Alphabet Fabric Pages

Fabric in Altered Art 2 has started an Alphabet Fabric Page swap. This will be the theme of our monthly fabric page/quiltie swap until we finish the alphabet. There will be other themes for the holidays or just because, but this will be our primary theme. If everyone sticks with it we will all end up with a really nice fabric alphabet book. This is our first month so of course the letter is A. I used this image for a calendar page a while back and as soon as I came across it I knew it was the one for this month. A is for Attitude!

If you would like to join our monthly swap just follow the link to the group and ask for an invite. You can join at any time. You can always make the pages for the letters you missed so you will have a complete book at the end.

In addition to this swap we almost always have at least one or two others going on. We have a new bird themed swap that will be announced soon. It was inspired by an article in the new Sew Somerset. Stop by and see what we are up to!

Honey Bee Tote

Just a quick note to let you know that the first swap on Fabric in Altered Art 2 will be a recycled tote with a Honey Bee theme. Take an old tote and alter it using to fit a honey/bee theme. Add bee buttons, bee fabric, a honey pot, honey colored collage, bee collage, etc. Use an old tote. That's the recycled part. Or, if you just happen to have bee/honey fabric that you can repurpose, that would bee fine too! For more information, join FIAA2 and read the file that Pam has provided with all of the info in it. These will be due to her on June 1. There is a link on the left hand side of this page to join our group.

For those of you who don't know, Fabric in Altered Art 2 (FIAA2) is a remake of Fabric in Altered Art, a group that has been active for over 2 years. FIAA2 is new and improved in that it is not by invitation only (as FIAA was) and you can easily join the group by using the link.

I hope you decide to join us!

Valentine Postcard and Quiltie

I am only about a month late posting but better late than never, right? These are my fabric Valentine postcard and Valentine quiltie/fabric page that I made for Fabric in Altered Art swaps. Fabric in Altered Arts is moving May 1 to Fabric in Altered Arts 2. Having the new group will give new members easier access to us. I hope to see many new members this year!

Cute Quick Clutch

This is a quick easy clutch that I made the other day after purchasing a clutch pattern on Etsy. It is felt lined. The felt and fabric were fused together before the pieces were cut out which made it so much quicker. I printed the pattern on sticker paper so no pins, no slipping. The inside seams are stitched with a small seam allowance. The curved edge that folds down is finished with a buttonhole stitch. I think my favortie part is the pin! I have left it temporarily but it is really not functional that way. I will have to find a special button for it.

Halloween Fabric Postcard

Well, I guess the 10th time is the charm! This is a fabric postcard that I made using fabric for the background and a few fun cardstock stickers and really cool brads as embellishments. I stitched around the stickers to add a little more dimension and decoration, punched a few holes and added the brads, and it was ready for the backing and finishing off of the edges. The lady at the post office said it would cost a little extra to mail since they could not run it thru the machine with the brads. She even checked with me the next week to make sure it had been delivered. Which it had, safe and sound. You never know when you mail something a little different. We are doing a "message in a bottle swap on Treasure Art Trends this month. We will actually mail in the bottles. It will be fun to see how many are brave enough to actually mail in the bottle without putting them in a box and how many are received in good shape. Always something fun to do in altered art!

Not able to add pics

Well, I guess I'm not supposed to get caught up afterall. I have tried 2 different browsers and get kicked out each time I try to add a pic. I will have to give it another try later tonight. If it doesn't work then it will be the weekend before I will have time again. I think this is how I get so far behind.

Time to catch up

It has been a while. I tried cutting back on hosting swaps in hopes of having more time for other things, including blogging. I think I ended up with less time somehow. That is going to have to change. I have been busy creating, just not taking the time to scan and take pics and post. That too has to change. Over the next few weeks I am going to try to catch up on posting some of the projects I have been working on. I will have to see what all I actually have pics of. I did take pics of my October quilties for Fabric in Altered Art. They are up next. I also have a scan of 2 of the 3 quiltlets that I did for Elizabeth's swap on ABC. They are all pretty much the same and only 2 fit in the scanner so that's what I have to share. We just finished up a Halloween chunky book on Treasure Art Trends. I think I have pics of that. I also have a really fun Halloween fabric postcard that is probably one of my all time favorites. I'm not sure why, but I really liked it. I hope Kathie enjoyed receiving it as much as I did making. Maybe it was a favorite because it went together so easy. A few weeks ago I had to make several ATCs, some chunky pages, and the postcard. I challenged myself to use up some of the supplies I have instead of finding an image and using it as the center of each piece. Not having to work around an image and being able to use up whatever ended up on the table was a lot of fun. I'll try to post pics of the ATCs and chunky pages before they go in the mail in a few days.

