Category: Fabric Projects

Creative Mending for Daisy

This is my Grandpuppy Daisy. She doesn’t need a winter coat but she sure loves her toys.

Each time I come to visit my daughter’s family I’m handed a bag of toys that have met their match with Daisy. She loves to chew them and rip them apart. Unfortunately, she sometimes eats the pieces…so the toys are put aside to see if Grandma can fix them. This last visit I collected three toys needing some TLC.

I’m amazed the variety of ways toys for dogs are made…some are like stuffed animals like a small child might enjoy. Others are tough and hard to destroy. The first one that needed help was both!

The center of the toy was very stiff and indestructible material. The head, arms and legs were soft and squishy. Of course, most of the damage was right where the soft pieces joined the tough center. One ear was also falling off. This was hard to sew by hand because while my needle would easily go through the soft material, I practically needed plyers to get the needle through the hard vinyl webbing that made up the center. I’m going to recommend when the pieces get pulled off again, they should just cut them off and Daisy will have a ring to chew on.

The second toy was one I’ve seen before! The arms are missing completely so the holes needed to be sewn shut. Then there were a few other holes evidently caused by Daisy’s teeth.

This animal just needed the ear reattached and the holes mended. It must be soft in her mouth because it’s well loved.

The third toy was a tough bone-shaped toy with an additional stripe of red across the middle. The fabric was like nylon webbing material that is used to make lawn furniture. That one little piece of red must have gotten caught by a tooth and pulled away…shredding some of the webbing material. This toy should also be discarded the next time it needs to be repaired.

When I finished, the toys looked better and they’re ready for Daisy!

Then, while I was watching TV to keep me entertained while sewing, I saw an ad for a new kind of toy for dogs where the ears, arms and legs of a toy were attached with Velcro. They are from Tearrible Instincts. I found them online. They are a new company, https://tearribles.com. I checked them out to see exactly how they attached the arms and legs.

They had 4 different “animals” for sale.

Here was a picture of how they came apart, but I really can’t tell how they attach. A short video is on the website showing how they are put back together…each arm fits into a pocket on the side of the animal, so the arms have to be tucked into the pocket where the matching Velcro piece is attached.

I ordered two of the toys and maybe I can figure out how to make them myself before I give them to Daisy for Christmas! Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Autumn Door Quilt on Wood

This week I was determined to choose a new quilt block that I could paint on wood. I wanted something different and colorful for Autumn. I enjoyed painting my first two blocks and you can see them below. If you want to read how I made them, click on the link under each picture.

https://marykisner.com/new-patriotic-door-quilt-on-wood/
https://marykisner.com/summer-door-quilt-on-wood/

For the Autumn block I wanted something totally different. I pulled out my favorite book for ideas:

This book organizes quilt block designs by the grid they are based on:

And followed by pages and pages and pages of sample blocks! Thank goodness there is an index, by names, of all the patterns. I usually start by just browsing through the book. So many choices!

I ended up choosing this block:

This was based on a 4 x 4 grid.

Next to the picture was a number and the name was in the list to the left.

I really liked how different the block was and figured I could make the flower in orange, which would make me think of all the autumn flowers I see right now. I don’t think it matters that it’s called a “Lily”–I can call it anything I want!

Making the Sample Block

I like to start with a 3″ x 3″ tiny canvas. It helps me visualize the layout on a small scale. I don’t worry about making mistakes or erasing pencil marks. When I make this sample, I can decide if I like the colors I’ve chosen. It’s much easier to throw it away and start over if I need to.

I can see the extra internal lines are not necessary and distract from the pattern. I do like the orange and green.

Making the Full-Size Block

Step 1: I pulled out the 12″ x 12″ piece of 3/8″ plywood that Bert had cut out for me and sketched out the pattern with a pencil.

I did erase the internal lines because they will show through the white and orange paint.

Step 2: I flipped the wood over and painted the back and edges white just to protect the wood from the weather.

Step 3: I painted the first coat of orange and green. I can still see the internal lines so a second coat is necessary.

I used a fine point marker to outline the basic shapes. I like it!

Final Step: I will spray both sides of the block with a clear acrylic spray so it can handle the weather on the front door. Finally, Bert will attach magnets to the back so it will stick to the front door! Yea!

I think this block will be cheerful this fall and will show through the screen door well. Don’t be afraid to experiment!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Make a Holder for a Roller Ball

It seems I’ve been making several items that are dispensed with a roller ball…from perfume, to nail serum, to serum to soothe bug bites. I thought it would be easy to pull out my notes on making a roll ball holder to protect them. The notes were in the folder with my sketch of how to make a lip balm holder, so I pulled them out.

