Showing posts with label Northcott. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Northcott. Show all posts

Sunday, June 5, 2016

New in Store - 5th June 2016

So many new fabrics have been added to the website this week. There are some very awesome dragons, foxes and cats in from Timeless Treasures, a cute little nautical range from Dear Stella and some tikis and skulls from Alexander Henry Fabrics. I've also been playing with the menu system on the website so there are more options available in the top menu to help you find items more easily.


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2nd Row

3rd Row

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Till next week, Happy Sewing
- Ky

Sunday, September 27, 2015

New in Store - 28th September 2015

This week we received our first 3 rolls of Tula Pinks new Freefall range, these fabrics are 274cm (108") wide. It feel like cotton sateen but they are actually cotton with a chintz coating that is polished down so it has a bit of a sheen. Freefall is perfect to use as quilt backings, cushions, dresses and bags. I have the other 3 colours on order so hopefully they aren't too far away.

We now have the 40mm (1-1/2") polypropylene bag webbing in 3 new colours bringing the total colours available up to 6 (white, gold, red, royal blue, navy blue and black).

We have also received a new shipment of patterns from Serendipity Studios and premium solids from Northcott fabrics.


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2nd Row

3rd Row

Bottom Row

Till next week, happy sewing
- Ky

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Pattern Test Drive - The Gathered Sling by Jen Fox Studios

I actually made this sample a month or two ago so I thought it was high time that I blogged about it. The pattern is The Gathered Sling Bag from a new pattern designer that we are stocking called Jen Fox Studios. This bag is designed with the beginner sewist in mind so it is a fairly simple pattern without curves or zippers. The finished bag is a good size at approximately 29cm (11-1/2") wide x 23cm (9") High (excluding the strap) x 8cm (3") deep. You can fit your wallet, phone, keys and a few other items inside without it getting too full. 


The hardest part of sewing a bag is choosing the fabric but I am quite happy with the combination of the tropical flamingo fabric with the fern green contrast. You could also make the bag out of one fabric if you desired.


Don't you think the greens and pinks on the striped lining match the outer fabrics so well? I always use a lightish fabric for the lining of my bags as there is nothing worse than not being able to find your keys in a black lining. I have only sewn in one lining pocket but the pattern gives instructions for two.


Interfacing and Hardware
The pattern has minimal hardware in the form of a magnetic catch, I've used a 14mm one but I think you could use whatever size you have available without too much trouble. The strap included with the pattern is a simple shoulder strap. If you wanted you could also jazz it up with the use of o-rings, oblong rings or make it an adjustable cross-body strap with a tri-glide. 


Both the outside and lining of the bag are interfaced and I have used our Medium Weight Woven Fusible Interfacing. The combination of the interfacing and the gathers give the finished bag enough structure to stand up on its own without being too stiff.

If you would like to recreate this bag here are the materials that have been used:
♥ 30cm (1/3yd) Muslin (I just used leftovers of the lining fabric but you could use calico or any fabric as it is only used as the supporting fabric for the gathers so you won't see it.)
 Matching Thread Rasant 0247 (5526) Green

- Ky

Friday, March 14, 2014

Fabric Friday - Call of the Sirens

My 7 year old nephew, Mason, is more than a little bit obsessed with pretty girls and mermaids. I made a quilt for my niece, Adanna, when she was 3 years old but somehow, never got around to making one for Mason. Unfortunately, I need to replace Adanna's quilt (long story, won't go there) and I thought I couldn't do that and STILL not make one for her brother.

I wasn't sure if our Alexander Henry Sea Sirens would be a bit too adult for Mason but he LOVES them. His mum thinks they are great because he will probably love them just as much when he is 15 years old. Just for different reasons :P

Mason is quite partial to pink so I teamed up the mermaids with the coral coloured Sea Ponies. Some of the mermaids have pink flowers in their hair so they tie in quite well. The Double-Sided Japanese Dobby will add a bit of texture and gives me options with the colour balance. Got to love two fabrics for the price of one!

