A Little Something for Christmas ~ Jewelry Keeper

I like to get a lot of use out of my quilting and crafting books so when I was flipping through A Little Something,  my book published through Martingale , I started thinking about other projects that could be made when you combine pieces from many pages. And then the wheels started turning! Here's one ...  Jewelry Keeper ... but remember ... you need to have a copy of A Little Something to make it. 

To make the Jewelry Keeper, you'll need a 9" square of wool for the outside, a 4 1/2" square for the inside, scraps for flowers and leaves, and a long strip for the ties. Of course, don't forget floss ... matching or contrasting is fine ... sharp scissors, Roxanne's Glue Baste, and #9 embroidery needles.

Use freezer paper to make templates and cut the wool for the scallop and circle. The patterns are on pages 30-31 or a larger circle on page 27. You can find info on how to cut wool shapes on page 78.

On the scalloped piece, use two strands of floss to blanket stitch the edge. I worked from the front so my stitches looked best there, and I hid my knots on the inside as much as I could. You're only working with one layer of wool so it's a bit tricky. Just make it look nice.

  

Press the circle in half, then in half again ... use steam or mist with a spray bottle because you want the folds to stay.

Center the circle on the scallop. Use a running stitch and two strands of floss to stitch along the folds, going through all of the layers. Hide the knots under the circle. This makes the pockets for your jewels.

 

So next you have to make templates for the flowers and leaves. I used the large and small flowers on page 23, the leaf on page 31, the flower and small and medium and large circles on page 33, and the leaf on page 53. Look at the photos to see what you need to cut. I used scraps from my stash.

Fold the scallop in half and then use glue baste to hold the flowers and leaves in place. Notice that the rounded ends of the leaves are facing out. The shapes are only placed on half of the scallop. If it makes it easier to lay them out, lightly press the scallop into quarters.

To stitch the flowers and leaves, use one strand of floss. Try your best to keep the stitches under the inside circle if you can ... but if you can't, make them neat on the back. If you don't know how to make the stitches, we've included photos on page 79.

Make one long stitch down the center of the leaves.

The larger flower is anchored by large X stitches in each petal.  The smaller flower and center circle are anchored with a star stitch over the top of the center circle, going through all of the layers. The small flower is loose.

Whipstitch the larger circle flower along the edges. Make a star stitch over the center of the small circle to hold it in place.

Cut two strips for ties ... a scant 3/8" wide x 10" or so long. Layer a small flower and circle, then glue baste about 1" or so from the end of each tie. Anchor with a star stitch over the center circle. On the back, cover the stitches with a circle, then stitch a large X through the center, hiding the knots underneath. Notch the ends of the ties about 1/2" beyond the flowers. Look at the photos above to see how they should look.

Fold the jewelry keeper into four and press lightly. The flowers will show on the front and the back when it's tied.

Make a mark 1/2" from the scalloped edge along the fold on both folds. Cut a slit a scant 1/4" long along the fold. Push the other end of each tie through the slit to the inside. Tie a knot in the ends and trim the excess.

Tuck necklaces, earrings, and rings into the segments of the inside circle. Fold the jewelry keeper into four and tie it to close.

If you don't have a copy of A Little Something yet, you can order an autographed copy here!

Happy stitching! Enjoy making 'a little something'!!

 

Make a wool pincushion for your stitching friends!

I'm always looking for quick gifts to make for friends. With the holidays approaching, I thought I'd share this wool applique project with all of you! Don't let the name confuse you ... it's for any time of the year.

Download RBC May Flowers

Enjoy my May Flowers Pincushion!

 

Tie one on! Quick and cute ornaments that you can use as tags, too!

Ornaments have always been my go-to for fun and fast holiday gifts. It's not unusual for me to mass produce them so that I have enough for everyone. To speed things up, I often do some of the steps using my Sizzix Big Shot Plus and dies.   For the Sizzix booth at Quilt Market and Festival in Houston, at the last minute, I made a small collection of ornaments for them to display. Now you can make them with the instructions here!

For my ornaments, I used Winter Wonderland, Posy Patch, Hearts and Scallops, and Penny Rug Circles and Tongues die cuts from my Rosebud's Cottage collection at Sizzix.  I also used Ovals #2  and the Bigz 2, 3 & 4" Circles die.   I used Roxanne's Glue Baste to hold my shapes in place ... and one strand of floss unless I say otherwise. So simple but so sweet!

For this ornament, cut two 2" circles, one posy, one scalloped posy for the center, and a 1/4" circle. Lay the poinsettia down first on one circle. Make one long stitch through each petal, ending with a little X at the end. Put the green scallop center and a yellow circle on top. Stitch over the yellow center with a star stitch, going through all of the layers. Now put the back and front together and blanket stitch with two strands of floss, hiding your knots inside. Use four strands of floss to make a hanger.

Make this simple one by cutting two 2 1/2" ovals, two holly leaves, and three 1/4" circles. On one oval, stitch the holly in place with bright green floss and either a backstitch or a running stitch. Overcast the stems with a few stitches.  Add the three berries, attaching them with French Knots. Put the back and front together and blanket stitch with two strands of floss, hiding the knot. Add a hanger with four strands of floss.

For the heart ornament, cut two 2 3/4" hearts from red wool, and a 2 1/4" heart from pink, two holly leaves from green, and a red berry. On one red heart, whip stitch the pink heart. Attach the holly with two large Xs. Make a star stitch over the top of the berry. Put the front and back together and blanket stitch with two strands of floss. Use four strands of floss to make a hanger.

The tree ornament is made by cutting the base from purple houndstooth wool, cut two 4" ovals, one tree, a small star, a small heart, and a tree trunk. On one oval, whipstitch the the tree with green floss, tucking the trunk slightly underneath. Use the same green floss to make several running stitches down the center of the trunk. Attach the heart and star with large Xs. Put the front and back together and blanket stitch with two strands of floss, hiding the knots inside. Use four strands of floss to make a hanger.

This snowman ornament can hang out all Winter! Cut two 4" ovals, one snowman, a heart, a tree trunk for for the scarf, and three 1/8" circles. On one oval, center the snowman and whipstitch in place. Use a larger X to anchor the heart. Make three large black Xs down the tummy. Use black floss for French Knot eyes. Put the (trunk) scarf sideways across the snowman's neck. Overcast it with long stitches, bunching them in groups of two. Make fringe with three long stitches at one end of the scarf. Anchor the circles with extra long stitches to look like snowflakes. Put the back and front together and blanket stitch with two strands of floss, hiding the knots. Make a hanger with four strands of floss.

That's it! If you don't remember how to make them, a few of the stitches are explained here. They are also in the files section of my Wool Workers group on Facebook. If you don't belong to Wool Workers, what are you waiting for? It's filled with people who love to work with wool ... lots of inspiration and sharing of tips and techniques. Make sure you hit the 'like' button on my Rosebud's Cottage page, too.

Merry Christmas ... have fun creating during the holiday season ... and all year long!