Winter Is in the Air

As you can see from the styling of these photos Winter and Christmas have been on my mind lately. It felt great to get this project finished yesterday. To be honest it began to look like this would end into a closet of unfinished works. Evenings turned darker so rapidly that I hardly found time to make sewing and stitching work in proper lightning. Unfinished works are irritating and that is why I put all my effort to this project. I know that if this would have ended to the closet it would have stayed there to the unknown future. Now this one is better closure to the year's quilting. Next year will bring it's own projects that I am sure of. I have two ideas already and I can sketch those properly during the Winter months. Also it might be that I craft some very tiny projects for Christmas. Quilted Christmas ornaments would be nice and in a size scale one can handle without bigger mess in the house.

Empty table cleans the mind and gives space to create totally different projects and process new thoughts. Christmas decorations have been circling in my mind and I am excited to get to decorate my home soon. Just few weeks and most of the Christmas decorations can be brought in! Christmas being a limited period of time with it's own character it gives a needed break between old and new year. I like to divide projects to two categories at this time of the year. One, a pile of work that needs finishing touches and can be completed from to do list before Christmas. Number two, a pile of work that can be left to wait for next year and fresh start. (Three, a pile of work that can be forgotten :) With this technique Christmas time can be reserved to things that please the mind at the moment, small crafts, slow brunches, reading and just being and resting. 

Today's quilt art is called Net because it got it's color from a fishing net. I noticed during the process that it was difficult for me to create a pattern that is not based on repeating motif. I imagined nine boxes to the fabric and placed one motif in each box. This imaginary grid gives needed rhythm. Then I combined the motifs with stitching. In the stitching I used the same curl shape as in the fabric pieces. Stitching collects the net together. Another combining element is classic red in a hue that goes to orange in some light. First time in my life I made piping myself using the same fabric as in the curls. Red piping frames the work beautifully making it an entity. Otherwise it would be a bunch of curls that seem to run away from the work. I love these small details. Last October I made a cushion that has octagon shape, see more here. Tassels in the corners made a huge difference to the look. Not all works need pipings and tassels, some are best without. But I do love it when I can craft a little extra and test a new element. I was amazed how easy it was to make a piping and by making it by myself I got the exact color and size I wanted. Maybe I could make Christmas ornaments with piping? :)

Happy last week of October to You All!

Sannu

Wreath from Natural Materials

Wintertime began today and it was wonderful to get to sleep one hour more and still wake up quite early. Yesterday it started snowing properly. Frosty scenery is now turned into black and white. Before Christmas decor and preparations I decided to make one last minute Halloween / All Saint's Day DIY. It felt like I have all the time in the world before Halloween. Then last week I saw some countdowns to Halloween and found out that it is actually on next week's Tuesday. We Finns have traditionally celebrated All Saint's Day and Halloween is relatively new phenomenon. On All Saint's Day people light candles on the cemetery and prepare a more festive dinner. Now Halloween decor is becoming more common. Even though Halloween feels a bit over commercial with all it's accessorize I think it is nice way to brighten up long fall and winter season. I used to start decorating Christmas on September but now I feel no need to be so early because there is this Halloween and pumpkin season. Last week I tried my first ever pumpkin spice latte. Spotted it at the local cafeteria. New phenomenons come into our lives little by little. After this Halloween and All Saint's Day week it will be nice to think about Christmas decorations. I have noticed that November always goes so quickly and then on December it will be Christmas all month. 

I gathered the materials for this wreath on Friday before the thick layer of snow came. After the autumn storms it was easy to find branches from the ground. Best part in this wreath is that you can easily update it for winter season by removing the leaves and adding some baubles or fake snow.

Wreath from Nature

You will need:

Branches

Pine cones

Wire (brown/copper)

Hot glue gun + glue

Paper yarn

Golden sewing yarn

Scissors

Needle

1. Take half of the branches and stretch them into a loop. Tie the loop with wire. Attach some more branches to the loop loosely with wire.

2. Let the pine cones open in warm room over night. Then attach the pine cones to the loop by hot glue gun. 

3. Twine open some colorful paper yarn and cut it to small leaves. Sew the leaves to a golden sewing yarn by hand. Decorate the wreath with the leaves. If you want to create a winter look you could use white paper yarn to the leaves.

4. Make a hook from wire and attach to the wreath. Hang the wreath to a door, window or wall. 

Lets enjoy the last days of October and autumn before November and first winter season DIY projects!

Sannu

Quilting Tutorial: Bohemian October

I took my autumn pictures just in time this week. Today when I woke up there was little bit of snow on the ground and trees were white. Sunshine and pure white scenery have given so much energy for this day and coming weekend. Today's quilted pillow tutorial that has deeper blue and purple hues doesn't feel too wintry at all. This is the second pillow quilting tutorial in this month. I hope you like quilting and sewing. I am so enthusiastic about making pillows and other small quilting projects. Now that winter is really coming, or arrived already, cozy pillows and blankets are the best way to decorate at home. 

