Spoonflower Borderlands 2 Fabric Collection

I finally received my swatches for the Borderlands 2 collection I created. I'm extremely proud of the collection and I hope you guys like it.  Here's where you can find the collection for purchase.

I changed some of the colors, especially on the grunge. The background was a nice, deep red that matched the Borderlands 2 logo while the foreground was a bright poppy red that really clashed with the other colors. That has now been changed.

The fabrics are designed to be used in a quilt using 5 inch squares. Apart of the collection, not pictured here, is a cheater quilt made up of 6 inch squares, so there's definitely enough room for a seam allowance and then some. However, they can be used in many different ways.

The Borderlands 2 Logo fabric would make a great lining for a bag, backing for a quilt or even pajama pants.

The Grunge fabric could be used in many different ways, although I don't think it would look very good for projects whose pattern pieces are larger than two feet wide. (I can't think of anything besides huge, poofy dresses, but still!)

The fabric that I so cleverly named Gaige's Socks, after the Mechromancer's striped stockings, could be used as a lining for bags, a backing for a quilt, binding for a quilt, pajama pants, a tie etc. What's cooler, is that you could order the design on knit fabric and make yourself some leggings for a Gaige cosplay. Rip a few holes in the stockings and you're good to go.

The Vault Hunters fabric was the centerpiece for this collection. Of course it'd be great as a lining, but I also think you could use this fabric to make one helluva Borderlands 2 dress. I personally would love to make a white button-down shirt with black accents (think cuff and collar) and use this fabric for the yoke. Add a few studs, it'd be snazzy as hell.

I hope you guys like the fabric as much as I do! Remember to check them out here!

The Great Absence

Hey guys, I just wanted to do a quick update on the blog.

I know I haven't posted in a few weeks. I went on a trip to Colorado to visit my boyfriend and his family. During that time, I left my laptop at home because I wanted it to be a complete vacation from my usual life style. I wanted to focus on spending time with my boyfriend and enjoying Colorado for what it had to offer, instead of sitting on my laptop checking out Reddit or playing video games.

I have a bit of an addictive personality, which I feel to be both a blessing and a curse. When I get an idea in my head, it becomes my life for a few weeks. Its all I want to think about and work on, making me extremely dedicated to my work but I neglect my other projects and priorities. Inspiration comes to me in waves and when the tide recedes, so does my motivation.

When I came home from Colorado, I lost my steam to work on the blog and my related projects. Instead, the next chapter of my motivation went solely towards playing video games and working on my backlog of games. However, playing video games inspired me in a different way.

In one day, I designed an entire Borderlands 2 fabric collection on Spoonflower, consisting of four different fabric designs that I'm really proud of. I don't want to advertise them yet because I'm still tweaking them and I need to get the proofs ordered but it feels good to get some work done. I plan on making another, related collection of Mad Moxxi fabrics today.

On the horizon, I have a quilt that has been sitting in my room for the past few weeks that just needs the binding to be finished. I can't wait to share it with the world because its my first quilt where I made both the top, quilted it and finished the binding.

I also have a super awesome Doctor Who tote bag design that needs to be assembled. I created it using my design on Spoonflower and let me tell you, it turned out great! There is just one problem that has kept me from working on it. Spoonflower isn't perfect. I have received multiple orders that came out of the washer with white splotches due to pilling of the fabric before it was printed on.

The good news is that I have only noticed this problem with Kona cotton so in the future I'm going to avoid printing on the Kona. Spoonflower has been really great about sending me free reprints when issues like this arise, but I do have to wait about a week longer to get the reprint which takes me longer to complete my projects.

Its also difficult for me to work on these projects because I'm a bit strapped for money right now. Its really my own fault. I didn't budget myself like I should have to make it through the summer until school starts and I have cash flow again. And now its hard to justify ordering swatches for proofing my fabric on Spoonflower because I'm not selling enough fabric to break even. The woes of a poor college student.

