Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2017 i Australian Homespun

THIS MONTH’S WINNER Sharni Crossett, from Mt Evelyn, Vic, for her Sunrise Joy quilt project: “The moment I saw this quilt (by Leanne Benson in the February 2016 issue/ Vol 17 No 2), I knew I was going to make it! I loved the colour palette and the movement of the triangles. A piece of sunshine made while I was in the midst of a cold winter, it reminded me that summer was coming. The quilt was so quick to make, and the instructions were very clear and easy to follow. I'm really glad I made it. Now to get it quilted!” Congratulations to Sharni for her great effort. As the winner this month, she will be receiving the following prizes: • Karen K. Buckley’s 6in Perfect Adjustable Ruler, courtesy…

Stitches from the Garden by Kathy Schmitz, US$24.98 Kathy Schmitz’s delightful stitchery projects would fit perfectly in the pages of Homespun, making us confident that you will want to indulge in making at least some – possibly all! – of the 15 projects in this book. The designs are all sweet vignettes of birds, flowers and insects found in country gardens, provided at full size, ready for tracing and stitching. The array of different projects to use and display your handiwork includes sewing accessories (such as the pincushion shown above), several bags, wall decorations, journal cover, table runner and the cushion shown on the front cover. The embroidery stitches that Kathy has used are all well-known and relatively simple, so even embroidery novices will enjoy success. The assembly instructions…

 It should be pretty clear why we chose to run this feature in “My favourite character is usually the one I’m working on. I think you have to fall in love with them so that they reflect the love back at you.” Homespun. We defy anyone to resist the charms of these knitted tea-cosy characters. When we came across these Susan Cowper designs online, we were so enchanted, we simply had to share. Aren’t they just the best? Her toasty townsfolk not only make you beam with pleasure but also drag your jaw down to your chest when you consider the intricacy of the work, not to mention the quaintness of the designs. A pretty terrific combination! For Susan, it all started with Christmas-gift Santas and snowmen and graduated into…

What’s your idea of the perfect stitching day? Settled down in my camping chair somewhere beautiful and peaceful. Where do you like to do your work – in a studio, in the garden, in an armchair? I have an old brown chair that’s what you’d call “very comfortable”, and most of my work is done from there. How did your Cherries & Chocolate quilt name come about? I was gifted some Moda fabrics in the ‘Chocolat’ and ‘Double Chocolat’ ranges from some friends and I wanted to use them in a single project. They, in turn, found some other friends in my fabric box! I love birdlife, and these little birds needed a treat, so cherries seemed a perfect fit for Chocolat. I then couldn’t think…

Bright colours and room for craft gatherings were top priorities for Jennie Larsen when she was furnishing her studio. She needed enough space to set up a large, folding craft table for when her mum and sister pop over for craft-night-ins. “We love to create holiday wreaths. We might also do a popular holiday craft we’ve seen on Pinterest or floating around the web,” says Jennie, with as much enthusiasm for the gregariousness of the process as the stitching itself. The shared stories while crafting and making one another laugh are essential to the process. As are the snacks that are passed around. “We love Starburst, liquorice and M&Ms. If we are being healthy, then a vegie tray with dip,” admits Jennie. Conducive to the merriment and creativity of the…

Where do you live and work? Before my husband and I had kids, I had the great privilege of having my own dedicated sewing room. Oh, it was lovely! It was certainly a happy place, with fabric everywhere. But, then we needed an extra bedroom – and a sacrifice had to be made. Now, my sewing machine is squished onto a desk in our own bedroom. My dear husband has the patience of a saint, as he deals with piles of fabric stacked up everywhere. I think we need a bigger house – just for my hobby! What’s your family structure? Remember at school, teachers and kids would always ask ‘What do you want to be when you grow up’? I always answered, ‘To get married and have kids.’ Such…

How did you feel when you first started sewing? I was very young when I started sewing (around 10 or 11 years of age). My mother always let me help with drafting patterns and choosing fabrics. I suppose it helped me realise that if you can think it, you can make it and you aren’t beholden or restricted to products you can buy (or afford) in stores. It’s a very special superpower to be able to create unique things with your own hands. Has your response to your craft changed since then? No, I still feel empowered every time I make something and am hoping to pass that feeling on to my daughter. I don’t want her to grow up thinking the only way to go through life is being…

Materials • 90cm (1yd) yellow fabric – Carina used Kona Solids in Banana (outer bag and lining) • 10cm ( 1/8yd) floral print fabric (drawstring casing) • 10 assorted pastel-coloured print fabric scraps up to 8cm (3in) square (patchwork appliqué) • DMC Stranded Embroidery Cotton in Pale Geranium (957), Light Seagreen (964), Deep Canary (972) and Bright Canary (973) plus colours to blend with the patchwork fabrics • 50cm ( 1/2yd) lightweight fusible interfacing • 1.8m (2yd) of 25mm (1in) wide ribbon (drawstring tie) • Fusible web • Large safety pin or bodkin • Water-erasable fabric-marking pen • Rotary cutter, ruler and mat • Sewing machine • General sewing supplies Stitches used: Chain stitch, pistil stitch, whipstitch Finished size: 39.5 x 30cm (15 1/2 x 11 3/4in) plus handles; design…

