Tuesday 2 July 2013

Patchwork Throw

Well hello again!

I am so, so, sorry, I have been absent for a couple of months now and I have really missed 'talking' to you all.  I will try to rectify this from now on!

We went on a 3 week touring holiday of Scotland in April and this was the beginning of why I have been away for so long.  I took a little bit of simple embroidery to keep me occupied and this is another part of why I've been missing.  Well it's finished now so I thought I would share it with you (actually it's been finished for a while but I just haven't got around to writing the post - but let's not dwell on that, I'm here now!!!)

We changed our sofa covers recently and whilst they were starting to look shabby there was still a lot of good fabric in them so I decided I would have a go at my very first bit of patchwork.  I wanted a throw to cover the new covers to keep them clean for at least a little while.  I think you all know how it is!! TV dinners, wine, crafts etc. they all take their toll :(

So I cut up 25, 12" x 12" squares to make a 5 x 5 square throw (it's just under 60" wide now it's finished) and embroidered a simple outline embroidery on each square.  Here is the finished article.


I chose to make a rag throw so allowed the seams to show on the right side.



Here are the top six squares.  Top left is a design taken from a pot a friend has, and the bottom left and right designs are taken from the wallpaper in the bedroom we stayed in at our friends' house at the start of our Scotland tour.  
Can anyone guess who the two famous people are in the top centre outline?
We visited the place one of them came from on our way south, just after leaving Scotland and my husband had his photo taken by his statue!  Any ideas?


Squares on top right of throw.
I like the poem 'Owl and the Pussycat' so hence the centre top design and of course I had to have a wine bottle in there somewhere!!!


The central square of the throw is a number 50 with 2013 embroidered below as both my husband and I have celebrated our 50th birthdays this year, and are having a great time doing so I may add!!  Bottom left is A Rennie Mackintosh design as I have a soft spot for his work and top right some fuchsias as they are one of my favourite flowers!


Centre bottom square is a thistle depicting Scotland as that's where I was at the time!


The bottom left square is taken from a photo of the viaduct used in the Harry Potter film that we visited when in Scotland.  My husband turned it into a line drawing for me (he's clever like that!)


Bottom left square is my own interpretation of a 'wee highland coo' copied from a little crosstitch coaster kit I bought on my hols.  I'm not very good at drawing and couldn't quite get the back legs right so I used a bit of 'artistic' licence and covered them up with grass instead!!  It doesn't do it justice on this photo but looks a lot better in real life :)

I really enjoyed stitching these outline embroideries.  I used Planet Penny Cotton as there are lots of fantastic colours to chose from.   Some of the designs were taken from this book and others were free off the internet.

Ooh, almost forgot!  This is the pretty fabric I used for the reverse!


and here it is in situ,'thrown' on the sofa!


Thank you for reading folks and I hope you like it.  Why not have a go yourselves?  It's a great way to recycle fabric, such fun to do and something that will be so very personal to you.

I shall endeavour to make sure my next post is not so long in coming next time!

See you soon
x
I have finally got around to linking up to Handmade Monday over at Handmade Harbour for the first time in months.  Hello everyone :)


38 comments:

  1. Wow! That is fantastic, a real labour of love it must have taken ages. What a wonderful family heirloom, too. It's lovely to see the cotton being used for something so different, and it works really well. I'd love to share it on the FB page if you don't mind.

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    1. Don't mind at all, it would be lovely to see it on there :) Glad you like it. I am so pleased I bought your cotton. It's like using a packet of felt tip pens to colour a picture, only it's for colouring crochet and stitch instead :) I love it!

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  2. Great post Mum, like the little descriptions of each square :)

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  3. That such a clever idea,i love it,something to treasure with lots of happy memories every time you look at it.

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  4. Back with avengeance! Fabbo project to do whilst on hols and afterwards, to make it seem like the holiday keeps on going :-)

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  5. Oh yes, it had to be portable and something that I could put down and pick up without worrying about following a pattern! It was just right :)

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  6. Your throw is absolutely gorgeous! I love the way each square is made up of something memorable to yourselves. I am rather partial to the owl and the pussy cat.
    We have just come back from Lake Bala, helping friends celebrate their 50th birthdays, must be catching. They are having a great time too!
    Wendy x

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    1. Thank you :) I think 50 is a really good age! Was obviously an exceptional year back in 1963!!!!

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  7. Wow. That is truly amazing. I really love it. All the memories and little stories. It is a great idea and justification enough for your absence (just!) I really hope you enjoy using it - don't get it dirty ;)

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    1. Thank you I'm glad you like it. I really enjoyed making it. Think I may make a bag along the same lines. Actually, it washes really well so doesn't matter if I spill a drop or two of wine :)

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  8. Love the embroidery, and the rag look of your throw. And your backing fabric is really beautiful.

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    1. Thank you, I was really pleased with how the rag seams turned out and love the colours in the backing fabric :)

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  9. Wow that is one of the most beautiful quilts I have seen. So simply and beautifully done, a quilt of memories, I want to do one now! did you overlock the seams to get that effect? x

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    1. Thank you :) They are just normal seams stitched with straight stitch on the machine, but I allowed them to show rather than hide them. I chopped into them with scissors about every half an inch and then put it in the washing machine. The more I wash it the more raggy it will become :)

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  10. How wonderful! So much work and effort and so personal, something to treasure x

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  11. WOW!!! It's stunning. You really have put your heart and soul into it. I love the idea that each square means something special xx

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    1. Thank you. It was the only way I could decide which design to embroider next!!

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  12. Wow I absolutely love your quilt. I really enjoyed reading about each part. And I do think that might be Eric and Ernie dancing. It's lovely to see you back. Did Chester go with you on your travels?
    Ali x

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    1. Yay! You are the first person to guess Eric and Ernie. Woohoo!!!

      Hehe! There were lots of times that would have made fantastic photo opportunities for Chester, but unfortunately he stayed at home to look after the house for us :)

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  13. oh wow this is gorgeous! you've really inspired me to have a go at something like this myself. I love the little stories behind each of the images and the seams add a lovely texture.

    lovely to see you back handmade mondaying! x

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    1. Thank you! It's lovely to be back. It was a project formed out of need (for a holiday project) and materials available (old sofa covers. Couldn't have planned it better if I had tried :)

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  14. Your embroidery looks so beautiful!!:) I too love embroidering but currently I am occupied with crochet and cross stitch projects.

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    1. Thank you. If you are like me, you have to have a go at everything! I have some crochet to show you next week :)

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  15. How fabulous - it looks so gorgeous and I love all the work you have put in to it. Hope you have a good week.

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  16. What a fabulous throw, it's lovely to hear the stories behind the squares - definitely something to treasure
    Hope you enjoyed your visit to Morecambe!

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    1. Thank you! We did enjoy our visit to Morecombe albeit very brief. We think Morecombe did Eric proud. Well worth the visit!

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  17. It looks amazing, I'm sure it'll be treasured for many years to come.

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  18. It must have taken ages to do all that embroidery. The throw looks wonderful. Showing the seams seems to make it look more cosy to me.

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    1. Labour of love I think they call it! It is rather cosy, I like the 'fluffy' feel of the seams :)

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  19. What a wonderful treasure - a work of art! Thanks so much for linking up on Hookin On Hump Day!

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I really appreciate all the lovely comments you leave so thank you for taking precious time to do this.