ScrapHappy May

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

I’d fully intended to have my little scrappy fabric-covered drawer unit ready for today, but it kept getting pushed to the back of the queue. Never mind, I will get it done for a future post. In the meantime, I have a small scrappy project I did get done and another one that’s singing a siren song to lure me away from other more constructive things.

Firstly, a small key pouch to go in my colourful backpack, using scraps of the backpack fabric and pieces from the Harlequin coat. I had some leftover piping I couldn’t bear to throw out, and it seemed to be telling me it would look very nice around the outside of a small scrappy pouch. Keys are hard on bag linings, and this one is double lined to preserve the interior of my lovely new bag. The zipper is a recycled one from an old pair of pants and actually determined the size of the finished thing, the ribbon pull is a scrap from a garment swing tag.

The other thing is all the fabulous Harlequin scraps. I simply cannot let them go. I trimmed them out very frugally to tidy shapes, throwing out only the barest slivers. Jigsawed together, they form a piece about 80cm square. I would need to join all the pieces together with sashing, but it would be a spectacular piece of scrappiness, and I believe there might actually be the potential for at least part of another garment in there. Maybe a waistcoat/bodywarmer? These bits are all basted to the charcoal grey 60% wool batting, so it’d be moderately cosy for the forthcoming not-very-cold North Queensland winter, and although there’s not enough for a whole anything, I could easily cut a pattern and piece something together using some other fabric to supplement it. No silk lining on this one, of course, but I have plenty of quilting fabric needing a home.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). The list below is the most current one I have, so if you’d like me to update something, let me know in the Comments. Please note that Jule has asked to come off the list as she will be turning her attention elsewhere for a while, and we are delighted to welcome Hannah for the first time.

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, Edith
 Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Debbierose, Nóilin, Viv, Karrin,
Amo, Alissa, Lynn, Tierney and Hannah

We also have a special one-time guest appearance by Kym’s blog, The Byrd and the Bees, featuring creative scrappy recycling by her husband, The Engineer. You’ll find it here, so do pay a visit.

ScrapHappy April

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

Today, I’m showing you the start of something rather than a finished project. A bit of background: The Husband drives a truck and spends long hours in the driver’s seat. It’s loud, it’s boring and he needs something to help pass the time, so he wears big Bluetooth headphones which enable him to listen to music or talking books, take a hands-free phone call, and protect his hearing from the noise. The ones he likes tend to break easily in un-mendable ways, from either deterioration after constant use, or accidental dropping. I’ve found a way of salvaging at least something from this situation, which is the packaging. It’s beautiful. There’s a nearly-square box and the headphone are packed inside a nearly-oval zipped hard case, nesting in a drawer with a ribbon pull. I’m using the inner cases already in a variety of ways, but the packaging waste was bothering me.

So I’ve decided to make something from them. I have three of them (so far, anyway), so I’m going to stack them into a small drawer unit for keeping my sewing tools (cutter, scissors, tape measure, etc). On the outside, I’m going to glue fabric scraps and seal the whole thing with Mod Podge. I like the orange and white colours, so I’m only going to cover up the bits with pictures and writing. I started it too late to have the thing completed for this month’s ScrapHappy, so hopefully you’ll see either more progress or the finished thing next time. I’ll certainly have some gorgeous scraps left over from the Harlequin Coat project I have on the go to use on this.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). The list below is the most current one I have, so if you’d like me to update something, let me know in the Comments.  This month, we’re welcoming back Lynn after taking some time off from blogging, and Tierney, who’s creating something spectacular for you all to enjoy. Be sure to drop by and say hello!

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, Edith
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Debbierose, Nóilin, Viv, Karrin,
Amo, Alissa, Lynn and Tierney

ScrapHappy March

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

Well, this month it was something both pretty and useful. VanEssa, the new caravan, has a door with a window in the top half. Great for letting in light, not so great at night when anyone can see in. It needed a curtain, or blind, or something.

So I made a Something. A quilty Something, of course. Very simple piecing, and very simple cross-hatch quilting. It’s all about the colour and the scrappiness.

All scraps. The oldest one there (a scrap of green Katie Jump Rope fabric by Denyse Schmidt) is 15 years old, from my early days in Melbourne when I first arrived in Australia. You can still get it, but they’re calling it a ‘legacy print’, available in special short runs only. That doesn’t make me feel old at all… Some of the others may look more familiar from recent projects.

The backing is from the remnant bin and is from the end of a bolt. I had to cut around holes, ink stamps and pen marks. The batting was a very thin wadding used as packing material on something I bought ages ago. The binding is all scrap. It’s fixed in place with recycled hook & loop tape, and when rolled up, is held up with a hook & loop tie I rescued from somewhere. So, very scrappy indeed, then. Also, cheerful, colourful and a nice antidote to all the extremely pristine black and white caravan interior.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). The list below is the most current one I have, so if you’d like me to update something, let me know in the Comments.  This month, we’re welcoming Amo and Alissa, two new members. Be sure to drop by and say hello!