While the lip balm holder was pretty simple, and I managed to make a bunch at the time, the instructions were sketchy. Back in April of last year I did a post about it and had taken pictures so the instructions made sense (https://marykisner.com/how-about-a-holder-for-the-lip-balm/). At the time, I also made a few roller ball holder for a friend for her essential oil business.

However, when I pulled out the notes for the roller ball holder the instructions were VERY sketchy so I spent all day trying to reconstruct how to make them. In the end, it isn’t hard but things had to be done in a certain order or the finished product looked really messy. (The first attempt ended up in the trash!)

This time I took lots of pictures while I made the second one. When I was finished, I tossed my original notes and will file a copy of this post as my new instructions! Enjoy!

Directions to Make a Holder for a Roller Ball

  1. Assemble Materials:

1 – 11″ x 2 1/2″ Cotton fabric: Outside fabric

1 – 8″ x 2 1/2″ Cotton fabric: Pocket fabric

1 – 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ Cotton fabric: D-ring strap

1 – 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ Thin batting

1 – 3/4″ D-Ring

1 – small carabiner clip

2. Sew batting piece to wrong side of outside fabric, lining it up with the center fold. Stitch in place.

3. Fold D-ring strap fabric, long sides to the center, and stitch edges. Insert strap through the D-ring. Stitch close to the ring.

4. Fold down the top edge over the batting, apply D-ring strap and stitch to the folded edge.

5. Finish the opposite edge of the outside piece by folding the edge 1/4″ and stitching.

6. Turn the outside fabric piece right side up and apply pocket piece with folded edge toward the D-ring and the raw edges at mid-fold of the outside piece.

7. Fold the outside fabric right sides together, matching the hemmed edges. Stitch around 3 sides, leaving the edge near the D-ring open for turning.

8. Trim corners. Turn right side out.

9. Top stitch around all four edges. Insert roller ball into pocket.

10. Attach carabiner clip.

So that’s how to make a roller ball holder…in case you want to make one yourself! See the link above for the instructions to make a lip balm holder.

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Review How to Make a Memory Bear

Recently, I was asked about how I got involved with making memory bears; and then this morning, Facebook reminded me that one year ago I posted the story with instructions about making bears. If you did not have a chance to read that post, I thought I’d post the link to that story. (https://marykisner.com/making-a-memory-bear/)

Making memory bears is more about saving a memory than creating a fancy stuffed bear. Almost any stuffed pattern can be used…it’s the fabric that matters. This could be from a favorite shirt, pajamas or bathrobe worn by a loved one.

This is the first set of memory bears I made from a young mother’s bathrobe. Really touched my heart!

My first bears were made with a simple pattern. Then I chose a different pattern that gave a little more shape to the bear. I love being able to add a little heart button to the foot of a bear, and simple buttons for the eyes and nose keep it looking homemade. I have had to be mindful to ask if the bear will be used as a toy by a small child considering the risk of a child choking on a loose button. Sometimes I have had to use no buttons at all so it’s safe.

Please enjoy a few of the many pictures of bears (and dogs!) I’ve made over the years and see the instructions how to do it yourself. It has been a while, but I have fond memories of making memory bears. Enjoy!

I adapted a pattern for a stuffed dog so I could honor my daughter’s dog Otis and his best friend Max. Bert also stamped “dog tags” with their names.

Making a Catnip Pillow for Your Cat

To give my hands a rest from peeling apples, making pizza sauce and canning relish this week, I worked on a simple sewing project for a friend’s cat. I don’t have a cat and can barely pet them because of allergies, but I can sew for them!

One thing my friend discovered was that her cat was endlessly entertained with a little catnip in a toy. A few years ago I made a small pillow with a removeable cover so a little catnip could be tucked between the pillow and the cover. More can be added as needed and the cover can be washed separately. It was time to make a new one!

Here is Purrs with her favorite pillow.

I never had a pattern when I made the original one, so this time I actually measured and took pictures in case you’d like to make one yourself!

Making a Catnip Pillow

Materials

1. Two small pieces of cotton fabric, one made of flannel to make the cover; each 7″ x 8″.
2. Two pieces of cotton fabric (any color) to make the inner pillow; 7″ x 8″.
3. One strip of hook/loop fastener, about 1/2″ x 6″. (My picture shows two 3″ pieces…it’s what I had!)
4. Stack of 3-4 quilt batting pieces, each 6″ square, or poly stuffing to fill the small pillow.
5. Small amount of powdered catnip. (Catnip can be purchased at Amazon.com.)

Making the Pillow

Step 1: Sew the pillow pieces, right sides together, leaving one end open. Turn the pillow right side out.

