Happy Summer everyone!  4-H quilt camp is coming up soon.  Stay tuned and maybe a photo of the happy participants with their quilts will appear next month.

Recently I have been working on a recipe for a fabric stiffener that is less stiff than commercial spray starches and one that doesn't flake or make a mess on the plate of iron.  Below is what I have developed.  I tested citric acid as a preservative instead of isopropyl alcohol but the spray flaked when pressed and made a mess on my iron.  I have only used cornstarch but in recipes, potato starch is a possible substitute at a one to one ratio so that might be tested in future batches.  I don't buy unbleached flour so I won't be trying it in future batches.   I know there is a recipe for ME's Best Press using potato based vodka and water but it's not allowed in 4-H so this is my solution and so far I am really liking better than non-aerosol starches I have purchased.  They are getting more and more expensive and usually flake if preventative measures are ignored.  

Just a side note, ME's Best Press is 6-7% unmodified cornstarch and the rest is water with an undisclosed additive.  I am supposing a preservative that has been approved as safe and requires no documentation.  Here is the sds:  https://www.wardrobesupplies.com/media/pdf/Mary_Ellens_best_press_sds.pdf

Fabric Stiffener

(softer finish than commercial spray starches & no flaking or messy iron)

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups boiling distilled water in a quart pan

1 T. cornstarch

2 T. distilled water (distilled to prevent discoloration from iron & minerals in water from rusty city pipes)

70% isopropyl alcohol (that is medical grade for first aide, prevents mold & flaking starch)

2 smaller spray bottles from the dollar store (1.5 -2 cups)

Bring a cup and a half water to boil (maybe two if less stiffness is desired).  In a small bowl or 1 cup measure, stir 2 T. distilled water into 1 T. cornstarch until smooth.  Stir cornstarch liquid into boiling water.  Reduce heat to a simmer and stir until cornstarch is well incorporated and the mixture is slightly thickened.  Cool to room temperature.  Put scant 1 T. alcohol in a spray bottle.  Add 1 cup of starch mixture.  Top off with ½ cup water.  Shake well and test.  More water can be added for less stiffness (may need a larger spray bottle) or add no water when filling the spray bottle for more stiffness.  Store remaining starch solution in a glass jar.  (Alcohol can be added for storage or store in fridge or freezer to retard mold until more is needed.) 

Mitered Corner Square

 The foundation paper pieced block is for two of the 4 blocks in the block below.  

Click HERE for the Mitered Corner Square foundation paper piecing pattern.  Print at 100% (NO Scaling).  The Mitered Corner Square should finish at 4 inches (4.5 with seam allowances).

An alternative for constructing the mintered squares would be to piece four 1.5 inch WOF strips and fold the sewn strips in half and cut half triangles, two at a time, right sides facing, with a template like Wrights EZ Quilting Half Square Triangle.  

Revisiting Play Dough

I have been making play dough ever since my children were toddlers.  Their children have enjoyed the Kool-Aid version with cream of tartar that smells wonderful but stores best in the refrigerator because it seems to dry out in times of low humidity and becomes sticky in damp cool weather.  I recommend zip bags or plastic wrap for storage because a frost-free fridge will dry the surface if the dough is stored in a plastic container, at least that has been my experience.

Recently, my niece wanted to make some play dough for a preschool activity box she is assembling for her daughter.  She wanted a recipe that would store well without refrigeration.  I researched dough recipes and found an article that claims that citric acid is a better antimicrobial for play dough and also improves the texture.  Additionally, my niece was concerned if the dough smelled too appealing, Valentine might eat it.  She is still at the age where taste-testing is a learning experience.  

Last week we tried my favorite play dough recipe from April, 2011:

Kool-Aid® Playdough

1 cup flour
1 package unsweetened Kool-Aid®
1/4 cup salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cream of tartar
1 cup hot water

Mix flour, salt, cream of tartar, and Kool-Aid® together well with a fork in a medium pan. Add hot water and oil. Stir over medium-low heat 3 to 5 minutes. When mixture forms a ball in the pan, remove. Knead until smooth. Put in a plastic bag and refrigerate. Dough is smooth, non-sticky, and smells nice.

We omitted the drink mix and cream of tartar and replace them with 2 tablespoons of citric acid and food coloring.

The dough does seem more springy and softer than the original version. I might make more and try scenting it with essential oils like lavender and the citric oils like lemon, orange, and lime. They are inexpensive and also have antimicrobial properties. Also, I will be observing how well the dough stores in a plastic container (the article recommends zip bags).

Note: The link to the article on citric acid links to another blog entry that reviews 3 gluten-free dough recipes.

Another Year

So, 2020 came and went and now nearly half of another year.  To be honest, this new normal is not all fun and games.  I don't like it but as I child I learned to cope with change because we moved frequently from one state to another as my father was an administrative engineer and changing locations was an opportunity to receive a pay increase and gain expertise.   That being said, my method of coping is to keep busy with tasks and hobbies I enjoy.  Knitting has taken a back seat as I have focused on free motion quilting.  

