I have had a lot of fun lately using my blue scraps.
The
RSC2016 party going on is celebrating the color blue. Following my mantra of "USE IT!" this year, I tried some patterns from a book I bought called
The paper pieced home.
My review?
While I love the designs, so many of them clever retro items...
While I love paper piecing...
I do not enjoy the format of these patterns.
So you print them out from a cd. The author has not added seam allowances or broken the pattern into sections. You have to cut VERY CAREFULLY on the little blue line to create sections.
I wish I had taken each section to the copier and printed again because having no seam allowances to sew through made the whole process very unstable. Grrrrrr. Rip, rip, rip.
That being said, I might have to do 12 sofas in rainbow colors this year. AFTER I print out the sections again this time with seam allowances all around. That might make the section joining easier. It just makes me cross to pay for a pattern and it doesn't do what you expect.
The little paper doll dress is cute but again, rejoining 9 sections on a little block is annoying when they squiggle around. Still, it's cute, which is why I bought the book.
We had an enormous cabinet tv in the 60's. One where you had to adjust the antennae. You had to get up from a sofa to turn knobs to change it to one of the 6 available channels! The squiggly line showed up when the programs went off the air at the end of the night and they played the National Anthem.
I only wish I had a blue tv now! I love the little circle fabric used in just the right spot to make crazy knobs.
On the TV we had when I was growing up, the knobs fell off, so we often had to turn the channels with a pair of pliers. I was the "remote control" because I was the youngest. I could be called in from another room to change the channel. If the picture was hazy, I could be called into service to hold the antennae in an awkward position.
Can you relate?
Those are all so cute, but Grrr on the absent seam allowances on the patterns! Love the fabrics you used for the TV! So perfect!
ReplyDeleteThese are so fun! I especially love the prints you chose for the back of the sofa and the TV screen. Perfect selections!
ReplyDeleteSo cool! Paint a box blue and put it around your flatscreen TV. That'll work, right?
ReplyDeleteSo sorry the print outs weren't useful. I'm looking for a pattern I can print as EPP but I don't know where to look. That "caning" pattern that I drafted and sent a photo of.
I don't want to cut out a bazillion little pieces and have them all be slightly off. I want to wave my magic wand and find a die for the paper pieces and a die for the fabric pieces. Zoom, Zoom, and on to the stitching which is all I'm really interested in right now. Not drafting and cutting with my scissors. :(
Diane
I've made two of the dresses and enjoyed the paper piecing process! Lots of pieces, but they are cute as can be! All of yours are adorable! I may need to revisit that book again!
ReplyDeleteWow, you had six channels? We only had three... 8) (And my siblings and I spent a lot of time as the designated 'remote control', too!)
ReplyDeleteI love your retro blocks - too bad they're a pain in the butt.
In this day and age of computerized drafting, there's no excuse at all for not having sections or seam allowances. If you do copy them on a copier, you could blow them up (or shrink them!) and have sofas of all sizes, like a furniture showroom!
ReplyDeleteThese are so cool! And so you :-) once you make the pattern right they will go along a lot easier. I'm surprised a company would publish a book with patterns like that. Obviously the publishers did not test the patterns which is pretty dumb.
ReplyDeleteOh well, the couch and tv are worth the hassle.
Those are cute! I can see why the lack of seam allowance drove you nuts.
ReplyDeleteWhat?!? You had 6 channels! We only had 3!!! I LOVE that TV! It is spot on!! I may have given up with these patterns, but you did a great job!! Love them all. Sorry to see blue leave!
ReplyDeleteFantastic!!!!
ReplyDeleteOh yes, can truly relate. And did you use aluminum foil on the antenna to try to get a better picture? Too bad about the patterns, but I'm glad you found a way around the problem because those are fantastic blocks and it would be a shame not to make them.
ReplyDeleteWonderful story and a super collection of blue items for the last week of the month.
ReplyDeleteYou amaze me with your ideas!
oh that sofa! Love it!
ReplyDeleteOh yes, I can remember holding the antenna up trying to get a clear picture - hadn't thought of that for years. I'm glad you persisted with these patterns as they are going to look fantastic: I especially love sofa.
ReplyDeleteLove the patterns - I know you will find a way to have fun with them!
ReplyDeleteOh,yes, aren't we spoiled now with 400+ channels and still nothing worth watching most of the time. I love the wavy fabric for the screen and I certainly do remember adjusting to get a decent picture. Your dress and sofa are so cute and your piecing looks fabulous in spite of your struggles.
ReplyDeleteTotally relating! LOL. We had 3 channels. And we got our first color TV when I was a senior in High school. It burned up with the house 3 months later!