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, Edith
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Carol, Preeti,
Debbierose, Nóilin, Viv, Karrin,
Amo and Alissa

ScrapHappy February

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

Despite spending much of the first two weeks of this month 1400km away, I’ve managed to get my ScrapHappy project done!

You remember the pretty teal tablecloth I got for my porch table?  And that I wanted to make cushions for my bony porch chairs?  Well, ’tis done.

Big, squishy 16″ square cushions. No zip, just a pillowcase opening, to keep things simple.

 

I had a 20cm scrap of a really bold rose print in pink on pale yellow, both of which picked up colours from the tablecloth. I had some odd-shaped pieces of dark teal with a bird and leaf print on it left from my last Ovarian cancer quilt, and then of course, I have loads of teal scraps and a fair few pink ones. Each cushion has two big squares on one side and scrappy strips on the other, and I’ve rotated everything so no two cushions have the same layout or strip-set repeats. I’m pretty pleased with how they look.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). The list below is the most current one I have, so if you’d like me to update something, let me know in the Comments.  This month, we’re welcoming Edith back after an absence to do other things, and Karrin, a new member.

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jill, Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera, Edith
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Carol,
Preeti, Debbierose, Nóilin, Viv and Karrin

 

 

ScrapHappy October

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

Well, you’ve all seen that the quilt now known as Delft has taken off. So I’m no longer even slightly pretending it’s a scrappy project, since several new and gorgeous bits of fabric were purchased to bring it more beautifully to life.

But that doesn’t mean I have nothing scrappy in the pipeline. This is me, after all. I have made a start on cutting pieces of Days for Girls scrap into useful 2½ inch strips of various lengths. This is going to be a strippy quilt for their next fundraising raffle. The size is carefully chosen to make good use of the pieces I couldn’t use on previous quilts because I’d selected a square size that was too large. No waste, see? It’ll be a simple square lap quilt, with the strip direction in each quadrant running alternately horizontally and vertically. Basketweave, in other words. It’ll be quick and colourful. Exactly what’s needed, and cutting the strips is equally quick and easy, so a nice stress-free project. I don’t entirely rule out some embellishment once the main thing is done, but don’t hold me to it!

Also in the pipeline is a second repair to my friend Sally’s favourite shirt. It’s old, it’s gorgeous, it’s gently and gradually falling apart, and I’m doing my best to mend it without disrespecting its original beauty. This is a scrappy job because the spot fabric I’m pinning to the front yoke to hide the fraying shoulder seam is a scrap from the Delft quilt, and it also matches the original back yoke repair I did in the same fabric some time ago. Sally is thrilled she’ll get a little more life out of it. I hope she’ll let me have whatever remains once it finally gives up the ghost for my scrap collection…

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). This is an updated list, so ScrapHappy members, please check it against the one you post.

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jill, Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Carol,
Preeti, Debbierose, Nóilin and Viv

ScrapHappy September

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

I’m in the midst of hand quilting Anemone, so was reluctant to start another biggish project which would need the same cutting table I’m currently working on. So instead, I’ve made more scrappy hexie flowers for the blue and pink (as yet unnamed) hexie quilt I started on holiday. These flowers are truly scrappy, being made from an assortment of dark blue leftovers, and the pink gingham centres are leftovers from the most recent Days for Girls quilt. The papers themselves are on their third re-use, so I think that probably counts too…

So, not a very impressive showing, not like last month, but it’s representative of the time I was able to divert to it this month. Next month may indeed be more of the same, I’m only about 12% of the way through the hand quilting, but seem to be able to get 2-3 rows done a day. Maybe, just maybe, there may be scrappy coat progress next time. I make no promises…

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). This is an updated list, so ScrapHappy members, please check it against the one you post. And a warm welcome to our newest member, Nóilin!

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, 
Jill, Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Carol,
Preeti, Debbierose, Nóilin and Viv

ScrapHappy August

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

All plans have gone out of the window temporarily. The Husband and I are both laid low with an extremely nasty cold (all RAT tests so far are negative), and things we should/want to get done are falling by the wayside. The dog is being fed and walked, the chickens are cared for, there’s food… and that’s about it. So no coat. Again.

But I had already started this. It’s another car quilt for doggo, made entirely from scrap or recycled materials. As you can see, the top is made from the Husband’s old hi-vis work shirts. The batting is discarded spill kit batting, the back is bits of unwanted fabric scrap, the binding is made of ends of jelly roll strips from many, many projects. And stitching down binding is something you can do quite well even with a stinking cold.

