D Whynn Designs

My Big Fat Dresden Experiment

I'm not quite sure how it happened -- perhaps I've seen many Dresden projects lately -- but for some reason I became intrigued by Dresden plates to the point that I decided that I had to try making one.  Even though I have about 17 other projects going, some with deadlines, I dropped everything to pursue Dresden plate making.

After a trip to the bookcase (I like books as much as fabric!) and some time on the internet, I felt I was good to go.  I was pretty sure I even had a ruler that was a free bonus from some quilt show I had been to a few years back.

I decided to pull some fabrics from the bin labeled Big and Bright.  Well, I'm not actually organized enough to have labeled the bin, but at least the fabric is sorted and I know that that particular bin is full of Big and Brights, mostly Amy Butler and the like.

 

I cut a whole bunch of 4-1/2" strips and then used my handy dandy ruler and cut lots and lots of angled pieces. 

Then I assembled a whole pile of these things:

 

Viola - a Dresden plate!

 

These were pretty fun to make especially in the No Rhyme or Reason manner in which I assembled them. 

So I made a bunch more.

Now I guess I just have to figure out what to do with all these pieces from my sidetracked Dresden Plate project! 

That, and get back to work!

Too Pretty To Cut

I love fabric.  I buy fabric.  I own (alot) of fabric.  Probably too much fabric.  Sometimes I have a hard time cutting into particularly beautiful fabrics. I fold them and unfold them and smooth them and fix them and think of all the thinks that this fabric would work for --- and then I can't bring myself to cut it.  Which is just ridiculous because there will always be more beautiful fabrics and exactly how much fabric can I hoard collect.

Not too long ago I was taking a trip and I did not have a bag to take.  Believe it or not, I haven't made myself a new bag in OVER a YEAR.  I must say that the bag I made longer than a year ago has held up well but I'm about six months over looking at it.  My trip was fast approaching and I didn't have time to make a whole new bag --- and that's when I did it.  I cut up some beautiful Japanese linen that I was "saving".

Quick and fast tote bag. Great size for my travels. Completed in a short period of time.  Best of all I actually got over it and cut!

Between the straps and inner pocket I used up almost every scrap of the full yard.

I tried a new interfacing experiment with this tote and am pleased with the way it came out. I fused a medium weight interfacing to the lining of the bag instead of the linen. The bag maintains a crisp shape and the linen has no wrinkles or creases.

Isn't there a fabric cutting rule:  Cut into one yard of "saving it" fabric, you can add 6 more yards??

 

Out of The Bag

Almost a year ago I was contacted by the C&T Publishing Company. They were starting a new craft book line and were interested in my lunch bag design for one of their upcoming books.  Several emails were exchanged; the product line they were proposing sounding pretty exciting and I decided to give it a whirl.

I re-designed my lunch bag pattern adding a new feature (that my daughter had been nagging  suggesting that I add) and sewed up samples to the wee hours of the morning until it was all just right.

For a while it was top secret hush, hush, hush and night and day rush, rush, rush and then out the door went bag and pattern.

All too quickly a whole year went by and the book will be out this month.  This is another book in their new Design Collective books line which is part of Stash Books.

 

I purchased the  book Little Birds from this same line when it came out a few months ago and I love it.  Filled with 26 great projects in a perfect little book.

Imagine my surprise when I was sent a photo grid of some of the projects in the book and right there down in the right-hand corner next to the surf board is mine.

Check out the lunch bag for your bike.  How perfect is that!

 

  
In the meantime Stash Books is giving away two and a half yards of laminated fabric over on their Stash Books blog.  Click on over and register to win!