Fiber Fragment Shrines Link

Here is the link that we have tried to post to Fabric in Altered Art for examples of the Fiber Fragment Shrines. Mixed Media Collage ( I believe that is the name) has some great examples.

First Itty Bittys

These are my first Itty Bittys, made for Lenna's Creative Swaps. The theme is Summer. I used one of my favorite images, added some coordinating paper, and lots of stitching. I love to add stitching to paper projects. It just seems to add dimension and sometimes and unexpected touch. Don't you love those starfish charms? They were perfect for these itty bittys.

Row House Swap

These are not fabric but I still wanted to share. These are four of the houses I did for the Row House Swap on Treasure Art Trends. I decided to make a few extras and choose the ones that I wanted to keep but ended up making 4 that I will keep for myself. I think one of the reasons that I enjoyed these so much is because they are all different. They were a lot of fun to work on tho they took a little time. We are swapping 15 for 15. They had to be 4" wide but the heights could vary. Some will bind theirs into a book. I think I am going to mount mine on something and hang on the wall. I may find a way to attach them to the mounting surface so that they can be changed out every once in a while. Maybe just 8 or 9 at a time. That will still be 3 feet wide and that is probably plenty. I also have some coming from another row house swap as well as some ATCs so I should have a very nice mix!

Quilted Western Purse/Tote

This is a western themed quilted purse that I finished this evening. The construction is the same as the purple one that I made for the swap on Fabric in Altered Art. The main difference besides the theme is this one has more in the way of embellishments. I have a steer head/skull stamp that I really like and don't get to use much. I stamped it onto 2 different pieces of leather and stitched them to a few of the fabric scraps. I added several buttons and a few charms as well. I really like the purse but I am actually tired of all of the brown fabric that I have laying all over the place and I am ready to get out something bright and cheerful. This is the first purse that I have made that I am keeping for myself. I am really looking forward to using it!

Altered Tea Towel

This is one of the tea towels I did for an altered tea towel swap on Fabric in Altered Art. The other one is similar with lace in place of the rick rack. I had some coffee themed fabric that seemed perfect for the towels. I simply cut strips for each end, pressed the edges under 1/4" and stitched them down. I had a fat quarter that had several images of pots, mugs and machines. I cut 3 for each end of the towel and zigzagged them on. Simple, tho a little time consuming. It was a fun swap and and ready to mail out tomorrow.

Latest Quilted Purse

This is the purse I made for the quilted purse swap on Fabric in Altered Art.. I received a packet of 7 fat quarters from EQuilter.com, my fav online fabric shop, and wondered what I would do with all of the purple fabric. It was time to start my quilted purse so I decided that I would challenge myself to use those 7 fat quarters. I did add a few other scraps of fabric on top of the main pieces but the outside, lining and straps are all made from the fat quarters. I had received a quilted purse from Debi Minter that gave me the inspiration for my purse. She had used a piece of decorator type fabric and then stitched fabric scraps all over it. I created the pieces for the outside of the bag by sewing two FQs together and then cutting them to create the front and back. The lining is created pretty much the same way except one side of the lining is more of a print, the other is more of a solid. After creating the front and back pieces I cut rectangles, squares and triangles from some of the other FQs that were left along with other purple scraps I had. It was a really fun a creative project! I have everything together to make another one in the near future. I will be posting the directions from start to finish along with a supply list and pictures for anyone that wants to make one of these purses. If you would like to join us just let me know. Please e-mail me at the address in the upper left hand corner of the blog. If you just leave a comment make sure your e-mail address is included in your comment.