I haven't decided how I'm going to piece it all together yet. The quilt will be cot-sized so Mason can use it as a lap quilt on the couch in winter or a play mat or to snuggle with in bed. The mermaids are (obviously) going to be the main feature and they are almost 30cm tall each so I'm leaning towards a big centre panel with borders around to make up the quilt. Top stitching is going to be an adventure - I may try free motion stitching for the first time and outline quilt the seaweed tendrils and the mermaid's flowing hair.

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Middle
Bottom

I have to say that I'm quite chuffed at this Fabric Friday combo. I will keep you posted on the progress of the quilt as I make it :)

- Cloud

Friday, January 31, 2014

Fabric Friday - Happy Chinese New Year 2014

It is currently Chinese New Year so what better way to celebrate than with fabric :D

Wagara Chinese Zodiac Panel Black
2014 is the year of the Wooden Horse. Wood Horses are strong and stable and have a better ability to make decisions. Excellent at interacting with others, they are successful personally and professionally.

Left: Candy Party Handsome Pony Black by Kokka
Right: Horsey Horse/Unicorn Soft Toy Pattern by Funky Friends Factory
People born in the Year of the Horse are clever, kind, animated and energetic. Although they sometimes talk too much, they are cheerful, perceptive, talented and love to be in the centre of a crowd. They are popular among friends, active at work and have a deft sense of humour.

The lucky colour for Horse is green


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Middle Row

Bottom Row

Friday, January 17, 2014

Fabric Friday - Turning Japanese

Lots of new Japanese style prints have been arriving at the showroom lately. It's making Cloud feel very nostalgic about her trips to Japan so she put together today's Fabric Friday while reminiscing.

Harajuku, Tokyo. It pretty much does look like this! Bright lights, whacky hair, elaborate cosplay and fabulous food stalls. The vampire punk carrying off his girlfriend is pretty cool in this print from Transpacific Textiles :) Loud fabric like this would be great for the flap of a travel Satchel with a matching passport holder. Great fun to whip out at Customs!

Harajuku Anime Grey by Transpacific Textiles
Premium Solid Fuchia by Northcott

Aoi Has 2 Sisters is an ultra kawaii print from Alexander Henry. The Neko (cats) and Koi (goldfish) are adorable! The main print reminded Cloud of the hot springs she visited just outside Sapporo. She also flounced around the showroom with the A-Chan Border Print wrapped around her waist begging me to help her sew it into a pleated A-Line Skirt. I'll help her draft it but she's sewing it herself!

 
Left
Right

Kiku blossoms (Chrysanthemums) were on show in Osaka the first time Cloud went to Japan. They really are classical looking flower and this print is beautiful. Fans and dragonfly also feature quite a bit on traditional Japanese prints. It would be beautiful made up as a Torii Tunic.

Wagara Japanese Chrysanthemum Floral Olive

It's amazing how fabric can remind you of places you've visited and bring back memories. Does fabric ever inspire you this way? It certainly seems to 'talk' to Cloud!
- Ky

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

My Name's Steven...

Steven Seagull...

LOL that joke is not getting old at all :D and I've been making it all week since I made this little guy on Monday.
Specs
Steven is approximately 23cm (9") tall when sitting. He is quite firmly stuffed with polyester toy fill and weighs 210g. Cloud chose the fabric for him and his main body is a Tula Pink design from her Salt Water range. We think that the colours are very reminiscent of a hot summers day at the beach eating fish and chips. The yellow on his beak and feet was quite difficult to photograph, it is less orange and more golden in reality.
Give me a chip
Difficulty
I made Steven up in around 2hrs and would rate him at a basic - intermediate difficulty level. I am rating him a little higher than most Funky Friends Factory toys as there are foot pads and a gusset. These two items can be a little tricky for newer sewists.


