Tag Archives | accessories

Meet, Kept–my newest fabric collection.

By carolyn friedlander on October 23, 2020 in fabric, Featured on Home, loving, my patterns, patterns | Comments: 26

Meet kept–my newest fabric collection for Robert Kaufman.

I have a new fabric collection, and it is called Kept. This is a small, 12-piece group that has a mellow feel and the ability to go with the flow.

The designs themselves are inspired by collections of things that I have kept. These are things like shapes found in studio stuff, patterns I come across in my daily life and design ideas that roll around in my head. The mix of textures and shape goes from hand drawn and linear to bold and geometric.

kept fabric and kept coordinates . carolyn friedlander

As is usual with a new collection comes a brand-new group of coordinates to go along with it. I love bringing in coordinates that can broaden the character and expand on the possibilities of any collection. These can go alongside Kept or inspire a starting point all their own.

kept fabric and coordinates . carolyn friedlander

I’ve made a variety of projects using my Kept collection and the coordinates to celebrate just some of the creative possibilities. I don’t know about you, but while spending so much time at home during a challenging year I’ve found great comfort in sewing and all of the levels of creativity that it offers. From embracing color, to working with different fabrics, to indulging in projects big and small, practical and comforting–sewing is a very good thing for us to embrace right now.

kept fabric projects . carolyn friedlander

I’ll be sharing more about each of the projects in the coming weeks. If you’d like to see an overview of all of them now, check out this new video that I put together. And let me know what you think!

I made most of the projects above with the big exception of the AMAZING quilted coat and tote. They were made by Brittney Frey (using the Sapporo Coat pattern and Sylvie Tote pattern), and they are just dreamy.

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Scrappy CF Coasters

By carolyn friedlander on September 2, 2020 in fabric, Featured on Home, tutorials | Comments: 2

One set wasn’t enough, so here are some more scrappy CF coasters that I made recently.

scrappy CF coasters . carolyn friedlander

Actually, I guess that I have a lot of these in the works. They can be made from a charm pack, and so I grabbed a stack of 5″ squares from Collection CF and started pairing the fabrics together in different ways and in different sets. The first grouping was this one, and here is another grouping in pinks, peaches and lilacs. If I let myself really dream a bit, I think it’d be lovely to make an entire set of these big stitch coasters in all of the colors.

Binding Selection

One thing that is a little different about this set from the first is that I used different binding fabrics on each of the coasters. There’s no right or wrong in deciding this, it’s all a matter of taste and what you are feeling. In a scrappy set like this, I think the variety is fun, and I love seeing how all of the different fabrics play out in the bias trim.

Selecting Thread Colors

I quilted each coaster with a different color thread. This adds even more character and color to each coaster and to the set as a whole. The quilting becomes more engaging, because you can think about and explore using different colors as you go–an entertaining way to quilt, if you ask me.

This is a great project to grow (or start growing) your big stitch quilting skills. I also think it’s a great way to explore different ways to pair fabrics and explore color. Plus, it’s something that you can use around the house or gift to a friend.

Binding Tips

If you haven’t seen it already, I have a new video that I posted on making the binding and how to attach it to the coasters. You can head over here to check it out.

Project Details

Fabric: Collection CF

Tutorials: Big Stitch Coaster Tutorial (here), Binding for Quilted Coasters video (here)

My favorite Hand Quilting tools.

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Big Stitch Coasters in Collection CF

By carolyn friedlander on July 30, 2020 in fabric, Featured on Home, quilting, tips and techniques, tutorials | Comments: 1

With the newest fabrics in Collection CF arriving in stores, I thought I’d share with you these new Big Stitch Coasters that I made in Collection CF.

The coasters are made using this free tutorial that I put together a few years back. (I’ve now given it a fresh update!) I use these coasters all the time, and they’re a fun thing to give away to friends.

big stitch coasters tutorial-stitch layers . carolyn friedlander

Small projects are perfect for trying out new techniques. If you’re wanting to give big stitch quilting a try, this is a great way to start. The commitment is small, and the possibilities are endless. Of course you could machine quilt them if handwork isn’t your thing, but I love the added color and texture of the big stitches.

It’s also a small and speedy project that can update something you use around the house, which I am all for. Or maybe you could send some to a friend to let them know you’re thinking of them. Both are worthwhile motives in my mind right now.