Appleton Dance

 by Linda Theil "Franken-plector" back slip-pocket in Tuscan scene fabric When I decided to make a new Spencer-Ogg "Amplector" cross body bag, I intended to use the Tuscan-scene fabric from the  "Bella Toscana"   collection by Whistler Studios for Windham Fabrics as the featured slip-pocket on the front of the bag.  For the lining, I chose a floral from the same collection from a fat-quarter bundle I purchased in 2019. For accents I found a brick-red solid in a box of "Ten Vintage Crayola Colors" in a box of fat quarters by Riley Blake Designs. I intended to use a tan webbing I had on hand for the long strap, and a bright orange #5 zip from YKK. But by the time the bag was birthed, it bore no resemblance to my original plan; instead, a Frankenstein's monster emerged. The trouble began when I decided to add a credit-card holder to the inside pocket of the bag. Since the "Amplector" doesn't have a credit-card holder, I sought adv...

by Linda Theil I was inspired after reading Jamie Waters' stylish promotion of cross-body bags for men in the January 14  WSJ: "How Men's Hype Bags Became the New Sneakers -- Once a punchline, men's cross-body bags by brands like Gucci and Off-White have emerged as must-have status accessories, eliminating back-pocket bulges and any outdated stigma in convenient, hands-free ways". Waters said: "Recently, another men's accessory has begun to inspire a sneaker-level spirit; a sling bag that clings to the body like a baby monkey. Sold by brands such as Fendi, Prada, and Stussy, the bags convey a sense of smart and elan like a new pair of Salomons." His description perfectly defined my favorite Spencer Ogg "Amplector" cross-body design, so I decided to venture into men's fashion. If Fendi, Prada, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Botega Veneta can create practical, cross-body bags for men at meaningful price points, so can I. My menswear cross-bod...

by Alisa Mom recently had to leave home quickly due to a fire in her condo complex. She grabbed her purse and keys and headed out while the fire department secured the building. She was lucky to get back with no problems in about two hours, but the quick exit did bring preparedness to the forefront of our minds.   There are many good resources out there for both go bags of critical items you would want to take with you in an emergency exit, and also for emergency kits of things you should have in your home to use during disaster situations. I'd been seeing information on these for ages and meant to put some items together so this was a push I needed. We started with Go Bags. An emergency go-bag is a portable package of critical items you might need if you have to leave your home quickly. There are various lists and suggestions; and much of this will be very personal to your situation. I found this NYT article  "Is your Go Bag Ready?"  useful.   Here's what we did t...

 by Alisa Shea Henderson's "Broken Bars" improv piecing by Alisa, quilted by KootsiQuilting I saw the "Broken Bars" design by Shea Henderson in the Missouri Star Mod Block magazine vol1, issue 1 in 2016, and I loved it. I thought it was modern and cool and just perfect for my house. I purchased the exact fabric -- a fat-quarter bundle of Kona solids in"Patchwork City Winter Palette" by Elizabeth Hartman for Robert Kaufman that September and then, nothing! The bundles are no longer available but the colors in the pack are all Kona solids:  violet, berry, hibiscus, storm, celestial, teal blue, cyan, breakers, pool, azure, jade green, emerald, glacier, spruce, pesto, avocado, bonsai, wasabi, aloe, fog, shadow, medium grey, graphite, coal, and charcoal. At some point I point I pulled out the pattern and the fabric and cut all the random width strips and then I lost focus again. I think the scrappy, improvisational style of the design was a little overwhel...

 By Alisa I saw an adorable vintage Christmas bulb felt ornament on Instagram and loved it! A search online unearthed a pattern and tutorial from Oh Yay Studio -- along with a lot of other cute things. I loved the colors in the Oh Yay version, but I wanted to do something a bit more traditional, which required me to search for a picture of the classic Christmas bulb for reference.   I had wool felt on hand for a couple of the colors but I had to order the green and blue from Benzie Design on Etsy. They have lots of lovely colors and very quick shipping! I used the Oh Yay template for the bulb; I cut the pattern out of printer paper, leaving the black border, and laminated the pattern with packing tape. I prepped a bunch of felt rectangles and cut the bulbs two at a time, using a clip to hold the felt and template together.  I kept the felt pairs together using a clip until it was time to sew. Once all the bulbs were cut, I sewed them on my machine starting about halfwa...

by Linda Theil Scrappy Log Cabin quilt block by Linda Theil  Next month the Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild will host a virtual quilt-along to make quilts for the SafeHouse Center womens' shelter in Ann Arbor, Michigan. One of the suggested blocks to make at the event is a Scrappy Log Cabin suggested by GAAQG member and artist Mary Bajcz. I love the Log Cabin block design and decided to get a head start on next month's event by organizing my materials and develping a process for making my Scrappy Log Cabin blocks. I began by watching Mary's YouTube video: "Scrap Quilt Strategy: The Log Cabin Technique" , and many others available on the topic. What a variety of approaches!   I'm not much of an improvisor and this is the first time I've tried the scrappy approach to quilt making. So It was quite an adventure for me. I pulled out my scrap bin and began sorting for lights and darks. After looking at many videos, I decided to work with a central square of 2.5-i...

by Alisa My littlest niece headed to her first day of preschool this week. When we were talking about her going to school a few weeks ago she told me, "But I don't know my letters!". I assured her that they would teach her the alphabet and there was nothing to worry about. But she was clearly concerned, so when I saw this Missouri Star fabric letters tutorial on YouTube I knew I had to make them. Luckily I had all of the supplies in my stash: a white Kona solids charm pack for the letter fronts, blue Kona yardage in Harbor for the back and  Bosal fusible foam stabilizer . My Bosal was double-sided fusible, rather the recommended single-sided fusible; but it worked fine.   I also had a new set of Pilot FriXion erasable pens that I hadn't tried out yet for fabric marking.  They were amazing --  easy to write with, and disappeared at the touch of the iron. I cut 6-inch strips from the backing and the fusible foam and ironed them together from the fabric side. ...