine, my first attempt at that kind, and it consists of about 9 pleats in front and three bigger ones in back, with a side zipper. Really simple, actually, and it came together so easily. It was a perfect project to end on!

Now, if I could figure out a way to get myself to Sweden and wear this skirt while picking plump strawberries in a sunhat, my life would be close to complete. Blond braids optional.

 

UPDATE: Check out pictures of the skirt in action here!

Summer Scrap Quilt

Tags

finished project, gifts, quilts, sewing

Summer is a time of spending hours on a blanket in a grassy park, with this drink in hand. In my mind, at least, that’s what I’m doing every sunny day.

 My friend Tayler, who writes at The Awkward Olive and keeps a wicked garden, happens to have a birthday on the Summer Solstice itself, lucky girl. So I thought, what better summer gift than a lovely summer quilt? It helped that I had a lot of colorful scraps to use up, and wanted to try making a line quilt with them.

I didn’t use much of a pattern, I just cut the fabric into strips of varying sizes, from 1.5″ up to 4″, then sewed them together into long strips. The hard part was figuring out what colors should be next to each other–I could have kept shuffling things around for days! If I moved a yellow scrap to be away from another yellow scrap, suddenly that messed up the blues, and then there were too many whites next to each other, and then… it never ended. I finally gave up. I think it turned out nice and random, though when I look at it I still find things I should have moved. 

The back is a big leftover Ikea sheet (I LOVE that bright orange!). I’d like to say that the green square is part of the design, but really the sheet was oddly shaped due to a previous project, and I needed to fill in a corner. Awesome, I know. It’s not even trying to match or blend in. Hey, that’s homemade for you–I do what I want!

I’m really happy with this one. It’s a nice little size–big enough to warm your legs during a movie, and just small enough to get really close to a picnic date. Take someone who wants to cuddle, Tayler!

 

It’s so nice to finish projects like this, and feel the satisfaction of giving it away. Quilts are way too easy to plan, with all those colors and shapes, but actually churning them out is a bit harder. It’s always a relief when I realize I actually pulled it off.

I’m winding down my sewing, getting ready for our move, so this is one of my last big projects. I’m not planning on being bored in Amsterdam, though; I have craft plans. But that’s another post!

In the meantime, Tayler, may the quilt bring you many summer days of good books, lemonade, friends, and grassy parks, and may it remind you of the sun when you’re curled up on your couch in the cold months!

Happy summer solstice birthday!

Colette Sorbetto Top

Tags

clothes, finished project, sewing

I finished a quick project last night, and I’m so happy with it!

This is the Sorbetto tank top pattern from Colette, which is FREE! Go now and enjoy! Easily finished in a few hours, the best part is that it doesn’t have any zippers, buttons, plackets, or anything tricky. Just pulls over your head. Perfect.

The fabric is my favorite part of this, honestly. I stole it from my friend, who used a big piece of it as a backdrop to her wedding pictures, which was brilliant and gorgeous. Since then it’s been sitting in her tupperware container of fabric for 2 years. When she mentioned she’d like to use it up I jumped to make this. And I love it. (Thanks, A!)

I’m already thinking of making another version in a dotted gauze I have, maybe with pintucks? There are some great examples on the Colette Flickr group. Here’s a close up of the pleat in the regular version.

I love the ease and simplicity, and the fact that this style can go to work with me, or just hang out around town with jeans. Also, the color and pattern makes me feel like I’m in a tropical jungle. Just a little bit.

I have a few other things I’m working on, but not much now that we’re packing up and storing things. I have to weed through everything and make some tough decisions soon! Luckily this shirt’s an easy one. Keep. Wear. Love.