CROCHETED FROM THE HEART Where to keep the balls of wool you’re working with right now? In your own hand-crocheted heart basket, of course! The tutorial on how to make this little sweetie comes courtesy of Stephanie Jessica Lau, from All About Ami – direct link through at www.allaboutami.com/post/146242177101/crochetheartbasket. PERSONALISED LABELLING Good ol’ Brother! They’ve just put out new ribbon-tape cassettes that allow you to personalise your gift wrapping in an instant. And the bonus is that the new range of ribbons and tapes are compatible with all Brother labellers. Each is four metres long and comes in a variety of colours and patterns. They are available from Echidna Sewing Products. Ph: (07) 3390 3600, website: www.echidnaclub.com.au. Or for more info, visit brotherinspires.brother.com.au. CANE AS CANVAS “I think it’s my…

01 Northcott ‘Peony Passion’ 21289-72, designed by Lynnea Washburn. Distributed by Lloyd Curzon Textiles. (To be released soon.) 02 Windham Fabrics ‘First Blush’ D41953-2, designed by Red Ruby Designs. Distributed by Leutenegger. 03 Windham Fabrics ‘First Blush’ D41951-4, designed by Red Ruby Designs. Distributed by Leutenegger. 04 Moda Fabrics ‘Lulu Lane’ 29023-16, designed by Corey Yoder. Distributed by PK Fabrics. 05 Moda Fabrics ‘Olive’s Flower Market’ 5031-11, designed by Lella Boutique. Distributed by PK Fabrics. 06 Riley Blake Designs ‘On Trend’ Main C5750-RASPBERRY, designed by Jen Allyson for My Mind's Eye. Distributed by Millhouse Collections. 07 Moda Fabrics ‘Just Another Walk in the Woods’ 20522-21, designed by Stacy Iest Hsu. Distributed by PK Fabrics. 08 Northcott ‘Peony Passion’ 21288-21, designed by Lynnea Washburn. Distributed by Lloyd Curzon Textiles. (To be…

“I think the Queen was the biggest challenge to design. There’s so much detail in her outfit. The crown, too, is very involved. I’m not a fan of knitting bobbles – they take such a lot of time – but they do make her hairstyle look fantastic and, to be honest, if you’re going to add lots of detail to anyone, it would have to be Her Majesty the Queen wouldn’t it? If you look closely, you’ll notice I had to make her left-handed. I don’t think she is really left-handed, but the pattern requires a miniature cup and saucer, which I bought online. When it arrived, the picture on the cup was only on one side, so I had to choose between seeing the blue flowers on the cup…

Materials • 38 x 41cm (15 x 16in) rectangle of cream handkerchief linen (background) • Scraps of print fabrics in grey/brown, blue, aqua, yellow, pink, dark pink, light brown and red (appliqué) • Cosmo Stranded Embroidery Floss in grey (153A), aqua (252), light brown (367), medium brown (368), dark brown (386), blue (412), green (632), lemon (700), gold (702), musk pink (814), red (858), light green (2117) and light pink (2221) • 38 x 41cm (15 x 16in) rectangle of fusible stabiliser such as Weaveline • Fusible web • 19 x 24cm (7 1/2 x 9 1/2in) fusible thin batting such as Pellon • Two 10mm ( 3/8in) yellow buttons (flower centres) • One 10mm ( 3/8in) red button (door handle) • Brown 0.3 pigment pen such as Zig…

What’s your family structure? I have a 10-year-old daughter and a lovely husband. And we bought a small puppy for our daughter’s birthday. So now I have two kids! Where do you live and work? We live in the Ukraine. Soon, my family is moving to a beautiful new house. And my husband promised me he’d create the craft room of my dreams there. At the moment, I have a small craft room, but it’s nothing very special. Why this particular craft? I didn’t play with dolls in my childhood. I liked drawing, sewing and knitting much more and generally never played with my dolls. But now that I have a little daughter who inspires me, I’ve started making dolls for her to play with. Have you tried plenty of…

You’ve made a quiet book before, for your son, haven’t you? It was what set me out on my craft journey in the first place! A friend of ours showed us the quiet books she had made for her (now-grown-up) kids, and I just fell in love with the idea. I couldn’t sew back then (didn’t even have a sewing machine), so I made my son’s quiet book from felt – it was all hand sewn. He is now almost six years old and he still plays with it. What was the theme of that previous fabric book? There were a lot of interactive and educational pages, encouraging development of fine motor skills as well as counting and shape/colour recognition (match-the-shapes, abacus page, tying shoe laces, hanging clothes on a…

