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September 11, 2014

Craft Book Month Blog Hop {Little Stitches}

Craft Book Month

September marks the 4th Annual Craft Book Month at Craft Buds! This year, we're excited to celebrate all month long with a blog hop of inspiring craft book projects and LOTS of giveaways for sewing along with a sewing, knitting, cookbook or other craft book of YOUR CHOICE.

If you are a craft book hoarder, you are not alone! I collect more and more books each year. 
It's time to dust off your craft books, unfold those crisp pattern sheets and put those patterns to good use by actually making some projects. :)


My PrOJeCT

I am so excited to be invited back to this fun blog hop! I love seeing every one's projects and being introduced to new books. This is my 3rd year participating. The last 2 years, I have stuck to what I'm good at - making quilts (You can see my past projects for Craft Book Month here and here). This year, I stepped away from the machine and took to needlework.


I have been admiring the many new (and super adorable) embroidery patterns that have popped up over the last few years. When I was a child learning to sew, I had a cross-stitched teddy bear pillow to work on. Although I don't think I ever finished it. Hmm...


I dabble here and there with needlework, but don't know many stitches. Little Stitches by Aneela Hoey is a fantastic book for any beginner. There is so much information about what type of needle to use, how to prepare your fabric and hoop, and starting/finishing stitches. She also describes each type of stitch, what it's used for and has step-by-step instructions with illustrations on how to create each stitch.



Little Stitches includes 12 projects from start to finish, including sewing zippers, quilting and binding. There are also over 100 ready to use drawings to help you get started with your design. The drawings come on regular pages as well as transfer pages, so you can easily iron on to your fabric. 



I had a hard time narrowing down which drawing to use. I was first drawn to the Cherry On The Tree Swing. I also liked Little Red Riding Hood, the clothesline, the bunting, the tree house and the girl with the umbrella. 


But before I could really decide on a drawing, I first had to decide what I would be using it on. I dug through some of my craft drawers and found a basket liner cloth. Now that I knew what I would be working on, I still couldn't decide on a design. Ultimately, I took the tree from Cherry On The Tree Swing, the bunting and the fruit basket to create my own little scene. 


Because each drawing was a different scale, I had to do a little resizing on the copier. 
I traced the drawings onto my cloth as best I could. It was a bit difficult to trace due to the weave, so it was a pretty rough trace. I wasn't able to trace the leaves at all. The bunting rope and grass was also hard to see and were drawn in later, along with the side post for the bunting. 



I placed the leaves at random. I used different shades of green, yellow and orange, and add a few falling leaves to complete the look.


I LOVE the way it turned out! I think I might make a few more of these :)




Be sure to link up your own projects for a chance to win a copy of Little Stitches, along with some other pretty great prizes! (Details for entering are below) 

What will you be making from your craft books this month?

Looking for a new book? 
You can find a variety of craft and sewing books in my store.


2014 CRAFT BOOK MONTH BLOG HOP!

I've teamed up with some fabulous bloggers who will be showing off their projects made from craft books, all month long! 

Monday 9/1: Fabric Mutt / Lindsay Sews 
Tuesday 9/2: Rae Gun Ramblings / Craftside 

Wednesday 9/3: The Feisty Redhead / The Fabric Studio 


Friday 9/5: LRstitched / A Prairie Sunrise 

Monday 9/8: Hopeful Threads / sewVery
Tuesday 9/9: 13 Spools / Lisa Liza Lou
Wednesday 9/10: Stitch This! / My Sewcial Hour
Thursday 9/11: The Littlest Thistle / Fabric Seeds
Friday 9/12: Sew Sweetness / Clover + Violet
Monday 9/15: Inspire Me Grey / amylouwho

LINK UP

9/1-9/30: Link up your craft book project at Craft Buds from your blog or Flickr account, and enter to win prizes. To participate in the month-long contest, just link up any project you've made from a pattern in a craft book. That easy! You'll tell us a little about the book, the project, how you personalized it, etc. Winners will be announced on Wednesday, October, 1!

RULES

1) One entry per person. 
2) Your craft book project must have been completed in 2014.  
3) Create a new blog post, instagram, or Flickr photo (dated September 1, 2014 or later) and link or refer back to Craft Book Month at Craft Buds (#craftbookmonth for instagram) in your post or photo description. Make sure to list the craft book you used and provide a link if possible.  
4) All winners chosen via Random.org. Some prizes available to international winners, so please join us!



PRIZES

Visit Craft Buds and link up your craft book project during the window of Sept 1-30 and you'll automatically be entered to win some fantastic prizes from the Craft Book Month sponsors!

Craft Book Month at Craft Buds

2 comments:

  1. This turned out great Sarah! I've been itching for a little hand-stitching lately too....need to check out this book! When I first started, while my mom kept trying to get me to sew, I was really into cross-stitch. I know I have a large piece in progress tucked away somewhere I need to pull out and finish. One day.... :) Your's looks great!

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  2. It's so cute! Cross-stitch was one of the very first "skills" I ever learned. I did it for years, including cross-stitching a sampler or wedding design for most of my college friends when they married. Then I had kids and lost interest. I've been feeling the urge to pick it back up again. Pretty projects like yours make it hard to resist. :)

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