Pencil Roll Tutorial

As promised, I’m back with a tutorial for a pencil roll I made a while back. It holds 10 pencils plus a notepad. I used Staedler Maxi Learner’s pencils, for two reasons. One, they are nice & chunky for little hands, and two, they are the only Australian Made pencils I could find.

MATERIALS:
Outer fabric – 2 peices cut 15.5″ x 8.5″
Inner fabric – 2 pieces cut 15.5″ x 4.5″
Ribbon – approx 1 metre
Pencils (I used Staedler fat pencils – 10 per packet)
Notepad

METHOD:
1) Find the centre of one of the outer pieces. Pin ribbon in place, making a note of where the “one-third” lines of the finished roll will be.
2) Topstitch the ribbon in place, along both sides, and down the “one-third” lines.
3) Pine the two inner pieces right side together, and stitch along one of the long sides with a 1/4″ seam allowance. Turn right way in, and press flat.
4) Lay the outer piece with the ribbon right side up on your work surface, making sure the ribbons are bundled to the middle. Lay the inner peices on top, lining up the raw edges, and finish with the remaining outer piece right side down. Pin all edges.
5) Stitch all the way around, leaving a gap approximately 10 cms long on the top side. Turn right way in, and press edges flat
6) Hand stitch the turning gap closed, then top stitch all the way around the roll.
7) Mark out the “one-third” lines – I did this using sticky tape. It will need to go from top to bottom. Stitch up the line, turn, one stitch across the top, then stitch back down the line (so you end up with two rows of stitching close to each other.
8)Mark out one inch divisions on the inner fabric. Again, I used sticky tape. Sew from bottom, to top of inner fabric, for each line.

And a photo of the outside as well!

More pencil rolls…

A couple of special little girls we know are turning two this week, so I raided my stash, and dug out the leftovers from the apron I made for my mother-in-law to make a couple of little pencil rolls.

Both are slightly different to each other, and to the last pencil roll I made. These rolls hold 10 pencils, and are nice & compact.

The top has an air of girlish whimsy about it, with a little bow to secure the roll.

The bow is actually covering up where I stitched on a press-studthat holds it closed. This roll is really a roll, not just a pencil fold like last time. It rolls up from the yellow end, and then has an extra inch or so at the bow end to create a flap to close it.

The bottom roll in the photo above is a bit different. Again, it holds 10 pencils, but instead of rolling, the two pencils on each end fold in, and then it folds in half, and is held closed with a press stud. This is by far the easiest one I’ve done yet, I think it took all of 15 minutes to put together.

 

I have a tutorial that I wrote up for the last pencil roll I did, so I will post that & a quick tutorial for these two as well later on.

Investing in original artworks

My latest qet-rich-quick scheme is based on the early acquisition of original works by as-yet-undiscovered artists. I’m quite fond of my latest find. A surrealist abstract, its gorgeous shades of violet & green meld together in a soothing harmony, evoking a sense of a spring garden in full bloom. Tendrils of vines entangled with the first flush of delicate purple flowers, shyly poking their little heads out into the world, tentatively, as if scared of a sudden, late frost coming & bruising their fragile beauty.

Whilst I love this peice, I have a feeling it’s more of a sentimental, long-term acquisition. I think the artist still has a lot of refining to do in their technique before entering the Archibald, however, as early works go, its one of the best I’ve seen.

 

C’mon, don’t pretend you didn’t know where I was going with this story! This is a lovely little painting that Bear & I did the other day, and I’m informed it is a picture of Daddy on the swing. Hmm…

 

I learnt this painting technique at playgroup – it’s just food dye in water, with a cotton tip as a brush. Super easy, super cheap, and non-toxic! It can be a bit messy, but hey, what else does one expect with a two-year-old tornado!

 

~ ~ ~

For those with a vague interest, I am currently at 39+1weeks, so if I disappear for a bit, you know where I’ll be!

Stack & Slash.

