Scrap-bustin’ thank yous and superstitions

scrap busting thank yous and superstitions

Quality scrap-bustin’ that is! The word scrap doesn’t and shouldn’t be associated with a gorgeous piece of turquoise silk and some beautiful vintage cottons. But scrap-bustin’ it is until I think of something else!

This little zipper pouch was inspired by a combination of prompts. I often frighten myself with all the intended ‘must-have-a-go-ofs’ that lurk in the back of my brain. The first to come to the fore, was a spot of free-motion embroidery. I spotted some lovely work by @thebobbinbird on twitter and that certainly set the ball in motion. I also needed a way of saying ‘thank you’ to my colleague’s mum who kindly donated a sack load of zips to me! (I’m not kidding about the sack. I’m still bringing them home a handful at a time because they weigh a tonne!) And I have been itching, for so long, to incorporate these tiny pieces of beautiful fabric, into a worthwhile project.

butterfly pouch

Now this is of course free-motion embroidery in the loosest sense! I pinned the tangerine-print butterfly pieces to the silk, lowered the feed-dog and using Sulky metallic thread and an embroidery foot, I ‘walked’ the stitches, free style, around the butterfly wings and to draw the curly antennae. I really loved the process, as I thought I would, and I’d love to be more adventurous next time. Perhaps even incorporate the technique on a garment or two!

butterfly applique detailI love the free nature of it all. The wonky lines and the fraying edges and the grain of the fabric. Quite a relief from some of the more precise methods usually employed in dressmaking. And oh how those colours pop!

I had to use one of the millions of zips, of course! Would have been daft not to! And I covered the ends of the zip to act as stoppers and also because I had cut the length of the zip to fit.

covered ends of zip

The lining is a gorgeous vintage printed quilting cotton. Again part of another generous donation to me from a lovely friend and neighbour. I made small hand stitches around the opening edge to make sure it didn’t get caught in those rather hefty teeth!

pouch liningAnd the superstition bit? Well I’m not entirely sure how Mrs J will use this pouch. She may well use it as a purse so to be on the safe side I’m including a shiny penny to ensure good luck and prosperity. It is bad luck to give an empty one. Does anyone else do this or is it just me… and my mum who made me believe this?!

I think you may be seeing a lot of zippered projects to come. But if you have seen or employed any innovative uses recently I’d be very interested to hear about them!

zips

29 Replies to “Scrap-bustin’ thank yous and superstitions”

  1. Unless I’m very much mistaken the print fabric you used for the lining is a Laura Ashley print from the late 70s early 80s. Memories!!

  2. I love a bit of free motion embroidery – very liberating.
    I too always put a coin inside a purse because my Mum told me to. However, she’s not always to be trusted as she told me the colour green is unlucky and I spent years avoiding it until she told me it was because, one day, she had her purse stolen and it was while she was wearing a green coat!!

    1. Haha! Yes my mum has given me a fear of green cars. It’s interesting how few green cars are out there. Wonder if other mums have the same idea? And what is it with green?!

  3. Oh so pretty! Now do you know about steam a seam? It’s this awesome double sided fusible that you can use to stick applique peces down. t makes it SOOO much easier. There’s also one called Vliesofix, which is dry. Good but the tacky steamaseam means you can position the pieces like a postit note before pressing permanently. AND have you seen those zipper roses? A wonderful way to use them. And zippers make wonderful piping too. I am so envious, I LOVE metal zippers! xo

    1. Thank you MrsC. I did buy some of that fusible stuff. So long ago I can’t remember what I did with it! So I refused to buy any more. Must search harder! Please DM me your address @Ooobop on Twitter. I’d love to share some of these zips with you x

  4. It’s beautiful! What a wonderful gift and I can’t believe you got all of those zips. My mum taught me about adding a silver coin to a new purse and I do it every time I give one as a gift.

  5. Oh, how lovely! Gorgeous fabric, gorgeous colours. I love your machine embroidery! I’ve been wanting to try that for ages, but haven’t been brave enough yet. Maybe you’ll inspire me to give it a go. πŸ˜‰

    1. Thanks so much Kat. I think you would like it. Its very quick and satisfying. You don’t have to worry about the lines being perfect. Its all about that ‘hand-drawn’ style. Such a tiny first step but I’d love to try a bigger collage!

  6. I do the same when giving purses – in fact my whole family do. We wrap the penny or coin in sellotape so the receiver doesn’t spend it inadvertently. My mum also believes it’s bad luck to buy your own purse too. Gorgeous purse though – well done!

  7. Holy crap, i wish someone would give me a sack of zippers… that’s AWESOME!! I love the little pouch! Never heard of the penny superstition, but it will eventually get hard to do that here anyway, because pennies got discontinued!! πŸ™‚

Leave a Reply to Gjeometry Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.