"What ELSE can I make with that?"
- fabman556
- Apr 20, 2018
- 3 min read
Veering Off The Planned Path
Alternatives are important in sewing, as in life, and sometimes we run through plan B and plan C and make it pretty far through the alphabet before we're finished. In the sewing studio, sometimes the final result is not exactly what I envisioned, but I always claim "That's exactly what I had in mind." (It's important to be flexible, right?)
Creating Something Different
When we look at a printed fabric panel, we can understand the intent of how it is planned to be used. For example, a soft book panel is intended to make a soft book. An apron panel is intended to make an apron, and so forth. As a holiday fabric buyer I always included panels in my assortment, including aprons, pillows, soft books and toys; they're a quick way for a novice to get into a project. But I also tried to answer the question, "What ELSE can I make with that?" There can (and should) be at least one alternative use for every fabric panel, and the other uses are great fun to discover.
Placemat & Mini Mat Panel
This panel (above) is part of the "Flower Power" fabric collection by Patrick Lose Fabrics. (Patrick Lose Fabrics are exclusive to independent quilt shops.) The panel is comprised of four large and four small circles intended to make placemats and mini mats, and is available in pink/orange and aqua/lavender color combinations. I was intrigued by the large circles. Right away I asked the question: "What ELSE can I make with that?"
Apron with Detachable Pot Holders
The first idea I had was to make an apron from one of the allover prints in the Flower Power collection (I used the linear dot), use a placemat cutout as an applique on the front and turn the four mini mat cutouts into pot holders that attach to the apron with hook and loop tape.
This project was very simple to make. Use your favorite butcher-style apron pattern, stitch one of the placemats to the "bib" portion before sewing up the apron, turning the edge under before stitching it down along the edge. The mini mats are stacked right sides together with a layer of insulated batting.
A product called Insul-Bright has insulating properties (both hot and cold) and is perfect for this project! Check it out here:
Stitch and turn the potholders, then stitch through the potholders to hold the fabric layers together, and finish the edges with bias binding (I used the linear dot fabric from the apron.) Position the pot holders on the apron and mark the spot; stitch pieces of hook and loop tape to the apron and to the potholders, and you're all set!
Tip: For more details on the apron project, check out a previous blog post here:
Quilts
I designed two different quilts using the panel cutouts as the key motifs, and including most of the prints in the collection as well. A quilt is not too difficult to execute, and these designs can be cut and sewn easily using the strip quilting method.
The first design is a lap-quilt size (above) with colors mixed together.
The other quilt is a more traditional size, designed with each of the four colors blocked in a quadrant. While I have not crafted these yet, I will be making them soon and donating them to a co-worker who auctions quilts to support breast cancer research. I'll share the actual quilt tops here when I have them completed.
I encourage you to take a look at fabric panels where you shop for fabric and try to envision what else YOU can make from them. Email me photos of any interesting panels you find and tell me about your alternative use!
Until next time, keep those sewing machines humming, and go out and make a new trail of your own!
DTFM
danthefabricman on Instagram
Comments