10 ideas for your scraps

January 25, 2019

by annwood

Did you know it is national scrap week? It is not. I made that up. But it should be a thing. I’m making it a thing. A bag of scraps is food for thought, inspiration, an invitation to happenstance, possibility thinking. It always has been for me.

I’m in organizing mode here and sorting through pretty much everything but mostly fabric scraps. Choosing what to keep, what to let go of and making what I keep as tidy and orderly as scraps can be. I’m ironing my scraps. I secretly love to iron. Not my clothes, I’m permanently, slightly, comfortably disheveled. I like to iron scraps. It’s a little ridiculous. Lets call it meditative. Or it could also be called productive procrastination…

And sometimes not so productive procrastination. It frequently devolves into spending a lot of time pondering a very small and fabulous scrap. I love this scrap. Now I have to make a tiny pair of pants so I can add this patch to them. And then I have to make a lamb to put in the pants. You see how this goes…

There are some pieces I can’t call scraps. Some are so exquisite I call them fragments. Something left over from a life with marks from other hands and days.

10 ideas for your scraps

If you have found your way here it is likely you have scraps too. In celebration of the inaugural scrap festival I’ve collected 10 ideas for your scraps. Let’s start with 3 projects for your most special scraps, your fragments.

1. sweet needle books – for needles and ideas and memories.

2. amulets – little stitch experiments I started making last summer. I begin with no shape in mind, just layering my favorite fragments, experimenting and playing with compositions. Then I trim them and sew a backing. I find the compositions are more interesting if I approach them this way rather than beginning with the shape. I made a little template of the shapes I use for you – you can download that here. And for cord I usually use this waxed thread (PS I get a tiny commission if you buy it through that link, you can also find it in craft stores).

3. ethereal garlands – for the tiniest scraps, the un-sewables, the little whispers you can’t let go of.

4. string quilts- there is a full tutorial here for this quick and easy flip and sew technique for your longish scraps.

5. Once you have pieced together a bunch of scraps you can make a fabric basket – you know what you could put in it? Scraps.

6. marvelous fabric compositions – let happenstance be your guide and find inspiration in these stitched pieces by Specks and Keepings. The left-overs from garment sewing are used as is. I love the compositions. There is magic in those accidental shapes and relationships.

Check out the sewing pattern and supply shop!

7. french seam pillow cases – for your larger scraps. This is on my domestic sewing list.

8. jar opener – so clever – made from fabric scraps and rubber shelf liner.

9. fabric twine – for your tiny scraps. And netflix. And wine.

10. And finally – it is illegal to do a blog post about fabric scrap projects without including fabric bunting. Plus I love it – so sweet to make for little folks.

Find 4 more scrap project ideas here. And if you have a project to recommend please leave it in the comments.

P S – Do you get my free weekly-ish newsletter? There are tips and tricks, ideas, stuff to try, all the latest news and blogposts and extra stuff, just for subscribers, delivered mostly on Friday. Pretty much.

1/13 – 1/19

January 21, 2019

by annwood

the world’s sweetest needle book : a free sewing pattern

January 18, 2019

by annwood

This little book will certainly hold your needles. It could also be a repository for the scraps you can’t part with. It could tell a story, mark an occasion, like a birth or anniversary, or be a sort of travel journal, the pages filled with little things found along the way and saved.

I always travel with small sewing and it is always a mess of ziplock bags and other aesthetically unappealing containers with sharp things poking out of them. This started as a practical project and turned into a whole other thing.

I made this needle book for future me. Future me is the sort of person who is packed a week before travel, has extra light bulbs and never runs out of toilet paper.

I’m in love with my little needle book and plan to take it pretty much everywhere for the rest of my life. There are more of these books in my future, for needles and ideas and memories. It is good winter evening sewing.

pin it for later

I’ve put together a tutorial for you below. And subscribers will have a link to a pdf download emailed to them.

You will need a basic sewing kit and the templates.

download the templates

materials :

cotton or light linen
scraps for details
matching and contrasting thread
button
embroidery thread
batting or felt
light weight cardboard
ribbon
gluestick

Cut out two each of the A, B, C and heart pattern pieces. One side of A will be your cover page. Add patches, embroidery, appliqués, and other details to your pages. Also cut out 2 cardboard support pieces from light weight cardboard ( a cereal box is great). Use a glue stick to glue the cardboard to pieces of batting or felt and cut out.