Tip
Rather than clipping seams I like to use pinking shears. The pinked edge helps the seam sit flatter once it is turned out and also shouldn't fray as much. 
Any seams that are going to be under strain once the toy has been turned right sides out should only have minimal or no clipping if you can get away with it. For example the back, sides, under the beak and opening where the toy is turned out through, otherwise they may start to tear if you like to stuff your toys quite firmly.
If you would like to recreate Steven you will need the following:
If you have made a Funky Friends Factory seagull? We'd love to see pictures on our Facebook page.

- Ky

Friday, December 6, 2013

Funky Flamingo Fabric Friday

UPDATE: This competition is now closed and the winner was Anne Cah.

It's competition time, and you can win $50 worth of fabric and patterns with Voodoo Rabbit and Funky Friends Factory

We are so excited that Pauline has finally finished her Fleur the Flamingo sewing pattern because we have been begging her to design a flamingo toy pattern all year :) While I was picking fabrics to make a shop sample we ended up having an argument over which fabrics to use. In the end I made up 3 Flamingos and we are settling the argument by running a ... 

CHOOSE THE CUTEST FLAMINGO COMPETITION!!!
Let us know which Flamingo you think is the cutest - to be in the running to win a $25 fabric voucher from Voodoo Rabbit and a $25 Funky Friends Factory pattern voucher. 
Without further ado, here are the contestants.

The first bird down the catwalk is Geekly Chic:
Geekly is wearing Geekly Chic Glasses Hot Pink by Riley Blake and finished off with Premium Solid Magenta by Northcott for her legs and Premium Solid Black by Northcott for her wings and nose.
The next beautiful bird is Rivoli Bubble:
Rivoli is wearing Rivoli Bubble Onyx by Alexander Henry and finished off with Premium Solid Rose by Northcott for her legs and Premium Solid Black by Northcott for her wings and beak.

This leggy lovely is Rose Pink:
Rose is wearing Premium Solid Rose by Northcott and finished off with Outfoxed Stripe Pink by Andover for her legs Rivoli Bubble Onyx by Alexander Henry for her wings and Premium Solid Black by Northcott for her beak.

And last but not least is Pauline's Pretty Preener:
She is wearing Premium Solid Bubblegum by Northcott and is finished off with fabrics from Pauline's stash for her legs and wings and Premium Solid Black by Northcott for her beak.
 flamingo soft toy sewing pattern 4

How do I enter I hear you ask?
All you need to do is to choose which stuffed toy flamingo is your favourite and let us know in the comments below. For a second chance pop over to the Funky Friends Factory blog and leave a comment there as well.

***** The winner will be drawn on Friday 13th December 
so don't forget to check back to see if it is your lucky day!!! *****

Good luck everyone - may the best Flamingo win!
- Ky

Friday, October 18, 2013

Fabric Friday - Supe Luche Libre mexican Wrestling Fabric from Alexander Henry

So it would seem that Cloud is a closet Mexican Wrestling fan, when she saw these new wrestling fabrics from Alexander Henry she HAD to have them. Today she has teamed the two feature prints with some bright plains and tone-on-tone patterns.
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Middle (Top to Bottom)
Right

Since I know next to nothing about Mexican Wrestling I've done a little google search to bring you a few interesting tidbits about Mexican wrestling masks. Mexican wrestling is characterised by colourful masks worn by the wrestlers and the wearing of masks has developed special significance. The mask is considered "sacred" to a degree, so much so that fully removing an opponent's mask during a match is grounds for disqualification. The highest wager a wrestler can make is one in which the loser must permanently remove his mask. You can read a more about Mexican wrestling here.

