Karin Jordan Studio

Happy New Year, and Some Cat-Approved Pillows!

Happy New Year! I can't believe it's the last day of 2013. I've spent my time between Christmas and New Year's balancing family time with hiding in my studio. I've caught up on a few projects and have many things planned for 2014. There are a variety of quilts in the works, and all kinds of things I'm excited about. 

I've had the fabric for the 18" chicken-print pillows, above, since we moved to New Hampshire in the summer of 2012. Ed the Cat now has a more comfy perch on the window seat in the kitchen. I'd planned on writing up a tutorial for these super simple squares, but Lia Griffith makes them the same way I do, so I'll send you to her site to learn how to make zipper pillow covers. It involves a seam ripper! If you're not familiar with Lia's site, take a moment to check it out; it's wonderful.

My tutorials section is now thumbnails instead of a long list. 58 tutorials in 2013. Click the tab on the nav bar to see!

Until next year.....

xo Karin

        

Wishing You a Merry Christmas

The Elf on the Shelf goes back to the North Pole tonight, and takes with him some of the Christmas preparation craziness. The kids have decorated and redecorated the tree, and I'm still sticking things in boxes and wrapping. After the holidays, I'll be sharing some of the presents I made. My 2014 project to-do list is growing ever large, and I can't wait to get to it! One of my goals by the end of this year was to switch my tutorials section from a ridiculously long drop-down menu to a page of thumbnails. It's now much easier to navigate; check it out!

Thanks so much to all my friends and followers, new and old. I hope you have a wonderful holiday. 

Smooches!

xo Karin, Jason, Annabel & Colton

 

         

Wine Gift Bags Made with Burlap

Yes, I bought burlap. I was surprised, too. I was at Joann's by myself, which is a rare occurrence in and of itself, and I spotted an entire shelf of holiday-themed, printed burlap. I had to back the cart up. I'm not sure why, but I immediately thought of wine gift bags. There were a few people in line after me who overheard my conversation with the patient woman cutting my pile. . . and they wound up buying burlap, too. I felt like I'd won something. I actually have won something lately — from the Sew Mama Sew giveaway day — but I'll return to that at a later date. ;)

This tutorial is so ridiculously easy I didn't even take process photos. I know! It's as though I've had a temporary personality transplant, because as you may have noticed, I take pictures of everything. Don't worry, it's only a fleeting, Christmas prep moment. So here's what you do: Buy burlap. They even had TWO kinds of John Deere burlap. I restrained myself, even though Jason would have liked it. It was for wine. Granted, that might make for a good disguise. But I digress. Take said burlap home and cut a 28 x 6" rectangle. Fold it in half lengthwise with wrong sides facing, and stitch the edges with 1/4" seams. Insert wine. Cut a 36" piece of wide ribbon and tie a bow. Ta da! That's it. For a more complicated project, you can even fray the edges and top of the burlap a little. I frayed only the top edge.

These bags were designed for an average-sized wine bottle: 12" high with a circumference of 10". Adjust as necessary. The birds and holiday themes are cool, but I couldn't leave the mustaches behind. If you can think of any other uses for mustache-printed burlap, I'd love to hear it! I of course bought too much.

Cheers!

xo Karin

        

The Laundry Ninja: a Water-resistant Drawstring Bag

Everyone has those moments, especially when small children are involved, when there's a wet or soiled clothing incident and there's no washing machine available. This 10 x 12" drawstring laundry bag is lined with Pellon® Vinyl-Fuse® to contain the mess. It's a great solution for when you're traveling and need to wrap something wet up in your suitcase. I found this Robert Kaufman fabric at StashModernFabric that's perfect for the job. It's called I Am Ninja. For a printable pdf of the project, please visit the Pellon Projects page here.

Materials Needed:
1/2 yard fabric
1 package of Pellon® 100 Vinyl-Fuse™
1 yard of string or rope 
Safety pin
Thread

Tools Needed:
Sewing machine and related supplies
Rotary cutter and related supplies
Clover Wonder Clips

Step 1: Cut two 12” x 14” rectangles from the bag fabric. Cut two 12” squares of Vinyl-Fuse™. Cut one yard of string.

Step 2: Place one rectangle of fabric wrong side up on the ironing board. Remove the paper backing from one piece of Vinyl-Fuse™. Line up the bottom and sides of the Vinyl-Fuse™ on top of the fabric, leaving 2” at the top of the fabric. Smooth out any wrinkles and fuse following manufacturer's instructions. Repeat for the other rectangle of fabric. 

Step 3: Place the two rectangles of fabric right sides together, aligning the raw edges. Stitch the bottom edge using a 1/4” seam allowance.

