Bunting on the Brain (arm, neck, etc.)

With bunting on the brain from the previous apron project, I fused some more little triangles, stitched them to a length of black-and-white polka-dotted grosgrain ribbon, stitched small mother-of-pearl buttons between the triangles, sewed a large white shank button to one end, and formed a loop at the opposite end.

The result works as wall art, a bookmark (without the small buttons)...

...a Where's Waldo game - can you find the guitar?...

...a neckpiece...

... practice tefillin...

(Collage by Miriam Attia of the wartime 'Rosie the Riveter'  poster with tefilllin  added.  Find a discussion of  this  intriguing image here.  Used with permission.)

...OK, never mind the tefillin. At least it's a low-protection gauntlet/bracelet/quiltlet/:

Mine measures 22" (with the loop closed) and it wraps three times around my wrist. The bracelet shifts as it's worn, so different banners peep out.

That's a Japanese fabric penguin on top. Kawaii, ne?

The banners all have a backing fabric that blends well with the featured sides:


Here's how I made the fused bunting for this project, and also for the mini-apron in the previous post.

The triangles now have fabric, front and back. I do not stitch over the side edges - they just stay raw. These mini-projects probably won't be washed. (If they were going to be washed, and if my fusible web wasn't permanent, I might zig-zag the edges with complementary or invisible nylon thread. It would be tricky - I might scale the triangles to be a little larger, and practice on samples first!)

Once you have enough fused triangles, cut a piece of grosgrain ribbon to 25" (or: Measure around your wrist, add 1"; then add 3" more for the button loop.)

Squeeze a drop or two of sealant (like 'Fraycheck') on both cut ends of the ribbon.

Load your machine with invisible nylon thread, top and bottom.

Choose a large button for one end. I choose a white shank button and stitched it on by hand.

Fold back the other end of the ribbon to form a loop (with the ribbon's good side out). Pin the loop in place and test it until you determine the right size, just big enough for the button to slip through without being in danger of falling out. I folded the end over about 1 1/2", and stitched it down with invisible thread in the machine (Hand tack if you prefer).

Lay out the banners on a flat surface, next to your ribbon, and figure out how to space them evenly.

With a small gluestick or applique glue, glue just under the top edge of the banners, then press them to the front of the  ribbon. Let dry.

With invisible or complementary thread top and bottom, stitch a zig zag all the way down the lower edge of the ribbon, catching all the banner tops as you go.

Stitch mother of pearl buttons between banners, by hand.

I just thought of another use: An absurdly labor-intensive gift-wrapping ribbon!

(That's a Macy's bracelet box underneath).

Also, I was just thinking: Shrink family photos to a tiny size, print them on fabric and cut triangles for a photo banner bracelet.

Do you have any other ideas about what could be done with this creation (or modifications thereof?!)

Quiltlets #8: Throwing Down the (Quilted) Gauntlet

And speaking of aprons, here's a recent experiment:

This apron-shaped quiltlet is 11" across at its widest and 5" high. It has a dozen free-hanging banners (also called bunting), each about 2" from top to bottom. The pink tie is 23" long (28" would have been better). The bunting fabrics are from Jane Sassaman, Kaffe Fassett, Amy Butler, a Swiss dressmaker, nobody famous, and more.

It makes an unusual wall hanging, which invites closer inspection...

You can see that the background is quilted. 

It also makes.an excellent 18" doll apron...

(It complements American Girl Josefina's cheerleading outfit perfectly)

It's a bracelet for the brave.... 

... reminiscent of a medieval gauntlet... 

If you should ever need to throw down a gauntlet, shouldn't it be quilted?

Oops, the rear flank is exposed. Watch that during jousts. It may need a tiny snap in the the two corners.

You can tie it around wine bottles, too. (There are many people who dress alcohol vessels, but I don't drink enough alcohol to understand why. Here's an awesome yarn-bombed wine bottle made for a friend by her aunt:

Note the elaborate cabling, the yo-yos along the bottom, and, for a subliminally suggestive touch, an unevenly hanging pair of large metal jingle bells. Plus, it's high-quality yarn. In short, that bottle is better dressed than I am.

We digress. I just pulled out the leftover Passover wine bottle, and tied my apron on:

Don't try this at home. Cutting mats and Manischewitz don't mix.

There are also people who dress their dishwashing soap bottles in aprons. Yes, really.

Throwing down the proverbial gauntlet: Can you come up with any more uses for a miniature quilted banner apron?

(Note: Earlier post on a quilt made up of many aprons is here.)
[Update 1/21/13: A later post that, toward the end, explains how I make the bunting, is here: http://gefiltequilt.blogspot.com/2013/01/bunting-on-brain-arm-neck-etc.html .]

Apron Quilt Inspiration

This is the interactive 3-D apron quilt which hangs above my kitchen sink:

It's about 14" x 20". Each miniature apron (about 4" wide) hangs free from a white square of fabric; the white square is itself a pocket. The pockets are filled with kitchen implements and funny postcards. You can see my favorite postcard displayed in this shot, but you don't need to squint to read it because... 

 

Here's a closeup. The lady has an important message:

That's an Asian stew implement sharing the pocket.

For Baby Boomers like moi, aprons evoke the 1950's and 60's. I rarely wear them (pretty much only on Passover), but my yiddishe Bubbie (grandmother) sure did, and I have a collection of real vintage aprons, plus images of vintage apron patterns. These all helped inspired the tiny aprons I created for the quilt above.

For example, here's a vintage apron pattern with a curly-tailed bird/rooster (?) pocket: 

Which inspired my bird-pocket mini-apron: 

Here's a cascading flouncy apron: 

Mine has a simplified flouncy shape. I went wild with the dreadful shamrock fabric and tiny green rick rack:

Here are two vintage aprons with heart themes, the first with a heart-and-dove pocket, 

And the one on the right below has two hearty pockets, a sweetheart neckline, and bow-tied shoulder straps.  Is that not deeply adorable?

My heart apron is below, right. It has only one heart pocket.

And speaking of dreadful fabric, with the red apron on the left above,  I made maximal use of watermelon print fabric. (The black shapes are watermelon seeds) I gave it a green rind waistband. Let's face it, aprons don't get much tackier than that! 

Or do they? Here are some more vintage apron images from my files that perhaps will inspire a sequel to this quilt (by you or me). 

There's a kitties-peeking-out apron: 

Awwww. My teenager would have loved that when she was 4. I believe the top pocket kitty is an applique, and the bottom pocket contains a kitty-shaped potholder. 

There's the Mexican hat apron: 

Which may or may not cross the line into objectionable ethnic stereotyping.

There's the layered upside-down tulip skirt apron, 

(or is that a crocus?)

And finally, giant happy head aprons: 

(With matching decapitated potholders). 

Except for the white pockets, the whole quilt was made with vintage print fabrics that I couldn't possibly use anywhere else. (Like that shamrock fabric). The rick-rack is also vintage. 

Feel free to use the comments to tell your apron stories!

[Update: I am delighted to share this link on the awesome Nina Marie Sayre's Off the Wall Friday project, at http://ninamariesayre.blogspot.com/. ]

[Update, 1-21-13: If this post makes you want to make a full size apron, here's a long list of free patterns online: http://tipnut.com/free-apron-patterns-tutorials/

And booklets of downloadable patterns can be found at:  http://tipnut.com/56-free-apron-patterns-you-can-make/]