Saturday, February 18, 2012

HOW SMALL IS A SCRAP?

I used to throw out any scraps which weren't large enough to hold a seam but some are too pretty to throw away, little works of art like these.


I've got quite a stash of these little scraps. I arranged them on iron on interfacing and ironed them down (with baking parchment between the fabric and iron). The idea was to make a few of these blocks and then sew them together somehow.




I did some free machine sewing. I really liked the composition, but the raw edges and untidy sewing annoyed me.







So I took the spirit of the design, sewed together lots of scraps, with no raw edges, and this eventually appeared.





20 comments:

Mike Pearson said...

I keep all mine too. Even the very, very small ones ;) Although I have no idea what to do with the very, very small ones. They are practically just fabric pulp! Thanks for sharing!

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

I keep it all too! I have a small box with small scraps.. Fun to put them together for made fabric. I'm starting to get itchy fingers being away from my sewing machine for so long....not getting my 15 minutes a day in makes me CRAZY!!

But! Mom is doing better....:-) will have to move her to a nursing home for short term recovery.... Still a bit to wobbly. :-) be back playing soon...

Kathy said...

Small scraps are my treasures, too. I sew them together willy nilly like you have done. No raw edges, either and I love the results. I usually don't get them finished off with quilting or binding, though. Need to think about that and DO IT. That would cut down on a lot of UFOs!

Miki Willa said...

This is so beautiful! I seem to save every scrap, but am trying to cut down on the ones I won't be able to sew a seam with. I recently saw someone use wash away foundation to create fabric out of very tiny pieces. They even made fabric out of thread play with this stuff. It might be great fun to try with some of my small pieces. I don't know how I will feel about the raw edges, though, since I haven't tried it. Thank you for sharing your beautiful mini.

em's scrapbag said...

This is wonderful! So glad you kept those little pieces.

Helen said...

This is such a gorgeous mix of color and texture framing your flower!

Margaret said...

Thanks for sharing this beautiful mini ... inspiring ...

Eat Sleep Quilt said...

Thanks for sharing your gorgeous mini and the technique. I keep my smallies too, just can't part with them without at least trying to sew them together. What size is your mini?

sheila 77 said...

It's 10 x 12 inches. Some of the seams are smaller than quarter inch but are well sewn down.
Thanks for all your support, comments and encouragement. It's fun to share.

Annie said...

Ooo, I love how this scrappy mini turned out! I save the scraps too. Some get used, sometimes they get dumped and I start over. I'm a new regular follower of your blog (but you have word verification, so you might not hear from me when I'm pressed for time).

corina said...

Love it! I layer all my little scraps on that heavy duty fusible they use for making fabric bowls, then quilt it, then cut into slices and voila - bookmarks! I may have to try one of these mini quilts too!

Sharon M said...

I love your piece. I keep them all my scraps too. For the tiny ones I use Solvy water soluble stabilizer and sew all over like a wild woman. You can add fancy yarn and ribbons sold for knitting. As long as there is enough stitching, when you wash away the stabilizer you have a piece of fabric. I should blog this subject! Thanks for all the inspiration on this site.

Carol E. said...

So pretty!! our ancestors would be proud of you for saving all the scraps.

Caren said...

It's amazing how quilting is like great lighting at a concert. Brings contrast, shadows, and puts other parts in the spotlight. I like how your project does all that. Very nice job!

Annabella said...

Oh I love this - I do like the neat edges but that`s the conformist in me! It`s so beautiful and I`m going to have a go at making one of these. Lovely mini.

Unknown said...

What a beautiful composition, and justification to all of us scrap hoarders out there. Thank you so much!

Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane said...

Looks great and what a good use of scraps. Thanks for entering the challenge! Good luck!

Debbie said...

This turned out great....instant art!

Terry Aske Art Quilts said...

I love what you made from your scraps! I keep all mine, too, and just recently used some of them in a quilt.

Katherine said...

Fabulous! Nothing makes me happier or inspires me as much as seeing scraps transformed into beautiful finishes (like yours!) THIS is the reason why I keep even the smallest scraps. :o)