Step 4. Using the paper back from the Vinyl-Fuse™ between the iron and project, carefully press the seam to one side.

Step 5. With the right side facing down, fold one side over 1/4” and press. Do not touch the Vinyl-Fuse™ with the iron. Repeat for the other side of the bag. 

Step 6: With the right side facing down, fold over one end 1/2” and press.

Step 7: Fold over 1/2” again, or just enough to slightly cover the edge of the Vinyl-Fuse™. Secure the folded edge with clips. Stitch along the bottom edge of the fold, catching the edge of the Vinyl-Fuse™ in the seam under the folded edge.

Step 8: Fold the bag in half with right sides together. Secure both sides with clips.

Step 9: Starting directly under the folded band at top, stitch to bottom of bag. Backstitch at the start and end of the seam. Repeat for the other side. Cut threads.

Step 10: Turn the bag right side out. Using the safety pin, thread the rope through both sides of the drawstring opening. Knot the ends together. 

May your holiday travels be stain free. If not, I hope this helps!!

Cheers,

xo Karin

         

 

Felt Gift Bags with Buttons

Every Christmas I am compelled to pull felt out of the fabric stash and come up with a new way to use it. In addition to a variety of ornaments, this year, I created these little felt gift bags that are decorated with festive buttons. This project is part of the Holiday Sewing Blog Tour hosted by Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom. There are 18 blogs participating, and there have been some amazing projects thus far. The tour wraps up with a terrific giveaway for a Brother Serger (details below). Be sure to hop around and check it all out!

 

Materials for one gift bag:
Piece of felt cut to 14 x 16"
Large button (the ones pictured are 1 3/8" diameter)
Piece of thin cardboard
Pellon® 805 Wonder-Under or craft glue
Needle and thread

Step 1: Lay the piece of 14 x 16" felt down vertically on your cutting mat and cut a 5" square out of each bottom corner. 

Step 2: Flip the felt around and cut a 5 x 8" rectangle out of the other two corners as pictured. You will be left with a cross shape. 

Step 3: With a 1/8" seam allowance and insides facing, stitch two of the short sides together. Repeat for other short sides. I used red thread in the sewing machine for all the bags. I love how it looks on the white felt!

Step 4: Starting on the bottom of the bag, with insides facing, stitch around the perimeter of the flap of the bag as shown, leaving the needle in but lifting the presser foot to turn the two corners. After you've stitched the short side to the long side, you will be continuing around the flap until you reach the opposite short side. Now all four corners of the bag are sewn!

Step 5: Trim a piece of felt to 2 3/4 x 3 3/4" to match the cardboard. I cut a piece of Wonder-Under as well.

Step 6: Fuse or glue the felt to the cardboard. The Wonder-Under requires a damp pressing cloth. 

Step 7: Allow the rectangle to cool (or dry, if you're using glue) and place in it in the bottom of the bag, felt side up. It should be a snug fit. Trim as necessary.

Step 8: Center the button on the top front flap and sew it on. You're all done! 

These don't take long to make, so they're great if you need to whip up a bunch at a time for teacher's gifts or party favors. Gift cards fit nicely!

If you missed the last stop on the tour, go here to see these Christmas Cuddiles from Nap-Time Creations.

Tomorrow CailaMade is sharing a tutorial on how to make these hand printed Christmas stockings.

 

To enter the giveaway for the Brother 1034D serger, click here! The giveaway will be open through December 20th and a winner will be chosen on the 21st. Thanks so much to Jamie of Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom for organizing this holiday sewing blog tour. Here's a list of the amazing blogs who are participating:

Happy Holidays! How did it get to be the middle of December??! Here in New Hampshire we got pelted with 14" of snow this past weekend. We weren't exactly prepared, but we managed to dig out.

xo Karin

         

 

Sew, Mama, Sew Giveaway: Winner of Brave New Quilts!

Another Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day has come to a close, and we have a winner from the 712 entries. .

Congratulations to entry #495, Alida, who said, "I started with some crochet flowers I guess... Thanks for the chance to win!" 

Alida, I'll be emailing you shortly for your contact info so I can get this great book in the mail!

Thank you SO much to everyone who entered; I had such fun reading about all your early crafty adventures (or misadventures, as the case may be!). 

Happy Holidays!!!

xo Karin

        

Felt Ornaments with Decorative Machine Stitching

After making the felt tree with decorative machine stitching in this post, I'm loving (and no longer feeling guilty about) all the neglected features on my Janome. These ornaments are easy to make and are fun present toppers. 

The pdf, complete with printable ornament templates, can be found on the Pellon Projects page here.

