After being in the presence of quilting brilliance at the recent V&A quilts exhibition many of us non-quilters have been raring to get in on the action. Once you start looking for quilt tutorials they're everywhere so I'll start you off with a bit of circular quilting fun.
Cluck Cluck Sew offer their Raw Edge Quilt tutorial as a bit of a different spin on your square-upon-square quilting formula. The effect of the quartered circles of fabric on the square background is rather fabulous.
It does look a little fiddly at times but if you're willing to sit down and pour some time into your quilt then why not go the whole way. Cluck Cluck Sew's writer, Allison, suggests you plonk yourself in front of the TV and get sewing.
One thing that really stands out is the way she matches her fabrics. If you're a little lost of what goes with what you can learn some good lessons from the ones she chooses.
One small quilt for you, one giant leap for your quilting skills.
I recently visited the Quilts exhibition at the V&A, which is on till the 4th of July, and wanted to encourage you to go and stare in awe at the crafty wonder before it's over. If you thought sewing of comfy covers might be slightly dull you couldn't be more wrong.
The exhibition goes all the way back to the 1700s with five thematic displays that show some awe-inspiring pieces.
Some favourites were: an Aesop's Fables coverlet featuring foxes, storks and stones in minute detail; a map of the UK from the 1800s stitched by 10-year-old Ann Isabella Reader, which will leave you feeling wholly inadequate; Joanna Southcott's coverlet into which she was rumoured to have sewn her own hair in order to curse King George III; and the cheeky Love and Kisses alphabet depicting a smarmy moustachioed man pursuing his lady love.
Most compelling of all were two stand-out quilts:
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This Friday London's fabulous fibre-filled V&A throws open its doors to the craft world with its Stitched Up event. They're cramming making and mending into their museum in a bid to explore all things stitched.
The Stitched Up event, which takes place on Friday 30th April, is part of the V&A's Lates. On offer we have 50s cocktail music and jazz at the Grand Entrance which is also home to a Stitch Surgery.
There's also The Tea and Make Garden Tea Party alongside the shimmering pool in the jaw-dropping museum courtyard; an interactive sewing contest, monster making, cross stitch chaos, and Sarah Tierney's Gigantic Weaving Loom.
All the events are free so you can drop in when you like and there's the Quilts 1700-2010 exhibition to wonder at too.
A crafty event not to be missed.
With all the mania of the Harry Potter premiere on Tuesday, and the release of the new film, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince impending (15th July in case you're interested) we thought we'd celebrate at Crafty by bringing you this Harry Potter quilt from Jennifer Ofenstein.
Jennifer is a Harry Potter crafting enthusiast who also painted a wonderful Mirror of Erised mural for her daughters Harry Potter themed bedroom.
Related: Geek Craft: (More) Harry Potter and his friends | Trend Watch-Harry Potter Crafts
Bella Dia featured this pretty notepaper holder today, and I thought it looked like a great place to keep memos together in one place, as you'd never mislay that colourful little book, which also has a pen-holder and space to stash stray notes and papers. The pattern that Bella Dia used can be found here, with some more pictures of how you might want to decorate your note-taker.
I always find it so interesting to see how different crafters interpret a pattern! Follow the jump to see some variations on this one.
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If you're into indie style, you'll love Rikrak, a small label specialising in handmade, upcycled accessories made from carefully selected, vintage fabrics.
For just $12, you can pick your own fabric from a range of eye-popping designs, and have it made into a nice wallet. Other fun items that will help you stand out from the crowd are simple yet stylish quilted felt pendants, iron-on vintage patches and upcycled tote bags.
[Via Indie Fixx]
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Jessica Vitkus, the author of Alternacrafts challenges all of the presidential nominees to win the crafter's vote with politically themed crafting projects. She has created two categories of appropriate craft for each party: DemoCrafts and RepubliCrafts, which include many samples of projects that the nominees could create.
For instance, with the "RepubliCraft No. 1: Department of Homeland Security Blanket", Vitkus writes: "Endorsed by the White House and Fox News, this colorful scrap quilt is a guide to our ever-changing security alert levels. Each level is labeled with embroidery to distinguish a DHS Blanket from a gay-pride flag. (Note: Blanket is not a safety device. In case of a terrorist attack, DHS Blanket will not protect you.)"
To check out all of her political projects, please see her article at Slate.com.
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