In fact, while I was at it, I made a very long binding strip from ALL the unwanted jelly roll scraps I had, so there’s still a fair bit left over for some future scrappy quilty item.

And I’d like to point out that very handsome label which my friend Lyn made to test out her new embroidery machine. Mouse feels it adds that certain je ne sais quoi to make his quilt even more exclusive and hard to steal. Because of course every other doggo will want it…

On top of that, doggo has a pillow in the back, under which he likes to bury his face on long trips, the better to snooze in the dark, I suppose. By a lucky chance, the width of the Husband’s work shirts is exactly the width of a pillowcase, so with two passes of the serger/overlocker, I could make a nice matching cushion cover. Buttoned opening right there in the middle.Tidy!

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). Please note that Bekki has decided to concentrate on other projects and is leaving the group, so please remove her from your list of participants. The updated list is as shown below.

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, Jill,
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Bear, Carol,
Preeti, Edith, Debbierose and Viv

 

 

ScrapHappy July

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

No progress on the coat I mentioned last month, as I’ve been busy with the Ovarian Cancer quilt I need to have ready by the end of July. However, I did manage to make something scrappy!

I needed another bench mat to alternate with the grey and white one I made earlier. That one’s now liberally stained with tea, coffee, pasta sauce, sriracha, orange juice…. well, you get the idea. It still works well, but it’s also good to have a replacement to alternate with.

I cut strings off the edges of most of the fabrics I use. It’s rare that I don’t have at least an inch of waste fabric at the end once I’ve finished cutting. I collect these strings in a bucket with my other scraps, and today, it was time to do something with them! I have a stack of batting scrap too, so I made up a piece with batting tape, and some random scraps of black and white fabric I pieced for the backing. The binding is leftover bits of jelly roll strips from earlier quilts.

So now, I have a bench mat and an empty strings bucket! Result.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at).

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, Jill,
Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Bekki, Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Bear, Carol,
Preeti, Edith, Debbierose and Viv

See you next time for more scrappy loveliness.

ScrapHappy May: Sorry, it’s rather teal…

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

This month’s scrappiness is looking distinctly teal. Mainly because I’ve been gobbling up my teal scraps to make blocks for the latest Ovarian Cancer quilt. There’s another block done, but I’m not showing it because it’s not totally scrappy, even if it is totally teal-y 😊  I’ll probably show it in a few days together with the next batch of blocks.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at).

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, Jill,
Claire, Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Bekki, Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Bear, Carol,
Preeti, Edith, Debbierose and Viv

See you next time for more scrappy loveliness.

ScrapHappy April

Welcome once again to ScrapHappy Day!

It’s the day my friend Gun in Sweden and I host ScrapHappy, a day for showing something made from scraps.

This month’s scrappiness is for the benefit of one of Mouse’s new friends. We met a new greyhound family in Townsville on our last trip, who had sadly lost their darling doggo, and were waiting to adopt a new one. Well, Miss Libby is now home and becoming accustomed to getting spoiled rotten, so Mouse suggested to me that he’d like to send her a Welcome Home gift. Your wish is my command, O Master. He feels that all greyhounds would welcome a nice cushion cover to lean on, especially if it features a portrait…

I did the usual, manipulated a photo, reversed the image and printed it on transfer paper, together with her name. I then ironed the transfer on a scrap of white fabric (this was sheeting left over from making the caravan bunk sheets). Around the central image of Libby I made a ‘piano key’ border of pink and black & white scraps to pick out the colours in the photo. The pillowcase back is a remnant from the Anemone quilt I still haven’t got round to hand-quilting. The binding is scraps from both the Floribunda quilt and the Lullaby baby quilts.

I hope that Miss Libby will find this offering acceptable, and that her new human sister Lucy will enjoy it too.

ScrapHappy is open to anyone using up scraps of anything – no new materials. It can be a quilt block, pincushion, bag or hat, socks or a sculpture. Anything made of genuine scraps is eligible. If your scrap collection is out of control and you’d like to turn them into something beautiful or useful instead of leaving them to collect dust in the cupboard, why not join us on the 15th of each month? Either email me at the address on my Contact Me page, or leave a comment below. You can also contact Gun via her blog to join. We welcome new members. You don’t have to worry about making a long term commitment or even join in every month, just let either of us know a day or so in advance if you’re new and you’ll have something to show, so we can add your link. Regular contributors will receive an email reminder three days before the event.

Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at).

Kate, Gun, Eva, Sue, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy,  Tracy, Jill,
Claire, Jan, Moira, Sandra, Chris, Alys,
Claire, Jean, Jon, Dawn, Jule, Gwen,
Bekki, Sunny, Kjerstin, Sue L, Vera,
Nanette, Ann, Dawn 2, Bear, Carol,
Preeti, Edith, Debbierose and Viv

See you next time for more scrappy loveliness.