ReplyDeleteThe most amazing thing was seeing Johnny Carson come out and stand in front of a set of curtains that were rainbow colored! I never knew those grey curtains were so beautiful in color!
I like the idea of making the sofas in different sizes! I have thought about doing a dress. Never could draft one I liked. But I do have some sketches.......
ReplyDeleteNO NO NO I don't need another project...she says quietly
I can so relate to the plier for the lost knob. I am alway surprised at how many paper piecing patterns are just line drawings. Adding the seam allowances should help I hope.
ReplyDeleteWhat great little retro blocks! How frustrating to have a pattern that really isn't much of one. Love the colour selection and placement. I can tell you're have so much fun with this!
ReplyDeleteYou have had alot of fun. I've never seen 'the paper pieced home'. this is so cute, love the fabrics.
ReplyDeleteGrrr. I agree with your review. Cute as buttons these patterns are, but no way I would buy them because I'd most likely redraft them!
ReplyDeleteHa! I can totally relate to your memories. I was the youngest girl but middle child, so I only had to serve as antennae until the next one grew big enough. And the pliers! Yes! Memories like this remind me of A Christmas Story. I swear that's my dad--licking the bulbs, plugging everything into a single socket and trying not to burn down the house, changing fuses in the dark. Nobody move! Visiting from Whoomp There It Is.
ha! funny TV story. I like the fabrics you chose- they're perfect!
ReplyDeleteStopping by from Fabric Frenzy Friday Link Party. All your blocks turned out wonderful, despite having to use patterns that could have been designed better. The sofa and dress are such fun. And I love the TV block and the story of your childhood memories that went with it. I have similiar memories.
ReplyDeleteYour blocks are adorable and will be fun to make in a rainbow of colors! That is frustrating that the oaoaer piecing patterns don't work like they should, though. I enjoy paper piecing, too, but have noticed that I prefer some designers over others.
ReplyDeleteOh my, you must have the patience of Job. But the results of your piecing is amazing! Boy, with this and the tumblers, you have really been busy! Great work and fun eye candy. :-)
ReplyDeleteJust had an enjoyable Foundation piecing workshop today!
ReplyDeleteI think I've got the hang of it!
Will continue working on the butterfy tomorrow!
Just had an enjoyable Foundation piecing workshop today!
ReplyDeleteI think I've got the hang of it!
Will continue working on the butterfy tomorrow!
She teaches a method of making tick marks to match up the different sections. It really made it easy to piece them together. So before you cut the pattern apart, make a tick mark going across the seams. Hope this helps.
ReplyDeleteyep, The problem is there is no paper to sew through so the carefully matched edges shift, and stretch, and move so that when you sew, flip it over to check, the line often goes across the paper on the back into the other piece, messing up the block. There is so much bias, it needs paper to stabalize it, so she should have hash marks plus seam allowance. My opinion. I'm not new, and this was annoying.
DeleteVery fun blocks! I love the couch and the TV. Yes I remember rabbit ears and using a needle nose pliers to change the channel. I will warn you, the Vintage dress pattern is the same, she doesn't give you the sections with seam allowances. I've not had too much trouble with bias edges yet, it hasn't been too hard to get it all matched up right, but I'm doing a larger size, it might be harder with smaller pieces.
ReplyDeleteSweet!
ReplyDeleteToo bad the patterns aren't easier to use. But you did an awesome job with them.
ReplyDeleteI fell asleep in front of the TV with that static many times! And I remember putting aluminum foil on the antennae. Not sure what that was supposed to do. And I also remember they had vacuum tubes in them you would take out and take to the drug store to test to see if they were bad or not so you could replace them.
I can absolutely relate! Until you mentioned it, I'd forgotten about the need for pliers...ahhh, memories. I can see why you bought the pattern book - the results are fab - but get why you are annoyed. At least you have figured out a "fix" that will help for next time.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the tv - your squiggly fabric is inspired! I don't use other people's patterns, but I really can understand your frustration. So many people, when they give instructions, seem to believe you can mind read and know what they're on about, grrr!
ReplyDeleteEspecially love your couch - lots of fun possibilities. I actually prefer not to have seam allowances when paperpiecing - good thing there are so many different ways to do things.
ReplyDeleteSuch fun! I love paper piecing and these are such fun blocks.
ReplyDeleteYour fabric choices for these pieces is delish! Just perfect. I love the retro look of these, especially that sofa! Thanks for sharing on MCM - have a great sewing week!
ReplyDeleteToo adorable! ღ Love the blue!
ReplyDelete