Bionic Gear Bag

I have been itching to make one of these for a long time now and finally got myself organised.   I bought the pattern quite a while ago from Sally Thompson aka Rip Stitcher.

This project took me about 2 days to complete and because I was so eager to get it finished I'm afraid there are no pictures of it in the making.

This bag is kept closed by a long zip from side to side.  It opens up to reveal 4 zip pockets, pouches and a useful tray to place your items in (whatever you may be using it for). 

It was a bit daunting starting off but the instructions were very clear and if you followed each section carefully it soon started looking like a bag.

It was rather exciting seeing it all fall into place.  The way the pockets fit together is intricately simple and so pleasing.

You can see in the above picture the tray at the front for your bits and pieces.

The tray is a bit clearer in this picture and you can see how the first pocket is a little smaller than the others.

I chose a complimentary colour for the inside of the pockets, the bindings and the inside lining of the side pieces.  Look how neatly the zips fit into the pockets.  It was a such a pleasure to put them in.

The long zip was a little more tricky but I probably made it difficult for myself as I padded the binding on either side to help it match in with the side bindings of the bag.

I was very pleased with the finished result and loved the effect created by the pretty fresh fabrics.  If you fancy making one why not pop over and have a look at Sally's posts about it.  You wont be disappointed.

Dendritic Painting

A group I belong to met today to have a try with Dendritic Painting.  This is a very simple process of squashing paint between two sheets of glass, prising them apart to see the wonderful pattern they make and taking a print from them on fabric or paper.  The definition of a dendrite is

1. a short branched extension of a nerve cell, along which impulses received from other cells at synapses are transmitted to the cell body.
2. 
   

   a crystal or crystalline mass with a branching, tree-like structure.

I think you will be able to see, in the pictures below, why it is called 'dendritic' painting. 

I'll talk you through the process to show you how we achieved our prints.

First drop small blobs of acrylic paint onto a sheet of glass

We found less was more in this instance as it produced a finer print

Next place the second sheet of glass on top of these blobs and squish down firmly.

I just love how these blobs form perfect circles!

(the oval shape is the stripe in the first picture)

To reveal the dendritic process, carefully prise the sheets of glass apart.

Just look at the beautiful patterns that form!

You are now ready to take your print.  We found the first one was not always the most successful so this picture shows the second (left) and third (right) print on paper.

These are very simple prints to show how easy the process is but you can make them as complicated as you wish, mixing shapes, colours and even double printing. The ones below show some of my experiments from today.

There are many more pictures showing what the other ladies created, far too many to add to this blog post.  I've made the folder available on google drive so if you click this link you should be able to see many more of what we created today.

Have fun!

Rope Covered Knitting Needle Basket

Well, first post of 2016 and half way through January already!

I belong to a group of like minded friends who meet monthly to have a go at various, usually textile related, crafts.  A couple of days ago we got together to make rope covered bowls.  We had great fun and all produced some very commendable results.

Everyone except me managed to finish their bowls during the day and some even made two!  I wanted to make a rectangular bowl to replace this rather tatty cardboard box my knitting needles have been living in for years.

It proved to be a little larger than the bowls everyone else made so I set out to today to make sure I completed it.  It's not the neatest project I've ever finished but I have to say as this was my first ever rope covered bowl I was quite pleased with the result.  I learnt a lot on the way though.  Mainly I would prefer to use matching thread next time and for some reason which now evades me I decided to cut the rope and start again before going up the sides.  Wrong decision! Makes for a messy join. Have a look and see what you think anyway.

In the one below you can see how the contrasting thread shows up all the stitching and hence any mistakes you make! And there were a few of those! You can just see the messy join I was talking about in the bottom left hand corner.

You can't tell from the first picture but I decided to add a couple of handles just to make it easier to pick up with the knitting needles in. 

Here it is with the contents fitting perfectly and it is just big enough for the long pair of large needles I have.  The 'bowl' is very strong and has made a very substantial home for my needles.  I am very pleased with it but will just remember to make those few adjustments next time.

I'll finish this post by showing you the beautiful bowls the other ladies made.

One lady even made a placemat

Thank you for reading, see you soon
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