Step 2: Insert the stack of batting pieces or poly stuffing to make a soft pillow. Turn the raw edges and sew the pillow shut.

Step 3: Set the small pillow aside.

Making the Case

Step 4: On the short ends of the case fabric, fold 1/2″ and stitch.

Step 5: Sew the Velcro strips on the wrong side of each piece…on top of the finished edges.

Step 6: With the case pieces, right side together, sew around the three sides, leaving the Velcro edges open.

Step 7: Turn the case right side out. Insert the pillow.

Step 8: Insert a small amount of powdered catnip between the case and the pillow, press the Velcro together and share with your cat!

Give it a try! Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Summer Door Quilt on Wood

Now that we’re into summer, I can put away my first door quilt on wood. See how I made it at https://marykisner.com/new-patriotic-door-quilt-on-wood/.

The next one I chose has several names. In one book it’s called Blazing Star, and in another it has had 5 other names!

I guess I’ll go with Blazing Star or Flaming Star. It appealed to me in its simplicity and made me think of all the stars on a summer night!

Since I don’t have an actual pattern, it helped to have it identified as being on a template of a 4-patch quilt block.

Making the Small Sample Block

I have learned to always make a miniature block first so I can figure out the dimensions of the sections. Painting the block also helps me visualize the colors better before I actually start on the 12″ x 12″ block of wood.

This is a 3″ square miniature canvas. I marked it into smaller squares each 1/4″. On the larger block of wood, each 1/4″ will be equal to 1″.

This took me a little while to figure out the angle for the star points in the background…as shown by all my pencil lines and erasures! That’s why I do this in pencil on a small one first!

And then I tested my color choices:

I started with the darkest color (that really is purple!), then yellow, and finally the gray background. Not very exciting but it reminded me of a night sky with all the stars out.

Making the Larger Block

With my shapes determined I shouldn’t have any pencil lines showing through the yellow paint.
First two colors.
Finished block…waiting for Bert to put the magnets on the back!
And of course, the yellow looks totally different in daylight! I like it!

It’s been fun to try this new kind of quilt block. Now I have a month or two to figure out what pattern to do next. I’m probably good until Labor Day now!

My miniatures are also reminding me what I’ve already done…my own little art gallery! Enjoy!

I may still do the two on the left on larger wood. So many patterns to choose from!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

New Patriotic Door Quilt on Wood

I finally finished my first attempt to make a door quilt on a piece of 12″ x 12″ plywood. I was determined to make this painting on wood that hopefully would maintain it’s bright colors. Fabric quilt blocks were my original solution to needing a door decoration that would fit in the flatter space between the front door and the screen door. Last year I managed to make six quilt blocks that solved the problem, but when I started pulling them out this year the colors had faded and looked pretty sad. (See https://marykisner.com/prepping-for-new-door-quilts/).

So, I had Bert cut two pieces of 12″ x 12″ plywood for me to play with (just in case it didn’t work, no point in having a bunch cut out!). First, I wanted to replace the fabric patriotic quilt block that was on the door right now:

This picture was taken when I first put it up last year…nice bright colors.

I first painted the block, both sides, with a base coat of white. When dry I sketched out the pattern and put a second coat of white paint on the corresponding white sections:

This looked pretty easy but I was re-learning how to use various brushes. Not as easy as I thought it would be!

Then I started with the red paint and filled in those sections. It took a second coat to get the solid color.

I’m certainly not as steady as I should be to do those straight lines!

Then I filled in the blue sections:

Now the dilemma…the original pattern had white stars on the blue squares. I did that with some fabric that had stars in the pattern and managed to get at least one white star centered in the block. However, how to do that with paint? After seeing how unsteady I was with a tiny brush, I did a quick run to JoAnn Fabric Store and picked up some embroidered appliques of stars. Perfect!

After finishing the block with a satin finish acrylic spray, I just glued the stars to the blue squares!

Funny how different light made the colors brighter!

The block sat on my old organ by the front door for a week until Bert had time to figure out how to hang it on the front door. It couldn’t be hung the way the fabric blocks were because we have a door knocker right in the middle. The fabric blocks just draped over that with no problem.

Bert finally had to put magnets on the back (the door is metal under the paint!).

Now the block has to sit below the door knocker.

Oh well…now to see if the paint fades over time. This block should be appropriate through the 4th of July holiday. I’ll have to think about whether it’s worth it to make more in wood. Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Prepping For New Door Quilts

As you may know by now, most of my projects revolve around filling a need and making something practical and useful. If you’ve been following my posts about Door Quilts, you’ll know I have made six nice 12″ stand-alone fabric quilt blocks to hang on my front door. They lie flat and don’t get squished like a wreathe does between the front door and the screen door.