Note: Piecing fabric together before cutting the pattern shapes creates a nice variety in the pages.

Cut a 3 and 1/2 inch length of ribbon or trim and fold in half. With the right side of the cover fabric facing you pin the folded ribbon to the center of the left side. The folded edge should extend 1 and 1/4 inches from the seam line. I’m using 1/4 inch cotton twill tape.

Pin The A, B, C and heart pieces with the right sides together and stitch the seam lines. Leave a small section on each open for turning. Be sure that the opening on A is large enough to insert the cardboard supports. Clip off the corners of the rectangles close to the seam. Clip the bottom point of the heart and clip notches around the curves at the top and at the center.

Turn your sewn and clipped pieces right side out. Use a chopstick or similar to push the corners and curves all the way out. Add any additional appliqué or other details.

Insert the cardboard and batting pieces into the cover page. The batting side should be facing the inside and the cardboard facing the outside cover. Push the cardboard all the way to each side, there should be an empty space between them. Leave the cover open at the bottom.

sketchbook 1/6 – 1/12

January 13, 2019

by annwood

sketchbook 1/1 – 1/5

January 5, 2019

by annwood

domestic sewing : confronting the throw pillow situation, a re-write and little paintings

January 3, 2019

by annwood

It’s pretty New Yearsy around here. I’ve got all sorts of plans and aspirations for the year ahead. Before the end of 2018 I made myself finish a personal project, I confronted some domestic sewing.

Like you, I wanted to start the New Year with a solid throw pillow situation. It has been kind of a mess for a while, definitely not bringing me joy. I had a bunch of ideas to make it better but they had been lingering on my someday list. For years. Deadlines are awesome. Making the dawn of 2019 the due date got me motivated to churn out some decorative pillows. Once I got going it was fun.

And I made a cover for the seat too, from grain sacks I got in France last summer. They got super soft after I (machine) washed and dried them and I pieced my favorite parts together. They have lots of beautiful mending and I love the colors.

I made the pillow covers from old fabric from friends (including some glorious and ancient things my friend Ching sent me) and more things I picked up at French flea markets last year. By the way there is one spot open in each of my trips to France this summer – click here for June 21-28 and click here for July 1-8. Come to France with me! And then go home and make some throw pillows…

With the couch in happy condition my first official work project of this year was a long overdue re-write of my about page. Especially if you are a new visitor it’s a good place to start.

And also in the New Year’s department I re-committed to my daily painting and drawing project. So far so good. Daily practice is no joke, it’s brutal sometimes but I know I’m better off doing it in lots of important ways. The positive effects on my thinking, creativity, idea generation and focus are huge. I’ll scale back to drawing when traveling probably but if I flake on this again you should yell at me.

The holidays were unusually happy and slow and peaceful for me. I spent a lot of it in pajamas eating cookies with a cat on my lap (I regret some of the cookies). It was pretty nice but I’m happy to be back to business as usual now. How bananas are you? I’m pretty bananas. I require huge amounts of time by myself to think and work and I like routine a lot. I’m luxuriating in time and space and ordinariness now, percolating all sorts of ideas….

tiny sewing for good mental health

December 19, 2018

by annwood

There is always something and often someone in my pocket waiting to be stitched. I’d be lost without this sort of thing. When I wander away from it for too long things go badly, when my pace gets too frantic the magic evaporates.

It’s the thing that steadies and focuses me, all the tiny sewing. This is a pile of mental health. A little stack of tiny pinafores and nightgowns and satchels and jackets and bloomers. I’ve been sewing little folks here and there for the past few weeks. I take them with me for the in between times.

Wear them high, wear them proud lamb friend. The lambs in pants crack me up every single time. Something about those little trousers and how happy he seems to be in them…

The tiny pants pattern is free! it’s quick and easy and you could scale it for other dolls too.

