Appleton Dance

Spencer-Ogg "Popping Pods" decorate table at Kentucky luncheon. by Linda Theil Diane Spencer-Ogg's "Perfectly Popping Pouches" seem to have supplanted her "Cos-Pod" as my favorite pouch design for party favors . I just made six of the medium sized pouches for my cousin's holiday luncheon in Kentucky; then made five more for a gathering of friends at the Brighton Bar & Grill in Michigan. Small Spencer-Ogg "Popping Pods" for favors at Michigan party. These small-sized 6 x 4-inch  pouches are made in cottons from the "Christmas Squad" collection by Mia Charro for Free Spirit. The zipper pulls are made from Mora faux leather from Emmaline Bags in Alberta, Canada. The Kentucky-bound pouches are 8 x 6-inch medium-sized "Popping Pouches" made with cotton fabrics from Deb Strain's "Holidays at Home" collection for Moda. They include coordinating wristlets and Mora faux leather zipper pulls. All the pouches...

  by Linda Theil Donate snacks to children experiencing homelessness in Livingston County during LESA's annual Education Project Snackpack Drive. Drop off snacks between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays from November 27 through December 8 at Livingston Educational Service Agency, 1425 W. Grand River Avenue in Howell MI. Snack packs will be distributed to Livingston County children experiencing homelessness during the week of December 11, 2023. What kind of snacks? The sky's the limit, but here are some delicious options: Pudding cups!  Fruit cups! Cracker snacks! Snack sized chips and pretzels! Popcorn! Granola bars! Mini cereal boxes! Instant oatmeal cups! Ramen noodles! Soup! Easy mac! Fruit snacks! Juice boxes! Water! LESA Student Services Specialist Candice Olrich is in charge of LESA's Education Project that serves the needs of county homeless children. She said: "Children who are homeless often have a number of challenges that can cause disruptions to their education. ...

"Auntie Grace" bag sewn by Linda Theil by Linda Theil This "Auntie Grace" bag pattern is available from  Knot & Thread Design. The bag is small -- about 8-inches wide, by 6-inches tall, by 2-inches wide. It is constructed of pre-quilted fabric pattern pieces, and the gusset seams are bound inside the bag. The bag features a full-sized zippered pocket inside, and a full-sized zippered pocket on the exterior back of the bag. It also features a divided slip pocked on the rear interior. A front flap is secured by a swivel hook closure, and directions for an adjustable cross-body strap are included. "Auntie Grace" bag, rear exterior I think the design of the bag is beautifully proportioned, elegant, compact, and very useful. The design concept seems to follow the appearance of the high-end "Grace" leather bag by French fashion house A.P.C.  "Auntie Grace" bag interior I would consider the Knot & Thread pattern to be competently de...

  by Linda Theil Alisa's always cleaning house and often asking me if I want some item I'd given her before she sent it to a new home. I couldn't refuse the holiday-print, round table cloth I had bordered in red pom-poms forty years ago, even though she had slit the cloth to the center so that she could use it as a tree skirt. I decided I would make a holiday-getaway bag from the salvageable remnant. The olive-drab faux waxed canvas I ordered on sale looked really great with the old print. I used Diane Spencer-Ogg's outstanding "Escape Pod Travel Collection" patterns. Pictured below: The holiday themed “Weekend Bag” and "Travel Clutch" in olive-drab faux waxed-duck canvas from Sally Tomato , vintage holiday print exterior and interior, and accents of Mora bordeaux faux leather from Emmaline Bags . Pattern and video tutorial "Escape Pod Travel Collection: Weekend Bag and Travel Clutch" by Diane Spencer-Ogg. Weekend Bag front Weekend Bag bac...

by Linda Theil Sample illustration of Fibonacci blocks as a quilt When Steve asked for a quilt based on the Fibonacci Sequence , I thought it would be easy to create a block constructed on the same principal as a Log Cabin block. I wasn't sure if he wanted one big Fibonacci block, or a more traditional quilt made up of multiple blocks. I realized I could make sample blocks of placemat size to illustrate his options. Fibonacci block placemats with two-inch border measure 20x14-inches To make a Fibonacci block, cut contrasting squares of fabric in the following sizes, as illustrated in the photo below: 1.5x2-inch rectangle 2-inch square 3-inch square 4.5-inch square 7-inch square 11-inch square The yellow line indicates the quilting pattern representing the Fibonacci spiral At least, that's the way I did my block -- based on my computations developing a sequence using the 1: 1.6 Golden Ratio. Alternatively I could have simply added 1/2-inch to the 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 56, 9...

by Linda Theil I think my cousin is my biggest fan; I just finished a new "Popping Pouch" for her to add to her collection. Medium-sized Spencer-Ogg "Popping Pouch" in cotton from "Line Work" collection by Tula Pink. Created June 24, 2023 for Carla. Medium-sized Spencer-Ogg "Popping Pouch" in cotton from "Filigree" collection by Zen Chic for Moda. Created September 4, 2023 for Carla.

by Linda Theil Alisa and I created a personalized tote to put in each family cabin at our summer  weekend retreat. We wanted to try printing unique fabric at Spoonflower and using that fabric to make the totes. We dood it! Our finished canvas tote is 12-inches wide by 13-inches tall by 5-inches wide. I chose a photo from our same vacation site last year, ran it through the Waterlogue app, used the GoDaddy Studio -- formerly Over -- app to add personalization, and gave the resulting photo file to Alisa. She laid out the square photos with bottoms together to make an 18x36-inch image,  then positioned three images across the fabric width of 56-inches, making three tote bag prints fit on one yard of Spoonflower's 56-inch wide Cyprus Cotton Canvas. Our finished tote measured 12-inches wide by 13-inches tall by five-inches deep. This is the image Alisa uploaded to Spoonflower. Here are Alisa's directions for preparing our art for Spoonflower: You will need to get your design into ...

by Linda Theil People were raving about Mora faux leather, so I thought I'd give it a try. I could only find it available at a Canadian supplier Emmaline Bags in Spruce Grove, Alberta. The 55-inch wide fabric costs about $18 a yard, and is available by the half-yard and yard. Samples are also available for purchase. I chose Spicy Mustard and Moroccan Blue from a dozen basic shades. Service was terrific, and the fabric arrived quickly. Mora faux leather is a really beautiful fabric that I enjoyed working with. I backed all my pattern pieces with a lightweight, fusible interfacing, Pellon Fashion-Fuse made to support leather, imitation leather, and furs without affecting the hand, and to help avoid shifting during sewing, according to the manufacturer. I used a Schmetz Microtex 14/90 needle, and a Teflon foot on my basic Janome heavy duty machine. The photo above is a belt bag made from a Sally Tomato "Ferris" pattern, medium size, in Spicy Mustard Mora faux leather...