However, when I pulled out the Patriotic Door Quilt last month, I noticed it’s really faded from the sun. Here’s how it looked when new…

…and now it’s really bleached out from the sun:

Rather than make a bunch more fabric quilt blocks, I thought if I painted a quilt block on wood and coated it with an acrylic spray it would last better in the sun (kind of like the huge barn quilts you see across the country).

While I’m waiting for Bert to cut 12″ square boards for me, I thought I’d see if I could make miniature ones to satisfy my need to practice with paints. So, eventually, my fabric door quilts will evolve into wooden quilt blocks that will also hang on the front door and solve my problem just fine!

It’s been a long time since I painted anything. I’m not especially creative with paint, put I enjoyed playing with a few paints to make my garden stakes a few weeks ago (https://marykisner.com/final-garden-signs-for-2022/).

It helped that the pictures were tiny and didn’t need to be too detailed!

Twenty years ago, I spent hours painting small houses based on photographs. They were also not “creative” but instead were mostly straight lines and the photographs showed me shadows.

This is the house I grew up in, from an old photograph.
The camp was fun to paint because I could add the tiny outhouse!

So, after making the garden stakes, I thought I’d try some miniature flowers:

This tiny canvas is 3″ x 4″

Even though I copied the daffodils from a photograph, I had to really struggle to get the petals turned right and getting the color right. Very frustrating. The point of painting was to do something fun, not frustrating! It seemed like I needed to paint something with straight lines. Quilt blocks would be perfect.

First Attempt

I started with a set of 3″ x 3″ square tiny canvases and some tiny easels to go with them. So cute!

This block is called Vermont Maple Leaf.

Adding the lines with a fine black marker seemed to help it look more finished.

Second Attempt

This block is called Fifty-four Forty or Fight. It’s the same block I made in fabric.
I must say it’s a challenge to get in those tiny points!
The fine black marker helped it feel finished.

While I’m waiting for my 12″ wood squares, I’ll experiment with tiny ones to see which patterns would look good on the front door! I must be nuts! Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

A New Spring Door Quilt

With no computer available for three days, I reverted to my comfort zone…hand stitching while I watch Hallmark movies on TV. (See https://marykisner.com/computer-virus-tulips-and-snow/)

It took only a minute to decide what to make. My front door quilt needed to be replaced. It was nice and fresh last year and lasted two full months on the front door. When I put it up around the middle of March this year it was looking a little faded and by now it is definitely not inspiring!

The original spring door quilt.
After 3 1/2 months total on the front door…pretty faded! I was also ready for some bright colors!

First, I looked for a simple quilt block in my favorite book:

I found “Birds in the Air”, as shown above.

At the bottom of every page there is a list of exactly how many pieces of each template I will need to make the block. Most of the shapes I have used before, so all I had to do was sort through the bag of cut templates to find T10 and T15.

Next, I searched through my stash of cotton fabric, remembering that I needed to use a light color for the background so the block would show up on the dark front door. These colors looked bright and cheerful!

After cutting out all the pieces, I arranged them on the table to see if I liked the colors together.

In one day (and two Hallmark movies) I was able to hand stitch the block together.

Block ready to iron and add the borders.

I added a piece of lightweight batting between the block and the back fabric. I top stitched in the ditch on the major horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines. Finally I added the border and binding.

Sure looks more colorful that the old quilt, don’t you think?

Now I have my computer back, so I can post these pictures! Yea! Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

Time to Bring Out the Spring Door Quilt

The door quilts I’ve made over the last year have served me well. They are easy to store, add some color to the front door and are a quick fix when the seasons change. Read about why I started making these door quilts at https://marykisner.com/a-year-of-door-quilts/.

I now have six so I can change them about every two months. I suspect by the end of this year I will need to add some new ones…I think the colors tend to fade from being exposed to the sunlight on the door. However, for this year I’ll just switch them out when it’s time.

I noticed I put up the yellow spring one on this exact date last year! So, I guess every two months I’m ready for a change. We’ve had a few warmer days of 40 to 50 degrees, but the weather is to change dramatically in the next few days. That taste of spring must trigger my need for a touch of color in my life.

I learned with my first two door quilts that because my door is a dark red, the decoration needs to be light. Thus, on the Christmas stocking the only thing that showed up at a distance was the cuff. However, on the Valentine one (against the green background) the heart showed up beautifully from a distance. See the difference?

So, since I decided to decorate with small quilt blocks, I chose a yellow background. This quilt pattern is called Dutchman’s Puzzle, Dutchman’s Wheel or sometimes Wild Goose Chase.

When seen from a distance, the shape really stands out. Take notice, Mr. Snowstorm…your days are numbered! Enjoy!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.