Do you get my free weekly-ish newsletter? There are tips and tricks, ideas, stuff to try, all the latest news and blogposts and extra stuff, just for subscribers, delivered mostly on Friday. Pretty much.

new 2019 workshops : botanical specimens, sugar house retreat and songbirds

December 19, 2018

by annwood

There are two botanical specimen workshops – you can take either or both (take both – spend the whole weekend stitching strange specimens with me!). Each day will focus on different techniques and projects. And we are offering the songbird class again.

I’m headed to Vermont in early spring for lambs in pants and stitched talismans and back to Los Angeles in April to teach 3 workshops at French General. Find all the details below and links to registration. I hope you can make it! I’m bringing everything you need including treasures from my antique textile collection and my favorite tools and supplies. All you have to do is show up. If you have any questions please send me a message.

botanical specimens 101 – saturday april 6th

fungi, root systems, and seed pods

You will create elegant stitched seed pods with realistic root systems and invent wild and strange species of mushrooms. We will explore basic soft sculpture techniques including working with spheres and creating and modifying patterns. I’ll share my techniques for creating forms and texture with textiles, wire, paper and other simple materials. Click here for more info and registration.

botanical specimens 102 – sunday april 7th

bulbs, rare specimens and fabric printing

You will learn to create realistic bulb root systems and techniques for creating organic feeling marks on fabric. We will explore antique botanical prints for inspiration and I’ll guide you through the process of inventing your own rare specimen using traditional as well as non traditional soft sculpture techniques. Click here for more info and registration.

songbirds – friday april 5th

Come make songbirds with me. I’ll guide you through the process of sewing, stuffing and sculpting the basic shape, creating natural looking layers of feathery textures, embroidering features, carving beaks, sculpting feet and giving your creation spirit and “birdness”. I’ll also share my some of my favorite supplies, top secret tips and techniques and some treasures from my collection of antique textiles. Click here for more details and registration.

SugarHouse Retreat with Ann Wood and French General at Warm Brook Barn -March 21st-24th, 2019

Join me in Vermont for a glorious cosy weekend stitching lambs in pants (or dresses) and amulets and making gorgeous sugar drop necklaces (among other things) with French General. The Sugarhouse Retreat is a weekend filled with cozy fireplace warmth, maple syrup treats and friends near and dear – including a visit to one of Vermont’s Sugarhouse’s on the annual open weekend as well as crafting by the fire. Delicious meals and hosting by Meleen Dupre of Warm Brook Barn. Click here for more details and registration.

gift guide : little things for makers

December 11, 2018

by annwood

a collection of sweet little gifts for makers

It really is the thought that counts, delight a crafty friend with a new tool. I’ve gathered some favorites for you here – happy, useful, and thoughtful surprises:

Please note that all amazon links in this post are affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase I will get a small percentage at no additional cost to you so it works out all around.

Applique pins, I love these little pins for their function as well as their littlness and sweetness, you have probably seen them sprinkled in my photos.

Holbein Mat Acrylic paint, we have talked about this before, I LOVE this paint. It has an almost paper like quality when dry. If you try one I recommend getting beige. I like mixing other (cheap) paints into it.

Thread Winders from French General. I only discovered these this year, in fact they were a gift! How did I live without them?

The best glue stick in the world. I think so anyway. It’s my favorite for collage.

Turning tubes – I got this set recently and it is awesome. If you don’t feel like shelling out to turn your tiny parts you can use this method but the set is worth having, the tubes are sturdy and it’s handy to have 3 sizes.

Mini paper cutter by tonic – I got this last year for a label cutting emergency. I had low expectations. It worked beautifully and a whole year later it still does. Super happy with it.

Doll needles – these long needles are handy for putting in eyes etc. and for moving stuffing around inside your dolls and creatures.

And while we are talking about stuffing – this makes a great gift:

And if you purchase them together (wool plus the tiny doll, mr. socks, or songbird print pattern) I’ll include a fun extra to make it an extra special gift.

And get this for yourself: If you have seen me in the world then you know that the Cal Patch Linen Smock is the lynch pin item of my middle aged art lady look (I got US size 2). I wear it just about every day. Or make your own wardrobe with Cal’s book. Sewing garments is on my list of things I’d like to learn to do.

