A Perfect Gift

 

As you might know - we have been finding and giving new life to vintage linens and tablecloths. Every now and then we find a treasure and this is one.

Crisp white cotton with hand embroidered wattle blossom and leaves
It is 1.3m x 2.4m (53in x 98in)

The embroidery is beautiful

I just couldn't over dye it - I think it is perfect as it is.

I have listed it on the website for sale and think it would be a perfect Mothers Day present - for you or your mother. I will be adding other linens when I have time but this one just needed to be shown.

New Challenges

 

I am so excited that the organisers of the Textile Arts Festival have offered to have a dedicated display space for my Whimsical Woollys Challenge pieces. This will allow them to be displayed really well to be admired.

So I have decided to run the Challenge again so some of you who bought kits but ran out of time or others that want to join in the fun can have a try. The more entries - the better the display

More time to complete your pieces this time - entries due by June 6th and you can enter on the website.

Australian Patchwork and Quilting Magazine also want to do a story on them so here is your opportunity to be published.

Also - the amazing variety of entries has inspired me to run another Challenge using my Hand Dyed Vintage Linens.

I will be awarding a prize of $100 worth of Dyed & Gone to Heaven goodies in each competition. 

This is an opportunity to give a new life to some gorgeous bits and pieces which have been overdyed to bring out their beauty.

I will also be including a small pack of coordinating beads in the linen pack for further embellishment. You can paint, stamp, bead, cut up, hand or machine stitch your items to create something beautiful.

 

Deadline for this Challenge will be the same - 6th June.

Vintage Linens

 

Something new for us to be launched at the AQC are our overdyed linens. We have been scouring the charity and opportunity stores in all our travels and have found an amazing treasure trove of unwanted damask tablecloths, serviettes, lace and cutwork. I am becoming an expert in identifying suitable items for a new life.

We have dyed some in sets and some in gradations for variety in a rainbox of colours

I originally planned to use damaged items as cut fabrics for patchwork - to give them a second life - but have been amazed at the quality of what I have found. They can be used as backgrounds for applique projects, wholecloth quilts or even reverse applique.

This wholecloth piece was just spray basted over a contrasting piece of hand dyed fabric

 and then free motion quilted around the design. So easy and such fun and effective. I have only gone around the design in this piece but there was even more opportunity for interesting quilting in the centre and larger areas but I wanted to keep this one simple. It is about 1m square.

 

This was a set of 6 napkins cut into quarters and then stitched together and free motion quilted

This technique could be used to make a really quick baby or lap quilt and the silky feel of the serviettes makes it very tactile.

Once they are given a second life with dyeing they start to take on a new life of their own.
Imagine using these as decorator items in your home or on your table for afternoon tea.

I have lots of different colours and shapes and sizes so can't put them on the website yet but if there is something specific you want like a damask tablecloth in a certain size - just let me know.