- Ky

Friday, October 11, 2013

Fabric Friday - Enchanted Racoons

We are featuring some fairly new additions to our store for today's Fabric Friday. We thought we should get in quick since we don't expect these super cute racoons to last beyond the Brisbane Craft and Quilt Fair next week.
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Middle Row:
Bottom Row:

If you are in the neighbourhood we'd love for you to come and visit us at the Brisbane Craft and Quilt Fair, you will find us at stand H14 right next door to Funky Friends Factory. 
When: Wednesday 16th to Sunday 20th October
Time: 9am - 5pm daily
Where: Brisbane Exhibition Centre Halls 3 & 4, Cnr Glenelg & Merivale Streets, Southbank

Our showroom will be closed the week of the Fair (13th - 21st October and will re-open on Tuesday 22nd).

- Ky

Sunday, October 6, 2013

New Fabric In Store - October 6

This week we have new fabric from Tula Pink's Acacia range from Free Spirit fabric and 2 super cute patterns from Funky Friends Factory.
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Bottom Row

We have added 3 more colours to our Premium Solids range. Don't you just love how fabric looks so nice when it has been colour blocked. The premium solid cotton fabrics from Northcott are the best quality plain cotton we have found. 
We have a few old favourite Alexander Henry fabrics back in stock!
Till next week, happy sewing.
- Ky

Friday, October 4, 2013

Fabric Friday - Special Guest Pauline from Funky Friends Factory

Please welcome today's Fabric Friday guest blogger, soft toy designer Pauline from Funky Friends Factory.

Hey hey hey! 
I'm a crafty guest blogger today! How exciting... I get to choose the fabrics for the Voodoo Rabbit FABRIC FRIDAY.

I love visiting the Voodoo Rabbit fabric shop as I get to see all the new fabrics as they come in, which is cool because I already have LOTS of Voodoo Rabbit's fabrics as there are just so many cool fabrics for making my Funky Friends!

So when I got given "MY BRIEF" - choose 6 fabrics for the Fabric Friday - I picked 6 of my favourites that I have used for my toys....

Ky took one look and I knew she wasn't impressed?

What??? They have to ALL go together?

:(

Mmmmmmmm?

OK, we reached a compromise, and I chose co-ordinating fabrics for 3 Funky Friends! :)

This is my Ollie Owl selection, the Funky Owls Cream by Timeless Treasures is so cute for Ollie's tummy and the colours are amazing, I had a hard time limiting myself to only 2 co-ordinating fabrics. (Kylie managed to restrain me!) I chose Premium Solid Tomato by Northcott for his feet and Victorian Dream Steampunk Cogs Blue by Quilting Treasures for my owls Face, Wings and Tail. Toot Toot, too CUTE!
This is my Kawaii Kuties Bunny selection. It was hard to choose JUST ONE kawaii fabric as Voodoo Rabbit has such a cool selection. Woodland Friends - Tea Party Deer Cream by Cosmo Textiles Co has sweet bunnies on it so I co-ordinated it with Premium Solid Bubblegum by Northcott for a girly bunny. 

And finally I got to choose some fabrics for my NEWEST Funky baby.... Igor Iguana. I used Salt Water Ocean Ponies Seaweed by Free Spirit for his body and Premium Solid Jungle by Northcott for his Legs and Beard. I think some lime yellow felt would make this combo really POP!!!
Aaaaaaaaaaaah!

Do, I HAVE to stop????
:(

OK< we reached a compromise - I get to do this again ONE day!!

Thanks Kylie, I had fun playing with your gorgeous fabrics..... now I 'm off to design my next Funky Toy.. Mmmmmmm what yummy Voodoo Rabbit fabric can I use for a _____?

Cheers,
Pauline

Friday, September 27, 2013

Fabric Friday - Beach Days

Spring has sprung which, in Brisbane, means Summer is here! Cloud has been dreaming of lazy afternoons on the beach, eating fish & chips with lemon, then walking along the tide line with a nice cold icy-pole. The sound of the sea gulls and waves crashing and the bright yellow sun reflecting off the sand and water. This week's Fabric Friday is Cloud's take on her perfect summer afternoon. 

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Middle Row
Bottom Row

So, who's ready for a trip to the beach this weekend :)
- Ky

Friday, September 20, 2013