July Challenge Day #11

Well, there are several reasons I wasn't able to craft something yesterday to post here today. Hmmmph. So it's a good thing I planned ahead and made an extra needle cushion last week (remember the bird wearing a party hat?) I made this simple little house out of scraps, with lots of machine sewing around each piece, leaving the edges raw.  It's cute and useful, who could ask for more?

Tiny House #2

I've heard from my partner in Australia that she has received the package I sent her for the Tiny House Swap on Craftster, so I can now reveal it to the world!

I let my love of bright colors guide me as I chose the fabrics for this project; when I was done, I was concerned that it was too colorful for my partner, but she says it's great!  I made this 4" x4" house wall-hanging just the same way as the one in my previous post:  I sketched my design on paper, then referred to that as I cut the fabrics free-hand.  I sewed everything together on the machine, leaving all the edges raw.  I included a cat in the window because my partner is a "cat person", and the number on the door is her actual house number.  I finished it with blanket stitching on the sides, and a cord for hanging it on the top.

This cheerful house makes me happy every time I look at the picture!  I might have to make another one for myself!

Tiny House #1

I had two partners in the Tiny House swap on Craftster, but today I can only show one of the houses I made, because my partner in Australia hasn't received hers yet.

There are so many different directions a crafter could go in when making a tiny house--it could be paper, wood, fabric, metal; flat or 3-d--and probably a lot of other things that never occurred to me. I stuck with what I know best, which is fabric; and because I've been on a fabric collage kick lately, that's how I made my partner's tiny house.  It is a 4" x 4" wallhanging; I sewed a brown cord to the top for hanging.

I sketched my idea, then cut all the fabrics free-hand, which is both fun and fast!  The roof of the house gave me the most trouble; at first it was too small and rectangular, so I tried again and made it tall and wonky, like a wizard's hat.  That's why I call this the Wizard's Cottage.  All the fabrics are cotton, except the tree, which is dupioni silk; it has a nice slubbiness to it, and a little shine, which makes it an interesting contrast to the other fabrics.  All the sewing on the front was done by machine.  I then layered it with cotton batting and fabric backing, and blanket-stitched it all together by hand.  I'm quite pleased with it, and my partner is too!

I expect to be able to show you Tiny House #2 later this week; it is constructed the same way as this one, but the look is completely different!