Have you seen the quilted teacup flickr group? its a treasure trove of ‘Sew & Tea‘ lovers. If you are a ‘Sew & Tea’ Lover too – then you will love our May themed Action Pack – find out more here.
1. tea pot pouch, 2. Carrot cake, 3. MQG – Kona Solids Challenge, 4. Fabric Teacup, 5. The Cup That Cheers, 6. Mug rug, 7. Teacup pincushion, 8. teacups group 2-The Bitty Block Committee – pillin up teacups 2, 9. Samovar, 10. scandinavian stitches…, 11. mug rugs 2, 12. Xícara – Tea Cup, 13. “Tea for One” Mug Rug, 14. Scrappy Mug Rug Swap – received, 15. tea cozy, 16. Mug Rug 1, 17. Tea bag shaped tea bag holder, 18. Dishtowels for Debbie, 19. Posy Cozies, 20. Tea Kettle pillow, 21. Bohemian Teaparty cushion; Still Life, 2009, 22. tea cozy, 23. More sewn teacups, 24. Quilted Teacup 8, 25. Tea linen bookmark // THE teacup, 26. Mug fabric container – Chidori in light blue, 27. Everything stops for tea!, 28. TeaCup pouch 105, 29. Needlebook, 30. IMG_0271, 31. IMG_1964, 32. Lavender Teabags, 33. Tea Party!, 34. Tea Pouch, 35. coaster&cups, 36. DSC_0088
Have you popped in to Shannon’s (luvinthemommyhood) new venture – its called versus and the premise is a pretty cool one – a virtual boxing match between knitting and sewing where readers can vote on roundups and tutorials – and hopefully inspire knitters to sew and sewists to knit. Sounds fun right? Shannon is also planning to publish an emag this month with a summary of the tutorials that have been featured so far.
There are also lots of guest blogger featured for each section that showcase a fun tutorial for the different themes – the current theme is comfy sews VS cozy knits and anneliese from aesthetic nest shares a crochet scarf tutorial (on the side of cosy knits I am assuming). And on the side of comfy sews is disney from ruffles and stuff sharing a tutorial for a sweet reversible comfy skirt. And here is the round up for comfy sews vs cosy knits – which do you prefer?
Adorable chick pattern – free tutorial with downloadable pattern pieces from whipup contributor Tania.
About the designer: Tania Ennor is a mother of three, wife to one, graphic designer and craftster of the, (let’s be blunt about it), obsessive kind. Visit her blog: Myrtle and Eunice.
This pattern free for you and yours. Please do not sell or distribute Chickummyjig softies or this pattern without prior permission. www.myrtleandeunice.com © 2009 Tania Ennor
Finished size (body only) 185mm x 170mm
Download the PDF of the pattern pieces right here.
Materials:
- Cotton fabric for the body (240mm x 200mm)
- Contrasting cotton fabric for belly and wings (270mm x 170mm); legs: (75mm x 200mm), small piece of fabric for beak
- Felt: outer eyes and feet (100mm x 140mm), inner eye (75mm x 40mm), comb (80mm x 80mm)
- Sewing thread to match body fabric
- Embroidery thread to match felt (optional)
- 2 buttons
- 100% wool stuffing or polyfill
Instructions
Notes: The pattern allows for a 1/4 inch seam allowance, except for the seam-free felt pieces
- Trace pattern on to tracing paper, pin to fabric and cut out pieces. You will need 2 x body shapes, 1 x belly, 2 x legs, 4 x wings, and 2 x beak. The felt pieces include: 1 x comb, 2 x feet, 2 x outer and 2 x inner eyes.
- For each leg, fold fabric strip in half lengthwise, right sides facing and sew. Sew the foot end closed and trim off excess at the corners. Turn both leg pieces right side out and iron. Pin the feet to each leg, toes pointing up and sew using a tight zig zag stitch along the ‘heel’. Stuff legs to 3/4” from the opening.
- For each wing, pin two fabric shapes, right sides facing and sew around the curved edge, leaving the end open. Trim excess fabric at corners and snip carefully along curved edges, perpendicular to the seam. Turn all pieces right sides out and iron. Wings are not stuffed.
- Pin both beak pieces, right sides facing and sew leaving the two edges, marked ‘A’ on the pattern, open. Trim corners. Turn right side out and iron. Fold in half as indicated on the pattern and iron.
- Pin outer eye pieces to body and using embroidery thread, blanket stitch in place. Do the same for the inner eye pieces. (or alternatively, machine stitch all eye pieces).
- Placing one body piece right side up, pin one leg in position, pointing toward the middle of the body (see Diagram 1). With right sides facing, pin one side of the belly to the body shape, in effect ‘sandwiching’ the leg. Sew, ensuring you begin and end at the point where stitching on the other side of the belly will begin and end. Do the same for the second leg and body shape. Trim excess fabric where the belly seams meet and carefully snip the fabric along the curves.
- Pin the beak, comb and wings in place, pointing them in towards the body, remembering which way they will face when the body is turned right side out, (refer Diagram A on the pattern). Sandwich everything between the two right sides facing body shapes and pin. You will probably need to manoeuvre the legs and feet out of the path of the sewing machine. Sew, securing the beak, comb and wings in place as you go. Leave an opening (as marked on the pattern) for turning right side out and stuffing.
- Using a stuffing stick (or chopstick), push stuffing into the body firmly and evenly.
- Sew the stuffing opening closed using a small whip stitch. Sew the buttons on for eyes.
I would love to welcome Jeni from incolororder to whipup today.
I’m Jeni! I’m finishing up my degree in Marketing and Studio Art in Northeast Ohio. I love to find ways to be creative everyday, whether it be through my photography, sewing, or my current favorite hobby, quilting! In addition to sewing, I love to collect vintage kitchenware and vintage sheets! :)
It’s been a rising trend over the last few years for sewers and quilters to sew with reclaimed vintage sheets! It’s a great alternative to quilting cottons that gives your projects a unique twist! Interested, but don’t know where to start?
I’ll walk you through the basics!
1. Identifying Vintage Sheets: Most vintage sheets are relatively thinner than new sheets because they have been washed so many times. This makes them super soft! Most of the sheets that I find are cotton polyester blends although there are some 100% cotton sheets out there as well.
2. Care: When I get home with an armful of vintage sheets, they go in the wash right away. I wash them with hot water using regular detergent and a generous scoop of Oxi-clean. This helps brighten them and get them super clean! I then dry on high. Once they’ve been pulled from the dryer I lay them flat on the bed to cool down. They don’t generally get too wrinkly because of the polyester.
3. Sewing: Sewing with vintage sheets is a lot of fun and not all that different from sewing with quilting cottons! They are a little slippery so extra pinning is helpful. Make sure you have a sharp new needle! Be mindful of what you’re sewing, since they’re lightweight you may need to use some light interfacing to add a little body!
4. Where to buy: I purchase all my vintage sheets from thrift stores! Here in the midwest it’s a sheet gold-mine! Check your local thrift stores often and find out when their sale days are for extra good deals! If you don’t want to buy entire sheets, there are a lot of sellers on Etsy that sell vintage sheet fat quarters, or by-the-yard!
I love sewing and quilting with vintage sheets. It’s a really satisfying feeling. First, the fabrics are super cheerful and sunny! Secondly, you’re recycling, you’re giving them a second chance to shine! To make something beautiful from something discarded is a wonderful thing!
Make some modern placemats to brighten up your table this New Year. Pdf pattern here.