This technique to quilt a block is easy. I have put quite many pictures of the process because I believe pictures tell more than words when it comes to crafts. I have made more detailed instruction on how to make the back piece to my previous quilting tutorial, so now I will mainly focus on making this block. Two main things you should remember when quilting are the 0,75 cm sewing allowance and that always after sewing iron the seams open before moving to second step. More tutorials, tips and inspiration on my previous quilting posts. The most interesting part for this simple quilted pillow comes from the unusual shape and fun tassels that finish the bohemian look.

You will need:

Cotton fabric in four colors

Sewing thread

Embroidery yarn

Batting

Cotton fabric for batting

Back fabric

Woolen yarn for tassels

Quilting equipment:

Ruler

Cutting mat

Rotary cutter

Sewing machine

Needles

Iron

Embroidery hoop

Scissors

Step 1. Cut 4 cm stripes from all four fabrics. Cut first about 4 stripes from each one (you will need more but it is easier to work with less at a time).

Step 2. Sew stripes together. Remember to keep same order in all stripe groups.

Step 3. Now you can choose. I preferred to sew these groups together to get a longer string. It will save material because the next step is to cut triangles with 45 degree corner. However you will have extra seams visible on your blocks. If you want to avoid that don't attach groups together but use shorter strings.

Step 4. Cut triangles with 45 degree angle. Cutting mats vary, but I had angles ready drawn on my mat so it was easy to follow the line and cut.

Step 5. Now you have two kinds of triangles that make two kinds of blocks. Collect the blocks and sew together.

When you sew parts together look that the stripes meet each other.

Make more blocks to have all parts for the pillow.

Step 6. Now sew blocks together as shown on the pictures. First sew blocks together to make three lines.

Then sew lines together.

Step 7. All parts sewn together. Now it is time to do the batting. Put cotton fabric to the bottom, then batting and quilt on the top of all. Pin layers together.

Step 8. Sew layers together by hand before you start embroidering.

Embroider the layers together with beautiful decorative stitches. Use embroidery hoop to make the work easier.

Step 9. Cut off the extra batting and make the back piece. See tutorial from here!

When the back piece is ready cut off the extra corners.

Step 10. Make simple tassels from woolen yarn. Attach the tassels, hide the yarn end inside the tassel. Put a pillow inside the pillowcase. I sew a basic pillow with the same shape using all batting leftovers I have collected during the years of quilting.

This cute bohemian style pillow goes well with faux fur pillow and luxurious quilt I have bought from interior decor shop one year ago. 

Hope you find this tutorial both helpful and inspiring. If so, please share on social media and /or tell friends on a coffee table. All your comments here on my blog and on social media warm my heart <3 If you got something on your mind you would like me to write about do not hesitate to leave a comment!

Have a wonderful weekend my friends!  I am not saying winter weekend because I heard on instagram comments today that some have a summer, some enjoy autumn :D 

Sannu

This is the place where I usually get lost

Yesterday I noticed how few pictures I have taken outdoors this year. During the winter season taking photographs is a bit more challenging. Camera works in minus temperatures (Celsius) but fingers don't. Smartphone is so smart it must feel that my fingers are freezing and shuts down. Yesterday I had great possibility to catch late autumn pictures in sunlight. I was surprised to notice that water had mildly frozen at the swamp parts. I had to skate through duckboards with my forest running shoes not to fell down. Autumn colors had mainly melt into brown and golden. After few rainy days green was dominant. 

I walked through a short marked path suitable for evening walk. When the path goes to the rocks I usually don't know where it continues (lose the marks). Now there were new signs, but yet there is some magic in that place because I got lost again. In this part of Finland people use to say that if you get lost you return home. I think main point is that you are not lost in a severe way and you are able to follow your own tracks back home. Also our homes are in the forest. On the rocks I now where I am on the mental map I have constructed to my head. The place is familiar, I just don't know where the path continues. I went to this place with my friend once and said this is the place where I usually get lost. We got both lost that time. Good thing is that if I cross the rocks I know there is a running path and I have to turn left. 

Sun was setting at the lost place. Even when going through the most stressful time periods in my life walk to the forest has put things in right scale. Forest exists with no time. Yesterday I thought my trip took two hours. Turned out I was there four hours. Mundane problems begin to feel what they are, mundane. Forest is like space. When I look up to the night sky I understand myself as a small part of the universe. Forest has the same impact when it inevitably changes the seasons and moves through the years. Some of the years are here for me to see, some in past and future are not. It is a calming thought.

Have a good week my friends!

Sannu