Materials: 

Wool felt, two 6" pieces for each ornament
1/4 yard Pellon® 805 Wonder-Under®
Contrasting thread
Chalk pencil or disappearing ink marker
Sewing machine and related supplies
Iron and damp pressing cloth

Step 1. Print the templates found on the pdf. Trace the templates onto the paper side of the
Wonder-Under®. Rough cut out the template. Place the fusible side of the Wonder-Under® on the piece of felt. Fuse following manufacturer’s instructions.

Step 2. Place the fused piece of felt on top of another piece of felt. Pin the two pieces together and cut along the traced lines.

Step 3. Place the piece of fused felt with the Wonder-Under® side facing down on a flat surface. Lightly draw lines on the ornament with a chalk pencil or disappearing ink marker.

Step 4. Select decorative stitch patterns on the sewing machine and stitch on top of the drawn lines. The Wonder-Under® will act like a stabilizer.

Step 5. Remove the paper backing from the Wonder-Under®.

Step 6. Clip threads. Place the two layers together with the wrong side of the stitching towards the inside. Insert a hanging loop between the layers of felt. Use a damp pressing cloth and fuse following manufacturer's instructions.

Annabel and Colton have been busily decorating and redecorating the tree with these. They're lightweight and don't shatter. Win-win.

Happy Holidays!

 xo Karin

         

It's Giveaway Day at Sew, Mama, Sew (Woohoo!)

Hi, and thanks for visiting the Leigh Laurel Studios blog! If you're new here, welcome! If you're not, hi again. :)

I'm taking part in Sew, Mama, Sew's Giveaway Day and am giving away a copy of one of my favorite books - Brave New Quilts by Kathreen Ricketson of WhipUp.net. The crafting community is still recovering from the loss of Kathreen in a tragic accident earlier this year. Her words, her vision and her love of craft live on in what is her final book. As a modern art history major with a love of fabric, Brave New Quilts truly stikes a chord in that it encompasses much of what inspires me. 

click here to enterWinner will be chosen at random. Multiple entries are via Rafflecopter possible, including leaving me a comment about the first handmade item you remember making. When I was ten I made a terrible pair of elastic waistband shorts. My first sewing trauma!

International entries are welcome! There are many amazing giveaways going on at Sew, Mama, Sew this week, including handmade items and supplies, so be sure to check it out. You have until 8 pm EST on December 13th to enter. Good luck, and have fun!!

xo Karin

PS - If you follow me on Instagram (where I share all the goofy, behind-the-scenes stuff), or on Bloglovin', please feel free to leave me an additional comment (therefore second and third entries) below letting me know!

        

WIP: The Cat Quilt-Along

Are you doing the Cat Quilt-Along hosted by Elizabeth Hartman of Oh, Fransson!? I'm having a blast with these cat heads. It's my daily 15 minute break from Christmas crafts and carting children around. The finished cat quilt will be 30 x 35" and have 25 different cat faces. She's even named them. From left to right: Ferdinand, Bernadette, Sunny, Mia, Ralphio, Krista. She's posting a new cat each day in December; it's a cat advent calendar — catvent! I'm using Robert Kaufman's solids for 2013 and Kate Spain's Sunnyside for Moda. It'll be a rainbow of cats. :)

Sunny is my favorite cat so far. It's funny, but just before I heard about this quilt-along I'd said to my husband that the cats really need their own blanket. I'm tired of brushing cat fur off our wool and cashmere throws, so this little cat quilt couldn't have come at a better time! Thanks to Elizabeth Hartman for coming up with such a fun December distraction! If you want to play along, be sure to Instagram your progess with #catventquiltalong. That's where you can see all the in-process silliness. 

Doesn't he look like he should have his own quilt?

xo Karin

UPDATE: to see the finished quilt, click here!

        

Magnetic Gift Tags {Kids' Version}

The other day I posted about making magnetic gift tags with fabric and trim. I traced the cookie cutters again on the Avery printable magnetic sheets, but handed them over to Annabel so she could decorate the paper side with her Crayola washable markers.

She asked if Santa would be seeing them on Christmas Eve. When I said yes, she put a little extra effort into the project. I was thrilled with what she came up with!

I couldn't find my silver metallic Sharpie, so I wrote on the back with a white paint pen. Be sure to let the writing dry before sticking the magnet on your fridge. 

She created quite the variety; I never would have thought to make a purple gingerbread man with nine smiley faces!

The tree is my favorite. Granted, I spent twelve years at a school in Oregon with an evergreen tree as a mascot, so I'm a bit biased. Actually, we were the Eagles, but it was the tree that was the real school logo.

It'll be great to have the option of hanging this on the tree after the presents are unwrapped, and then be able to put it up on the fridge after that. 

xo Karin