What does summer mean to you? I love summer, because I love the long bright days it brings. I always immediately feel happier when it’s sunny – everything looks better and feels so fresh. I love having the doors and windows open and walking around barefoot all day. Of course, crochet outside is one of my favourite things to do. What’s your idea of the perfect summer holiday? A quaint little cottage somewhere with a lovely green, leafy garden, so I could have lots of lovely time sitting out reading and crafting in the garden. It’d have to be near the beach, too, so I could go for walks along the sand and dip into the sea once in a while. Do you take the opportunity to do more or…

How would you describe your particular craft style? Happy, colourful, a bit messy and not very serious. Did your distinctive style happen over time or was it immediate when you started stitching? I think it’s a work in progress and always will be. But there are threads that go way back. My love of drawing and flowers have always been there and pop up again and again. Are you good at all the crafts you have tried? Not at all! Apart from knit and purl, knitting seems a complete mystery to me. One to admire from a distance. Other than crafting, how do you like to spend your time? I love to draw. And paint when I have the time. Walking the dog and taking pictures of wildflowers. We live…

When journalist Hannah Wise craved escapism from the deadlines and stresses of news reporting, she looked to the comments section of online articles for inspiration. Only she didn’t read the comments, she stitched them. “I am a ‘breaking news’ reporter at The Dallas Morning News, the largest newspaper in Texas, and as you can imagine, our commenters can be rather colourful. After I covered the ambush in downtown Dallas, in which five police officers were killed, I knew I needed a break from screens. So I made a little pattern in Photoshop of a comment that my reporting partner found funny and took a couple of hours to stitch it. The idea came from a need to practise self-care and relaxation coupled with the desire to do something with the…

ANDREA BROKENSHIRE Flowers are at the very core of American artist Andrea Brokenshire’s life. Big, beautiful blooms! Even as a child, she was drawn to them. When her mother was shopping for fabrics with her daughters, Andrea’s sisters chose pale, quieter designs, while Andrea made a beeline for the brightest bolt in the store – designs alive with colour and florals. The running family joke was, “What kind of crazy fabric is Andrea going to come home with next?” Funny, but that laughing has stopped now that she’s grown up and turning her passion into spectacular works of art – glorious, intricately worked art quilts that combine her love of flowers with her acquired sewing skills. “When I was young, I used to get so excited when I worked on…

Materials • 1.5m (1 5/8yd) light beige mottled print fabric (background and Border 2) • Fat quarter beige tone-on-tone print fabric (Border 3 corners) • 1.5m (1 5/8yd) red print fabric (Border 4 and binding) • 60cm ( 5/8yd) blue print fabric (Borders 1 and 3) • Scraps of assorted print fabrics to total about 2m (2 1/4yd). You will need pieces about 10in square to cut shapes for the large rosettes and about 7in square to cut shapes for the small rosettes (hexagons and appliqué) • 3m (3 3/8yd) backing fabric • Batting at least 170 x 146cm (67 x 58in) • DMC Stranded Embroidery Cotton in Garnet (816), Very Dark Beige Brown (838) and Very Dark Avocado Green (936) • Fine threads to coordinate with your assorted fabric…

What’s your idea of the perfect stitching day? A rainy, windy, winter’s day with a pot of chai tea or Italian coffee, a good movie and no one else at home. Of course, being that we live in the tropics, my dream is only realised for about eight weeks a year! But, oh how I LOVE those eight weeks. Where do you like to do your work – in a studio, in the garden, in an armchair? I’m happy to sit anywhere and stitch, but mostly it’s in the recliner hubby bought me last year, right beside the living-room window, where the trees sway beside me and the birds watch me through the glass. How many stitching projects do you think you tackle each year? Ha ha ha!!!! Oh my…

FABULOUS FLOWER BALLOON Freewheeling fun … that’s what this crochet indulgence is all about for its creator, Robyn Hicks, of Yummy Yarn and Co. It started at ground level, with some handpicked, homemade crocheted flowers, then drifted aloft into heavenly inspiration when Robyn stacked her oversupply together to see how they’d look as a chair cushion. But en route, she saw the possibilities of adding strings to make a floral-festival balloon. To mouthwateringly gorgeous effect. “I really enjoyed placing various-sized crochet flowers together and then just making up a few smaller flowers to fill in the gaps,” says Robyn. “Sometimes, a project can take on a few forms before you get to the finished product, but this photo is a great reminder for me that there can be many forks…

