How many purses do you have? How many purse patterns do you have? We all love purses don’t we? Purses are a great way to make a statement on a small scale and I’m sure if you’re just like me, you have *lots* of them.

So here’s another one!

Enjoy this beautiful purse project from Thr3fold.

You can use any type of fabric to make your beads however if you are using plain colored or tone-on-tone colored fabric, consider adding some decorative stitching or free motion stitching for added interest.

Alternatively, consider adding your own decorative designs using a Krylon Gold Leaf Pen or Elmer’s Metallic Painters Pen (available from craft stores).

To make your beads, cut strips of fabric approx 1” wide x 2” long and then cut a tapered point at one end.

If you are decorating with a Gold Leaf Pen or a Metallic Painters Pen, mark along the edges of the bead or draw some designs on the fabric.

With right side facing up, apply a line of fabric glue to the squared off edge.

With wrong side facing up, apply a line of fabric glue along the tapered edges.

Wrap the fabric around the rod and press firmly to secure.

In no time at all you’ll have lots of wonderful beads to embellish your projects.

Photo courtesy www.morguefile.com/

Ever wondered what to do with all those old jeans? You know, the ones you’ve been saving because you WILL fit into them again one day. Give them up ladies; move on.

Here’s a great idea!

Or if you don’t like that one, try this one.

For all your home-made stamp lovers, try this great idea from Craft Chi for making rolling pin stamps.

Making “fabric paper” is one of my favorite techniques, particularly for small collage pieces. I generally make these pieces with texture in mind so that I can use them as a base for adding free motion quilting or embroidery. “Scraps” is a good example of a finished art quilt using fabric paper as a background.

So this weekend I spent a little time out in the dye room making some fabric paper backgrounds for some little collage pieces I wanted to do and I thought I’d share the instructions.

You’ll need some muslin, tissue paper, cheesecloth, pva glue, fabric paint or acrylic paint. You can also add other elements into the fabric paper such as images or fabric scraps; anything that can be glued down.

Take a piece of muslin and rinse it so that it’s damp.

Then make your glue mixture – a couple tablespoons of pva glue mixed with a little water so it’s nice and runny.

Then add some color; either fabric paint or acrylic craft paint.

Using a foam brush, slop on the paint so that the muslin is saturated.

Next add the tissue paper. You want a piece of tissue paper that is about twice the size of the muslin. Scrunch the tissue paper and using the flat side of the foam brush, mash it onto the top of the muslin. Use extra glue paint if necessary to flatten it down.

Now add bits of cheesecloth and mash them onto the top of the tissue paper. You can scrunch it or stretch it out.

Add bits of extra color for contrast.

Now go away and leave it alone until it dries. Since it’s a sloppy mess, this might take a little while.

Once they dry the pieces are quite stiff but handling them softens them up and of course they are fully stitchable.

I made four different backgrounds:

Hanging a quilt is most commonly done by attaching a quilt sleeve. A quilt sleeve will ensure that your quilt is well supported, particularly if the quilt is large, and will also ensure that no damage is done to the quilt by attaching clips in order to hang it.

Art quilts, though, are sometimes irregular shapes, so attaching a standard type of quilt sleeve will not always be practical. You will need to determine what is the best way to do this and you may need to be a little creative with the way you attach your sleeve.

Standard Size Sleeve

The size for a quilt sleeve, by quilt show standards, is usually 4", so it is good practice to use this size when attaching quilt sleeves to any of your quilts.

Today you may not want to show your quilts, but tomorrow may be a different story, and if your quilt sleeve is too small you will have to remove it and attach a new one. It’s just good practice to get into the habit of always attaching a 4" quilt sleeve.

Hanging Rods

Quilt sleeves are generally indented approximately 1" on either side so that when the quilt hangs, you do not see the hanging rod.

However, sometimes the hanging rod can be considered a decorative feature and can actually add interest to your quilt, particularly if the rod has decorative finials.
Specialty quilt hangers are another option. They can be readily found these days in stores or online and some are made using specialty woods which can add an extra element of warmth to your quilt.

Fade Away

Since fabric fades over time, whatever you can to to slow the process is going to be beneficial. The best way to prevent fading of course, is to always hang your quilt away from direct sunlight.

Hanging a Quilt
Hanging a Quilt
Quilt Sleeve: Single Fold
Quilt Sleeve: Double Fold