I also collected some treasures from Etsy:

Acorn box – for keeping your tiniest treasures. so magical.

Hand stitched semamori amulets – so beautiful and the thought is lovely, a wish you carry with you.

I love Spring Holfeld’s paintings and prints, familiar things rendered in a magnificent way.

The sweetest brush or pen rest.

Tiny handmade ceramic dishes – perfect for spices or pins – I got one for a friend last year and it was delightful.

Have any sweet gift suggestions? I’d love to know – leave them in the comment section please.

squam 2019 : tinder and spark – come experiment with me in the forest

December 11, 2018

by annwood

a mysterious box - an idea generating experiment

The Squam Art Retreat 2019 offerings are up and registration is open. I’m already looking forward to teaching next September.

There is art and practice in generating ideas. Come spend a day with me in the forest experimenting and having lots of ideas.

Tinder and Spark – idea generation : experiments, curiosity and constraints

I will guide you through a series of improvisational (and fun) exercises designed to bypass blocks, spark you creatively, help you dig deeply into your imagination, spot intersections and generate ideas.

We will employ constraints to move our thinking in novel ways and practice approaching assignments laterally. Sometimes a shift in approach makes all the difference. We will look for serendipity, invite happenstance to guide us and we will play. Play generates lots of ideas. In idea generation volume matters.

The day begins with experiment #1 : a mysterious box…. a collection of materials and found objects. Employing the remarkable creative power of constraint and with a top secret inspiration source in mind you will create a small work of art. I’ll help you push past blocks and navigate and choose techniques and tools.

One thing leads to another, if you let it. If the experimenter in you needs some encouragement please join me for this day of exploration. What will you unearth? What has been waiting for an opportunity to emerge? Come with that curiosity.

Find all the details here!

the dastardly owl sewing pattern is in the shop

December 9, 2018

by annwood

Make this owl. This imperious and condescending owl. He measures 9 inches tall from disgruntled talon to sinister horn. And the pattern scales well if you would like to try a larger owl.

The PDF pattern download is 31 pages long and has more than 130 color photos. You’ll learn how to construct the basic body shape and talons as well as my system for creating owl-ish layers of feathers and a dastardly expression. Every element is broken down into steps and fully explained.

The pattern has all the top secret tricks I’ve come up with over 12 years of making ill tempered owls. And I’ll share this one with you here:

When the layers are fully assembled spritz with water or spray starch if you like.

And run a hot iron over the feathers. I do it to his face too (so rude) to adjust his dastardly expression. It has a magic effect, un-ruffling the feathers and giving the layers extra owly-ness.

I’m so excited to share this pattern with you! I’m so glad it’s done! I can’t believe how much work it was!And I hope you make owls!

Do you get my free weekly-ish newsletter? There are tips and tricks, ideas, stuff to try, all the latest news and blogposts and extra stuff, just for subscribers, delivered mostly on Friday. Pretty much.

printing fabric with bleach for stitched mushrooms

December 2, 2018

by annwood

The quest for the perfect organic dot fabric for toadstools is never ending, I’m always on the look out for fungal feeling dots, speckles and marks in general and I’m super particular. Shopping in LA a few weeks ago there was lots of nice batik stuff that was close but no cigar. I described my dream fabric to my friend Molly and she said “dude you could totally make that”. That is such a good attitude. Yesterday I experimented a little. And dude, I can totally make that, so can you.

Gather some cotton fabric, bleach, wax paper and tools for mark making. I tried all sorts of things, rubber stamps, pallet knives, brushes, straws, cardboard, spools, on and on. Also put on an apron and some gloves and do this somewhere very well ventilated or outside.

I had one little dish of straight up bleach (you just need a little) and another diluted about 2 parts bleach to one part water. I put wax paper under the fabric and started making marks. My favorite tools ended up being a pencil eraser, putty knife, a stiff bristle brush, a toothbrush for splattering and a little spool that I glued a piece of wool felt to one end of. A cork would have been good too – just thought of it.

The marks take a moment to begin to “develop”. I let most of the fabric sit for about 20 minutes before rinsing. I have googled/pinterested around and there are all sorts of interesting things you can do with this technique and you can get pretty fancy about it. Find a great tutorial here and another here.