Free motion quilting is meditative and hypnotic or like a runner's high or a zen moment or maybe an obsessive compulsive disorder.  The steady hum of the machine is so soothing that the addiction of filling fabric with thread patterns is my drug of choice for easing tension and relaxing when the options for travelling and quilt shop hopping have been reduced.  

Here are a few of my recent projects to learn the idiosyncrasies of new stationary longarm machine.  

From a quilted fat quarter came 3 little baskets.  The instructions for the 3 little baskets from a fat quarter are from a discontinued pattern by Christina Cameli.  She has been offering an updated version for blog followers, 3 nesting baskets from a quilted half yard.  The smallest basket in the current pdf is the same size as the one below:

Christina's classes on Craftsy/Bluprint and Course Craft were the first of several that have influenced my work and motivated me to keep working on my skills.  Others include challenges and classes by Angela Walters, Lori Kennedy, Helen Godden, and Rachelle Denneny.  I am extremely grateful that these artists are dedicated to teaching and sharing their love of quilting. 

 

A trip to the beach was inspiration for this piece.  I haven't used it in a project yet but it may become a decorator pillow:

A small sampler was inspired by a pre-printed practice panel by Jane Hauprich.  She featured her panels on Instagram and I didn't want to wait for an order so I drew sections on a fat quarter and filled them free-hand from her photo.  Her panel is 20 inches square but my version is 16 inches.  My goal was to work between free motion quilting and ruler work without breaking thread and switching feet.  I hope to take Jane's feathers class in the near future.  Her quilting is exquisite.  Mine is coming along but not as consistent as I would like but seeing progress is encouraging:

A recent birthday gift for one of the DiL's.  This pillow cover started as a challenge to try Jen Eskridge's Free-Motion Framework technique.  I designed my own framework for free motion fills in EQ8:

This is the video introducing Jen's technique and book, Free-Motion Framework.  If anyone is interested in the pattern for the fills, I will upload it to the side bar of links for free patterns.  I will be trying more designs like this in the future, hopefully on original tie dye fabric from our annual tie dye event with the grands.  

These are just a few of the projects that have taken my focus away from the dreariness of daily news and the passing of my mother and 2 aunts since October.  Spring and warm weather means the garden and yard work will be distracting me from sewing and quilting.  The promise of flowers and garden produce is always a lure to enjoy the sunshine and dig in the dirt.  

Bluprint Blues

I took a year off from blogging to focus on acquiring a new skill.  Since Bluprint began as Craftsy, I have been purchasing online classes but I hadn't really joined the forum as a member.  In March of 2019, I bought a year's membership with the goal of learning to free motion quilt on a domestic machine and eventually my longarm.  My membership came with free forever classes and almost all the classes I enrolled in for the last year have been on free motion quilting.  Bluprint has been my favorite online class delivery system and educational community.  

Now Bluprint is closing and I am exploring ways to save my content, almost 10 years of classes and the accompanying resources.  I have managed to collect all of the patterns I had in my library but now the task of downloading the class videos.  This program looks promising, Allavsoft.  For the price of a Bluprint class on sale, one can use Allavsoft for a month.  Stay posted.  I will be busy.

It's Been a Long Time . . .

I could write about many topics.  So much has happened but I will be brief and stick to the isolation sewing details. 

In the last 3 months I made more masks than I care to count.  It all started with a nurse on our block needing a few to wear on her house calls.  Then her friends at the hospital wanted some, really a lot, and now it's special requests from family and friends.

My personal favorite for my small face is from I Think Sew.  It is free, fast, and folds flat.  I put them in my purse, jacket and jeans pockets, the car gear boxes, and in zip bags to give away.

In between masks, I have done a bit of happy sewing.  Today, I finished up a piece of thread painting and free motion quilting into a zip bag for a belated birthday gift. 

This zip bag is the second I have done with coloring on fabric with crayons and then adding some thread painting.  The first was for my DiL's birthday in May.   

My daughter asked for a sturdy book bag for her birthday.  She found the perfect fabric but thought the batik print would be too thin.  I said, "No problem, I can quilt that." 

It's been a productive start to 2020 in spite of all the distractions.  Now, I hope to get back to quilting on the Incredible Hulk (Innova longarm).  I have a top I just finished so I can practice some ruler work and free-hand fills from Natalia Bonner's online classes and YouTube videos.  The pattern for the quilt is a new one called Quick QST Quilt from Colorfun Quilts by Erin Ryan.  

So, there is the last few months in one quick overview.  I guess I should cover the last 6 months of 2019, also, but maybe in another entry.  

  

Quilt Camp 2019

Great kids, beautiful quilts, and an awesome volunteer team made quilt camp a success from beginning to end.