Learn to make a Quilted Purse/Tote

Sometime in the next 2 weeks the members of Fabric in Altered Art is going to begin a new project. We are going to learn to make a quilted purse or tote. I have made a few in the last few months and I could not believe how simple they are to make. And I don't quilt! I can't even free motion quilt. Don't know why but I just can't get it. Thanks to a fellow member of Fabric in Altered Art, I found a very simple and colorful way to quilt a piece of fabric. I am going to write out the directions for a purse or tote that you can make simple changes to. I will add a few illustrations and make it as simple as possible. You will be able to change the shape and size of the bag very easily. You can add pockets or leave them off. Short handles or long. We will use one simple set of instructions and I am guessing we will all end up with totally different bags. I think you will be amazed at how simple it is. You know those totes that seem to have those perfect squared off bottoms and you wonder how that happens. It's soooooo simple. My daughter was really impressed until the turned the bag wrong side out and showed her how to do it.

If you would like to join us contact me at CathyJohnson42000@yahoo.com and I will send you and invite to the group.

Goodie Bag Challenge Wall Hangling

My gosh! It's been a while. Time to get this thing rolling again. I have been creating, just not posting. I will try to get back on track. This is a wall hanging I made using the items that were sent to me by Debi for a Goodie Bag Challenge on Fabric in Altered Art. She sent me some wonderful batiks and the great DJ Pettitt fabric image. I had to find a way to make the image work with the batiks since it had the coral color in it and nothing else did. I found a batik that had turquoise and coral so that helped some. I finally remembered the color washes that I had bought a few months ago to try out on fabric. I used a dark red one , red pepper I believe, and it did the trick. It added a touch of the coral color in several spots on the batiks. Some areas took the color wash better than others but it was perfect since I just wanted a little here and there. I laid it all out on a piece of black felt and quilted everything down. All in all I was happy with the final project. I hope Debi enjoys it!

Postcards for swap

These are my postcards for a swap. We were required to use Tallulah's college sheets from alphastamps.com. I had intended to make some of the cards with fabric but once I got started with the paper I just kept on going. The images, german scrap and victorian fans are all from
Alpha Stamps. I can't wait to see what I get in return!

Quilted Purse

This is a quilted purse that I did for a purse swap. I have wanted to make a purse for years but never seemed to get around to it. I joined a purse swap because I knew that if I joined and had a comittment I would finish it. The pattern is from a Cindy Taylor Oates book. The book has 12 different bag styles including a yoga mat tote and a water bottle holder. I love the fabric that I used for the purse. I am not happy with the tie. It may be replaced before I send the purse out. The colors all worked before the purse was put together but now the green stands out like a sore (or green) thumb but it is the only piece of fabric that I had that was long enough to make the tie. It is lined with a pink/coral batik. I did not realize that all of the purses in the book were quilted. I have never quilted anything prior to this. I ended up drawing a grid pattern since my free motion quilting abilities are not the greatest. I have ordered something called a sew-slip for my machine that is supposed to make the fabric just glide right along. I will let you know how that works out.

ZOE

I am trying to post more often so for today, you get Zoe....lol This is a picture of her on Michelle's bed. Those Dachshunds sure do enjoy their covers. She is a little more hot natured so has to wiggle part way out sometimes. Cute tho, right?

Button Cards

These are the button cards that I made for Barb's swap on Fabric in Altered Art. I cut some Peltex to ATC size, fused my fabric to it, and finished the edges with a satin stitch. The buttons are fabric covered buttons. I have seen a few posts about a button maker that costs about $400 but I think I got a much better deal! I have always wanted to cover some buttons but for some reason thought it would be a real pain. It could not have been easier! There is a cheapo kit that you can buy for about $2 at Walmart. It includes 3 buttons and the two plastic "tools". You can also buy the refills which includes just 3 buttons. It is less than $1.50. I will definitely be buying more refills. These were a lot of fun.

New Swap on Fabric in Altered Art

Signups are open for a new swap on Fabric in Altered Art! We are calling it the Goodie Bag Challenge. Each swapper will place 5-10 items in a baggie and send it to their partner. They can send fabric, buttons, lace, ribbon, thread, etc. Anything they love or anything they hate. But - remember- what comes around goes around.....lol Their swap partner will use the items in the baggie to create Whatever they like. They can make postcards, a quiltie, a doll, one of those wonderful crows, etc. They will then send that piece of art back to their swap partner. I think it will be fun to send out a baggie of goodies and have no idea what I will receive in return! If you would like to join us e-mail at CathyJohnson42000@yahoo.com and I will send you an invite to the group.