clothesline tips

Have you tried the wrapped clothesline bags? I had bought a pattern, but had not been able to find the cotton clothesline. Even the quilt shops did not have any. Now, you KNOW I don't need another project. But WHAT is a girl to do when she just NEEDS to start something new??? She pays attention when her friend Monica offers to show her a new way. AND THEN SHE JUMPS! She taught my Lunch Bunch group this method. AND its scrap friendly. I used a Bali Pop on this 1st one, but next time , I'm gonna stash dive in my strip drawer. It uses 2½ inch strips of fabric and batting. ::::tap tap tap::: did you say BATTING? YES! You know! All that left over batting that is not big enough to bother to piece together? The stuff you feel guilty throwing away? Or sometimes I stuff into a dog bed, but wish I had another way of USING it?! Yup..thats the stuff! Today I will show you how to make the strips. Next time I will show you how to block it. After that, I will show you the basic bag. YOU have to decide how to add your own touch: handles, pockets etc.


You ready? Here we go!


You will need:


machine with contrasting or matching thread
strips of 2 ½ inch fabric
strips of 2 ½ inch batting


(just one quick note: some of my friends had trouble with the 2 ½ batting.
They cut theirs 2 ¼. I didn't have any trouble, but in the stash busting
spirit, when I cut mine up, sometimes I got smaller than 2½ inches. Be flexible
and see what YOU like. I used both...they both worked for me)



Layer the strip wrong side up with the batting.




Fold the two long ends into the center....














fold in half. Try to keep the folds even. Dont' stress if they are not! Just make sure the raw edges stay inside. You can pin this if you want. I just folded as I went along.




Stitch down the center. I like to lengthen my stitch a bit. Its kinda bulky and takes long enought with a longer stitch. If you use your reg quilt piecing stitch, you could be there all day!


Thats IT! Its kinda mindless...I thought it was fun!. Try not to stretch as you sew. You will see why next time... For a nice size tote, you will need between 20 and 27 strips. See you next time!

Comments

scraphappy said…
Oh, that looks like fun.
Angie said…
What an awesome way to make the bowls, baskets, etc.!!! You know we don't need another 'gotta try that' project, right? and especially here at the holidays???? LOL You are just the best, Beth!! Where ya been, anyway??? I'm always looking for you. :) I'm actually---get this--spending some time in my 'stewdio'---imagine that!! I'm going to make me a Dresden plate turkey today. Got guests coming on Wed. I'm sick. The dust bunnies have even chased the pups aways, the island looks like it's moving, along with the table, and I'm going to take my misery to the sewing room and make a freakin' turkey! Wish you were here. We'd make a bowl too. :D
Na Na said…
Beth, I've made rugs before with the clothes line technique. This looks very interesting. I gotta give this a try too.

Love the quilt rug on your floor!

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