Sunday, June 28, 2020

A Hand-sewn present for myself!

During the lockdown here in NZ, I was for the most part, without (and missing) my sewing machine. Like so many others we have had to make sacrifices and what I have sacrificed is my sewing space so that my husband could work from home. 

Hand Sewn Rainbow coloured Pin Cushion with a Honey Bee in the centre


With the recent publication of Issue 34 Make Modern Magazine, I decided to turn my hand to an English Paper Piecing project that I saw featured in the magazine. My hand sewing skills are not crash hot, but I was needing a sewing fix and this was something I could make completely without the aid of my trusty Bernina. 

My experience with English Paper Piecing is minimal. I gave it a go some years ago and have yet to finish this project. It’s currently sitting in the stack of unfinished projects in my cupboard waiting for me to appliqué it to finish it into a cushion. But I saw the ‘Serious Sewist’s Pincushion’ by Lauren Wright from Molly&Mama in the latest issue of Make Modern and decided this was the perfect lockdown sewing project for me. 




I used only scraps out of my scrap box, for the project and improvised somewhat with the EPP and appliqué processes, as I didn’t have any basting glue or felt in my stash and supplies. 

Instead of glue, I used Washi Tape to baste the fabric to the card templates. This was purely due to the fact that I had an abundance of tape and no glue. But it worked really well. 

For the honey bee, the pattern required felt pieces. I had no felt. But I had fabric scraps, so I used this instead for my honey bee and hand sewed the appliqué. It went a bit wonky and looks a bit rough, but that adds character, right? (Yes my hand sewing skills are dodgy).

I’m so pleased with my cute new pincushion and bonus it’s sooo much bigger and better than my old one, which has come in handy now I have my sewing space back! 

I hope you are enjoying your sewing anyway you can!
Happy stitching!
RJ

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