Look What I Found...

When recently combing through boxes in a local antique shop, I came across  a treasure trove of these little beauties. They're thread spools, used (I think) in a factory setting. They have a fabulous patina and are in great shape, so I knew that I had to have them, but I also knew exactly how I would use them at home.

The first step when I got them back to the studio was to cover the beautiful wood with scraps of cotton batting. Wood can damage fabric over time, so this is a step I took in an effort to protect what I would store on the spools to keep them safe.

Then, I went into my stash of beautiful, printed twill ribbons and began rolling  the wide tapes that I have onto the spools. Each tape is 2" wide, so you can see how large these spools are to be able to hold three different ribbons on each one.

I think they're beautiful to look at even when I'm not using them, don't you? In fact, I may have to go back and purchase more spools. (Yup. I have more tapes.   I can't believe it's already Friday again. I guess it's true... "Time flies when you're having fun"! Speaking of time...It's time to finish my knitting project. Gotta run!

Posh Pocket Tutorial...

 ***In the interest of full and honest disclosure, I did not invent this pocket. I purchased one about three years ago at a craft show in Sarasota, FL and "reverse engineered" it. If you are the original creator, or know the name of the artist, please let me know and I will give full credit to that person.

Fancy Vinyl Pockets

This is a photograph of finished pockets. They measure approximately

5 3/4" by 7" wide. I used a lighter weight vinyl in this tutorial, but would suggest

 using a medium weight for a little more stability. I think you'll like it better.

I started by cutting two pieces of vinyl  15" long x 7" wide.

(You can use the upscale pronunciation: vuh-nel'. They are pretty fancy, after all.)

I would have taken a photograph of this stage, but really...it's just clear material!

I really like this step. Choose a fun assortment of threads, ribbons, laces and fancy yarns. I used all flat items, but I suppose that, if you're careful, you might add flatter buttons or something else with a little more dimension, like sequins or paper art.

Then, arrange your embellishments in a haphazard layout on one sheet of the vinyl. If you're using a printed ribbon or specialty lace, make sure they all face toward the same side of the vinyl. That will become the outside of your pocket. Be aware of how your pocket will fold if you're using anything that you want to face a certain direction - like your label or a special image - so that it faces the right direction when you fold it.

 

When you're happy with the placement of all your fibers, you can lay the other piece of vinyl on top of it. Be sure that you don't have anything hanging outside the edges.

You don't want to use straight pins to hold the layers together. They'll leave undesirable holes in the vinyl. I prefer to use Wonder Clips™. They're flat on one side and hold well. If you don't have those, use the metal clips like the one in the upper middle of this photo.

 

I set my sewing machine for zigzag, using a 4.0 mm stitch width and 1.8 mm stitch length setting. I also put my teflon presser foot on my machine so that the vinyl would slide under it without sticking.
EDIT: If you don't have a teflon foot, you can place tissue paper between the presser foot and the vinyl to keep the foot from sticking. Just remove it after you're finished stitching. (Thanks, Fay!)
SECOND EDIT: I now use my sewing machine's walking foot, rather than the teflon foot and I place
tissue paper on the sewing machine bed, leaving at least one set of feed dogs exposed to move the vinyl as I sew. If you keep the tissue paper away from the actual stitches, you won't have to pick it out later!
You can use a thread that blends in, or you might prefer to use a contrasting thread so it stands out.

Sew random lines (not too many) diagonally across the "sandwich" until the fibers in the center are secured. It will look something like the photo above. (You can click to enlarge.) 

Once you've done all the surface stitching on the main fabric, you'll have to square up your piece before proceeding to the next step.

After you've made sure that all the outside edges are straight and square, sew one zigzag line around the whole outside edge of the piece. Try not to stitch off the edge. The whole zigzag line will be on the edge of the layered vinyl pieces, but not off the edge.

At this point, you'll want to add the snaps to your pocket. I determined which end would be the front flap of the pocket and made a pencil mark for the snap approximately 3/4" from the edge (centered on the width measurement of 7" at 3 1/2"). I punched the sharp sides of the snap through the vinyl before I placed the other half on it to secure. It was easier to join the pieces that way.

Now, it's time to create the pocket. I folded approximately 5 1/2" up from the bottom. Before you sew it, fold down the top flap, decide where the other half of your snap will go and attach it. Then, you'll sew another line of zigzag stitching all the way around the folded pocket - keeping the flap up. (See photo) This line of stitching will be inside the first line to be sure that you catch the pocket (four layers of vinyl total) as you stitch all the way around.

Your Posh Pocket is now complete!

(Well, your first one is anyway.)

Once you've made one, you can will make more...any size you want!

I've made every attempt to explain the process. If you have any questions or corrections, please let me know. I'm always happy to help. I've also added this post to the "BW Free Patterns & Tutorials" link in the menu bar. It's located at the top of my blog, so you'll be able to easily find it later.

An Elegant, Vintage Solution...

After much deliberation, I finally decided that this would be the best place for my sewing machine to travel when we're moving our "cottage" down the road...in the space between the foot of my bed and the wall of our bedroom at the front of the Flying Cloud.

When I purchased Sofie, she arrived in a beautiful, wheeled case...that was just too wide to fit into this space. I couldn't make it work any way I tried. I had was forced to find another way to keep my Sofie - and her accessories - safe during transport.
I went into our tiny attic space to see if one of the suitcases (we won't need to use to travel now) might work.

Look what I found! Handsome scored this at an estate sale we attended when we still lived in Wisconsin. It's one of those gorgeous, vintage suitcases that you use for car travel, but would never trust in the hands of any airline on earth. It's mahogany leather, tooled with the most beautiful designs - and after taking a few measurements -
I found that Sofie and all her accessories fit perfectly inside! The little 14 pound sweetheart, her embroidery attachment, hoop, plastic box with interchangeable presser feet, and instruction manuals all snuggled safely within the padded interior.
I'll need to make a proper padded cover for the embroidery attachment and hoop, but otherwise, it's already road-worthy.
After I asked if it was alright for me to use it, I loaded up "our" vintage suitcase and found that it fit into its new travel spot with room to spare. Guess that means I'll have room for the vintage train case I'm going to use to hold some of my other craft projects for our trip!

I can't think of a better solution to my modern dilemma than a vintage suitcase. I'm so happy that Handsome was willing to share! Yup. It's confirmed once again. I'm one Lucky Girl!

I'm inspired to find more vintage accessories for our cottage now. (Thanks, Rett! Your links to Sisters On The Fly started me down this path. I don't think I'll carry it as far as the Sisters did, but more vintage is definitely a good thing.)

Something New In The Studio...

You've been dying to see it, right? Wait no longer. Here's my new studio work table. It's from Ikea and it's called the Varde. It's a perfect height at nearly 36", and has a solid birch tabletop. Oh, and did I mention my favorite feature? Twelve - count 'em twelve - glass front drawers on no-slam runners. I also appreciate the overhang that makes it possible for me to mount my work lamp, magnifier (sigh) and my yarn swift. It's truly an all-purpose work table!

If you don't already know...Ikea is a huge store filled with really nice, quality furniture at great prices. One catch, though. Their prices are low because you put their pieces together yourself. We can put their Poang chair and ottoman together in twenty two minutes flat, but this piece took considerably longer.

In fact about five hours longer. I did most of the assembly myself, but there was no way I had the confidence to drill through the drawer fronts to attach the pulls, or the strength to drill and screw the birch butcher block to the base. I asked Handsome for his skill and expertise (and heavy duty drill) when I got to those parts!

So, it's finished now and I spent the day sorting through stash and filling drawers. I love it and can't wait to start my next project!