What’s your idea of the perfect stitching day? A perfect stitching day would be at the beach, sitting under a tree, covering paper pieces or hand stitching. Cup of tea, piece of cake and, most of all, sunshine. I’ve lived this day a few times when my son came back from Australia and when I holidayed there, so I have good stitching memories. And my sewing bag is full of covered hexagons! Where do you like to do your work – in a studio, in the garden, in an armchair? All three of those, depending on what I’m sewing. When it’s winter in New Zealand, I take to my armchair in front of the fire. It’s where I do all my appliqué in the evening. How many stitching projects do…

Materials • One layer cake or 38 squares, 10in of assorted print fabrics • 3m (3 1/4yd) solid white fabric • 60cm ( 3/4yd) red stripe print fabric (binding) • 4.1m (4 1/2yd) backing fabric • Batting at least 200cm (80in) square • Rotary cutter, ruler and mat • Sewing machine with1/4in foot • General sewing supplies Finished size: 184cm (72 1/2in) square Finished block size: 12in square Note: Read all the instructions before starting the project. It is recommended that fabrics be 100% cotton and well ironed. Requirements are based on fabric 107cm (42in) wide. Seam allowances of 1 /4in are used throughout. Cutting 1 Choose 25 squares from the layer cake or your assortment of 10in squares of print fabrics. From each of these…

About Staci Wendland, of Crafty Staci Staci Wendland is the creative powerhouse behind the Crafty Staci website, where you can find hundreds of tutorials for useful and fun projects. It is definitely worth exploring. She also sells many of them as finished items and DIY kits at her Etsy store. Website: www.craftystaci.com; Etsy: www.craftystaci.etsy.com; Instagram: www.instagram.com/craftystaci; Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/craftystaci; Facebook: www.facebook.com/craftystaci You need: • Two squares, 10cm (4in) of fusible interfacing • Three squares, 10cm (4in) of cotton fabric • General sewing supplies 1 Cut one square of interfacing in half on the diagonal and save one triangle for your next bookmark. Fuse the other triangle to the wrong side of the fabric you want for the corner of the bookmark and the whole square to…

Materials • Three fat eighths of assorted green print fabrics (softies) • Three 7cm (2 3/4in) diameter terracotta pots • Bamboo garden stake (trunks) • Fibre fill • 500g (1 1/4lb) air-dry clay • Clear, quick-drying craft glue • Six tablespoons of fine gravel or rock salt • Paper and cardboard • Chopstick • Spoon and tweezers • Hacksaw or secateurs • Sewing machine with 1/4in foot • General sewing supplies Finished sizes: 19cm (7 1/2in) approx. Note: Read all the instructions before starting the project. It is recommended that fabrics be 100% cotton, pre-washed and well ironed. Requirements are based on fabric 107cm (42in) wide. Seam allowances of 1/4in are used for the ball and cone shapes and are included in the patterns. The spiral shape is…

THE ART OF DRESSMAKING – in miniature This Calico Couture artwork is by Carina Rego, who originally designed it as a competition submission. It holds special appeal for stitchers, who not only value the complexity of creating such small works in cloth but how they are put together as a modern-day dressmaking sampler. Each dress is approx 8 x 12cm (3 x 5in), and the finished canvas is 40cm (16in) square. Such restrictive sizes make the various sewing techniques (cross stitch, felt appliqué, beading, painting, ribbon embroidery, smocking and crochet) all the more impressive. Note: If this artwork hasn’t been snaffled up by the time this magazine goes on sale, Carina is happy to donate it to charity, so look lively if that’s of interest to you! Contact: Carina Rego,…

Ashford Wheels & Looms Ph: 1800 653 397, website: www.ashford.co.nz/yarn. Asia Discovery Tours Ph: (02) 9267 7699, website: asiadiscoverytours.com.au. Australian Country Spinners Ph: 1800 337 032, website: www.auspinners.com.au. Bernina Australia Ph: 1800 237 646, website: www.bernina.com.au. Berry Quilt & Co. Ph: (02) 4464 3387, website: www.berryquiltandco.com.au. Birch Haberdashery & Craft Ph: (03) 9450 8900, website: www.birchhaby.com.au. Brother Australia Ph: 1300 880 297, website: www.brother.com.au. C&T Publishing Email: ctinfo@ctpub.com, website: www.ctpub.com. Carol’s of Midland Ph: (08) 9250 2722, website: www.carolsofmidland.com.au. Catharina’s Vintage Stitches Ph: (03) 5852 3356, website: www.catharinas vintagestitches.com.au. Chandler’s Cottage Email: info@chandlerscottage.com, website: www.chandlerscottage.com. Clover Mfg Co., Ltd Email: info@clover-mfg.com, website: www.clover-mfg.com. Country Hart Designs Ph: (08) 8632 3172, website: www.countryhart.com.au. CraftAlive Ph: (03) 9682 5133, website: www.craftalive.com.au. Craft Project – Charles Parsons & Co Ph: 1300 364 422,…