A while back, I was down at the fabric store, grabbing a few bits & bobs to alter a couple of cheapy tops into breastfeeding tops. It wasn’t until I’d gotten the farbic cut, that I realised I had no cash, and was quite a bit under the EFTPOS minimum. So I grabbed a little fat quarter pack to pad out my shopping a bit, and could then whack it on the credit card.

 

So on Sunday afternoon, I felt like doing a bit of sewing, and cracked open the FQ pack. I only wanted something quick, so I evened up all the FQ’s, and started cutting! This morning I finished the main part of my super basic stack & slash play quilt:

 

It’s slightly bigger than this, on the top & bottom, but I couldn’t be bothered changing lenses, cropping etc, so you’ll have to pretend this is it! It gives you a general idea though. It’s not large, only being made from 4 fat quarters, but it will suffice as an emergency play quilt to live in the car – that’s my plan anyway! Now I just have to decide how to quilt it… hmm, decisions, decisions!

Just when you think someone is your friend…

… they go and do somethign truly evil. Yes, Car, I’m talking about you! The very nasty nasty Car blogged about Dairy Milk Clinker blocks. Add to that a heavily pregnant chocaholic, a trip to Coles, and one ends up with a bit of an issue.

 

You see, I toddled off to Coles this morning, in need of some milk, and accidently managed to go down the wrong aisle. Suddenly, I found myself staring at rows of Cadbury’s chocolate. The synapses fire, and my eyes start seeking the indulgent Clinker block. Whilst the block in question was nowhere to be found, it did come to my attention that family generously sized blocks were on special. Fine, if I couldn’t have Clinkers, I’d treat myself to some Turkish Delight. And better grab a bag of Clinkers, since they are on my mind. I turn, and there, hidden in the single serve chocolate, is a decadently priced, undersized Clinkers Dairy Milk.

 

See how small that little block is? Is it really my fault that it’s gone already? No, I didn’t think so either!

A little bit revealing…

Have I got you intrigued yet? Or scared? Considering I am 38 weeks pregnant, revealing would be scary!

 

However, please uncover you eyes, and try & refrain from running away squealing in horror. I am actually referring to a post I did a week or so ago, where I hinted at a project in progress – remember I showed a sneak peek of “something old”? Well, my something old has been completed:

It’s another bonus crazy log cabin quilt, rescued from my mum. This one was one that I’d started, but failed to finish,at the same time the blocks were pieced for the first craz log cabin quilt I showed. 6 of the blocks for this quilt were completed, with the other three needing a couple of extra strips & then trimming to size. It’s only a small quilt, with the block being 8.5″ finished, so will either be a cot quilt, or a play quilt for the new baby.

 

And I couldn’t resist showing a close-up of some of the lovely fabrics I used:

I prefer the lighter fabrics to the darker, but there’s no point doing a log cabin without contrast!

 

The quilt was also the first time I’d used continuous binding, and I must say, I’m quite thrilled with the results. Previously I’d added binding to oposite sides and then ends, which left me with quite bulky corners. I’m definately doing it continuously from now on! And a huge thanks to Emma, for suggessting the joins be done on the diagional rather than straight – again, less bulk and a lot neater! Thank you!

The Home Stretch

*warning – boring pregnancy post ahead!*

 

I’m finally in the home straight – 38 weeks tomorrow.  I’ve been having some nigglings, and the OB seems to think baby will come sooner, rather than later, which I’m quite excited about.

 

So I thought I’d best sneak in some belly shots before the belly is no longer!

 

Taken this morning – 37+6:

 

And just for interests sake, exactly two years ago, to the day, I looked like this:

That’s my belly at 38+6 (yep, exactly a week ahead of where I am now), with the two year old terror!

Catching up…

It’s been a busy couple of weeks at our house, so haven’t had a chance to blog much.

 

First up is the finished baby cocoon:

 

I love the knobbly texture, it make it look so yummy & cozy, and the colour is even nicer than I thought it would be. Now I just need a baby to put in it! *taps foot impatiently*.

 

I also found some time to do some quick craft with Bear, and we made a truck for Pooh Bear:

Only problem is the door doesn’t close properly, so I’m constantly being asked to “fix, mummy, pease?”. Will have to try & work something out!