... or, perhaps, "it's the thought that counts". I'm searching for any over-used cliches that might explain why I'm so terribly late in finishing and sending my back-tack project. Sure, I'm full of excuses (my materials arrived a bit late, I had a week-long vacation already planned, a sick, feverish toddler occupied much of my time...), but in the end, I fell victim to my usual tendencies - biting off more than I can chew. In this case, I was inspired to attempt a project that was overly ambitious for me. I really wanted to challenge myself, and to make something truly wonderful for my partner, whom I admire a great deal. I found a project in the March 2005 issue of Quilts Japan that I wanted to tackle, and no amount of reason was going to steer me otherwise.
You may recall that I received a beautiful set of fabrics from Katy in botanical prints and shades of rich, olive green. The fabrics were wonderful, but my back-tack buddy is a lover of bright colors, so I thought that a monotone palette might not quite work out. Then I remembered I had some of the new Amy Butler Charm fabrics that also had olive green in them. Lo and behold, inspiration struck when I re-discovered this fabric in my stash:
Pink and olive green go remarkably well together! Who knew?!? I raided my stash a little further to uncover some great, soft pinks and bought a fat quarter of some irridescent olive green fabric that matched really well. Now, here comes the part where my back-tack buddy's identity is probably revealed... My buddy is a fan of exotic and rare tulips, so I decided to go with that as a theme for the sewing case I saw in Quilts Japan. Here is the outside of the case (fully opened):
I adapted this tulip block from Contemporary Classics in Plaids and Stripes by Piece O'Cake Designs (which, if you're not familiar with their work, is wonderful, fun quilting that takes traditionally-styled quilts and gives them an update in style and color - fun stuff!). The green paisley fabric I received makes up the quilted outer border, and I added pink binding and a pink piped flange to further frame the blocks. You'll notice that the quilting lines are not perfect because a little munchkin kept "fine-tuning" the guide on my walking foot and I never noticed until after I had quilted a few lines... Well, that is what makes this hand-made, right?!? The tulips are appliqued onto the background using a narrow zig-zag stitch.
Here is the inside of the case:
The tulip block on the inside was adapted from Applique Delights (also by Piece O' Cake Designs), and I made the vase holding the tulips into a built-in pincushion by inserting several layers of batting under the fabric. There is also a spool holder, a small, buttoned pouch, a pocket for whatever, and a pocket for scissors. All three of the little pockets are lined patchwork using fabric that I received, as well as goodies from my stash. There are also 2 buttons in the upper right that are used to hold a removable zipper case:
The zipper case is also lined patchwork, with bias tape binding and a little zipper charm that is a miniature pair of scissors. Next to it are a (vaguely!) spool-shaped pincusion and a needlecase made of wool felt. I embellished both with some of the pale green organdy ribbon I received from Katy as well as some pink rick-rack I received in a swap from Stephanie. Here is the other side of the pincushion and the inside of the needle case:
I borrowed heavily from Amy for the design of the needlecase... Thanks for the inspiration Amy!
My sewing machine and I had a few battles in the making of this project... I just can't seem to get it to make a nice, neat buttonhole (sorry back-tack buddy!), and when I applique using a tight zig-zag, it occasionally gets hung up, leaving me with slightly lumpy/bumpy stitching, rather than the nice perfect lines I hope for... I avoided some sewing machine battles by doing a lot of handstitching, which is not something I have much experience with. All of the pockets in the inside of the case are attached to the background fabric with handstitching, and the outer zipper and binding on the inside are handstitched.
I loaded the case up with goodies and sent it off to its new home. I'm not including pics of the goodies so that there are *some* surprises for my buddy! All in all, I'm thrilled that I finally finished the project, and I'm hopeful that my buddy will appreciate it - flaws and all!
They all look fabulous, i especially like the case. Well done!
Posted by: Nichola | July 10, 2005 at 04:16 PM
Kelly, What an AMAZING package you've put together for your lucky recipient! Wow....lovely, lovely work!
Posted by: amanda | July 10, 2005 at 05:09 PM
wow-really nice kelly-I'm sure your back-tack buddy will think it's worth the wait for sure!
Posted by: amy k. | July 10, 2005 at 05:52 PM
Those are absolutely beautiful! What a lucky backtack partner!
Posted by: Amanda | July 10, 2005 at 09:23 PM
This is really wonderful Kelly, I'm sure your Back Tack pal will be thrilled! The flower pot pincushion on the inside is very cool - that fabric in particular looks so three dimensional when it's stuffed - great effect :)
Posted by: Cassi | July 11, 2005 at 12:21 AM
This is really beautiful. How clever and creative. I really like the way you tied the theme and colors together.
Posted by: Mira | July 11, 2005 at 01:20 AM
Blimey ! , that is all so lovely and so intricate,I wouldn't know where to start.
Wonderful !!
Posted by: lyn | July 11, 2005 at 01:50 AM
Oh my goodness Kelly that is so amazing and wonderful! It was definately worth the wait! :)
Posted by: myra | July 11, 2005 at 12:32 PM
that is sooo cool!
Posted by: stephanie | July 11, 2005 at 01:22 PM
Nice work! I especially like the thread holder. What an ingenious idea!
Posted by: Tracy | July 11, 2005 at 01:41 PM
Those are all so beautiful! The notions holder is incredible!
Posted by: Jenny | July 11, 2005 at 07:12 PM
I was wondering if anyone would do the same pattern given the popularity of crafty japanese books at the moment! It is funny how different they worked out.
I love your interpretation of the pattern with the tulips - so cute. It must have taken you ages to do the whole pattern with all the little extras. I totally ran out of time with all the handsewing, and the zipper I bought was way too chunky so it ended up having a button fastner.
I love the colours you have used and the tiny scissors charm on the pouch is gorgeous. Fantastic!
Posted by: Helen | July 12, 2005 at 02:40 AM
once your back-tack buddy receives this, her thoughts of wondering where her package were will certainly melt away. i'd say this was a challenge, although from these photos, it looks amazing!
Posted by: kristen | July 13, 2005 at 10:39 PM
what an amaaaazing job you have done.
Posted by: kathreen | July 20, 2005 at 02:38 AM
Beautiful work.
Posted by: Barb | July 22, 2005 at 08:54 PM