Sewing

Hi Everyone!! A very fond welcome to all my new and old visitors. I have had quite an eventful winter break. On two occasions, my husband and I first drove down to Southern California and then also to the north. Apart from being outside and travelling, I have also been busy in my little atelier with sorting out projects, planning, painting, book binding, etc. I LOVE to bake, so I have been playing with recipes too. I have one to share with you today along with my other holiday happenings!

This year I swapped out my snowshoes and outdoor boots with my city boots. I was all set to go to the Eastern Sierra to play in the snow. Then I found out at the last minute that Bowers Museum in Anaheim is hosting an exhibit of an extensive collection of Katsushika Hokusai’s woodblock prints from the British Museum. As a block printer myself, I could not pass up the chance to see these original prints up close. Needless to say, it was an incredible visit and it happened to be on my birthday weekend.

Afterwards we visited a few book shops and stationary stores there. I got several incredibly beautiful Japanese inks for my birthday from my husband. I love the simple joy of playing with these inks and writing Japanese with a brush. I am excited about using these inks for both writing with fountain pens and for drawing.

I recently got a new sewing machine. To familiarize myself with the new machine, I started making something that is nothing fancy but very special – blankets for my kitties who love to sleep on them. I “quilt” them with wavy lines.

I made this bobcat pattern for a school mascot as a custom order

I used to design paper piecing quilt patterns. For non quilters, it is a type of pattern that enables me to create almost any picture with fabric, like this bobcat. The challenge in writing these patterns is that every sewing line (seam) has to be a straight line. The curves are all made of straight lines. I start with drawing the picture and then start drawing lines where the seams will go. Figuring out the way each piece connects to another is like creating a puzzle.

You can see my currently available patterns in my shop. I took a break from designing patterns, but I am excited to say that during this break I started working on a new one. I will share as soon as it is ready.

During the holidays, Rebecca Magee shared photos with me of this beautiful quilt she made.

She used my Compass Needle pattern for the stars in the middle. Isn’t the quilt gorgeous?!!

Due to severe food allergies, I can’t have store-bought fruit cakes and I am not really very fond of alcohol-steeped desert. I recently happened on a recipe from the President Truman household that was posted by the National Park Service. I made a few modifications to fit our taste and we really love it.

I am sharing both the original and my modified version with my notes. I posted the recipe on this page all on its own so you can bookmark it directly. I hope you like it.

I usually make a “official” end to my winter break with a visit to the majestic Redwood forests along the California coast. It is a very contemplative time for me. I took this photo from the car one morning. Not the best photo technically, but I love the atmosphere.

Purchase handmade journals

At home, I finished a long-awaited drawing of the redwood cones collected from my own backyard in my nature journal which I made.

These are just a few things from my winter break. I have so much more to share with you, from both my atelier and my travels. Thank you so much for continuing to visit me. It is great to see familiar as well as new “faces” here.

Until next time,
-Soma

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Hi Everyone! Little Stories are posts I write every now and then where I share odds and ends that I work on or things that happen around me. This time I want to share a few finishes consisting of knitting, sewing and this impromptu little owl book I made. I love to keep my hands busy by working on projects like these, mostly after dinner.

Previously I wrote about an exchange that Mary and I did. She made me an amazing artist apron ( you can see it here ) and I knitted her a couple of sets of hats and mitts. Since Mary and I both love autumn colours, I had fun shopping as if I was buying the yarns for myself.

I used the patterns Westward Hat and Westward Mitts by Rebecca Woelber for this set. The cable part of this design required my full attention. I mostly worked on this one while my husband was playing a video game and I was “helping”.

For this set, I paired Prim hat by Andrea Mowry with Staghorn Mitts by Pamala Jane Patterns. Both were quick knits and easy cables too. They are not beginner patterns, but very well written. If you are a generally a confident knitter, and want to try cable knitting, both of these are very good patterns. Once you get used to the cable patterns, they don’t require so much attention either.

It was so wonderful to make them for a friend, and I am happy to hear that she got to use them a lot during the colder months.

During the time I was knitting for Mary, I decided to donate my serger. The lady who was fostering our kitten was delighted to hear that I would donate the serger to the Rescue. She lives an hour away, and halfway along the way is a JoAnn fabric store. I wanted to remake this blanket for our kitty Charlie ( You can read about it and download the leaves file for free here ), so my husband and I made a quick pit stop to pick up some fleece.

I had to pick up some extra fleece for a few more kitty blankets, of course. I cut the pieces in half to make them double-layered. I like both the slow process of binding by hand, and also the look of hand binding. Instead of matching bindings, I decided to use contrasting colours and designs. They had to have an autumn and winter theme to them as those are my favourite seasons. I specially love the wispy and wintry tree branches of the binding on the top blanket.

Please click on the image thumbnails to see the photos –

Now they are all ready for my little kitties when the weather turns cold around here. These would make cosy and quick baby blankets too.

One of the original Fairy Lantern flower prints is going to a new home soon, as are a few of the everyday journals, which is always exciting! They are available in the shop.

Most of my work is thought through and planned ahead. This little owl book, however, was a complete exception to that and was certainly not on the list. At the end of one day, I was so mentally exhausted that I needed a feel-good project. I had a little 2″ x 3″ book made from before that needed a cover. I pulled out washi tape, some scrap pieces of book binding boards, paper, micron pen, glue and scissors, and set to work.

I didn’t even feel like drawing anything new. I have always had a soft spot for owls. I traced the owl from one of my old marker paintings, copied it on the cover and inked it with micron pen. I love designs by Morris Brown, and I got this washi tape from Jet Pens recently. After affixing the front and back covers to the book, I attached the spine board with a strip of the wide washi tape. I added some scrap washi tape triangles to the corners and the book was done. It took me a total of around 30 minutes and it certainly uplifted my spirit quite a lot. Paper, pen, glue and tape – ingredients for utter happiness.

These after hours projects have a calming effect on me. While I work on them, I mentally prepare for the next day too. Do any of you do anything special to wind down? I would love to know.

-Soma

I am linking up with the linky parties on my Events And Links page. Please pay them a visit. Also linking up with Favorite Finish Linky Party @ Meadow Mist Designs.

Little Stories – Holiday Happenings

Little Stories – After Hours