That's my life right now. Jumping between projects, waiting for the inspiration to hit me just right. Trying to scrape by for the next month or two without very much cash to spend on my projects. But don't let that fool you. Bigger things are on the horizon.

Amy and the Raggedy Doctor

I created a new design on spoonflower.com! It can be purchased here! 

Its a mix of Doctor Who and Calvin and Hobbes. I originally created it as a T-shirt design but I thought I'd like to use it for some tote bags and what not!

I'm currently working on a cut and sew tote bag with this design on it so keep an eye out for it! I ordered the proof today so it should be here in a week or so. The only problem is that I'll be in Colorado until the beginning of July so I won't be able to create the tutorial until then, but the fabric will go on sell well before then!

Quilted Fat Quarter Wallet Tutorial

Fabric can be purchased here!

I made a wallet using the fabric I created on Spoonflower.com yesterday. (Fabric can be purchased here!) The wallet is extremely useful because it can carry your phone, credit cards and cash. Even better, the wallet can be made from a single fat quarter (although I chose not to out of interest of contrasting fabrics) and is extremely easy to make!

So here's how I made it!

Quilted Fat Quarter Wallet Tutorial

Marterials

• Fat Quarter of fabric, contrasting fabric is optional
• Batting or fleece for quilting
• Light fusible interfacing
• Iron on Velcro or other closure
• Sewing machine, scissors etc etc.

Step 1: Cut Fabric

Cut two 8.5 in. x 21 in. strips out of your fat quarter. (If the fabric is squared off and is an exact 21 in. by 17 in. then this is cutting the fat quarter in half.)

Cut one of these 8.5 in. x 21 in. strips into three pieces. Make two cuts that are 8.5 in. long, and another that is 4 in. long. (You should have two squares that measure 8.5 in. x 8.5 in. and one rectangle that is 4 in. x 8.5 in.)

Cut the second 8.5 in. x 21 in. strip into 3 pieces. Make one cut that is 3.5 in., 3 in. long and the last one that is 2 in. long. (You should have a rectangle that measures 3.5 in. x 8.5 in., 3 in. x 8.5 in. and 2 in. x 8.5 in.)

Out of your interfacing, cut a square that is 8 in. x 8 in. and a rectangle that is 1.5 in. x 8 in.

Out of your batting or fleece, cut a square that is 8 in. x 8 in.

Step 2: Iron and Quilt

Iron your 8 in. square of interfacing to one 8.5 in. square of fabric. This will be your outside fabric. There should be a quarter inch of a gap between the edge of the interfacing and the edge of the fabric, this is to cut down on the bulk in the seams when sewing.

Pin your 8 in. square of batting (fleece works just as well) to your 8.5 in. square (the one that you just interfaced) and quilt it down. As you can see in Figure 1, I only quilted a small portion of the batting as a decorative feature. If you do not quilt the entire thing, I suggest using a basting stitch where you did not quilt to make it easier to turn later.

Figure 1.

Iron your 1.5 in. x 8 in. rectangle of interfacing to your 2 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle of fabric. This will be your closure. Set it aside for now.

Step 3: Rolled Hems and Sewing

Take your 4 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle, 3.5 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle and 3 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle and create a 1/4 in. rolled hem on each of them. To create a rolled hem, fold over 1/4 in. and iron. Fold over this 1/4 in. a second time and iron it again. 

Top stitch the rolled hem, as seen in Figure 2.

Figure 2

Once hemmed, lay your 3 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle on top of your 3.5 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle, as seen in Figure 3. Measure 2 1/4 in. away from either edge and stitch the top rectangle down to the bottle rectangle.

Figure 3

Take your 2 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle and fold it in half so that it is 2 in. x 4 1/4 in. with right sides facing together. Stitch along the sides with a 1/4 in. seam allowance. This should leave an opening on one side, as seen in Figure 4.

Figure 4

I forgot to take a picture of this part (because I skipped this step by accident! Whoops!) so bare with me.

Flip this piece inside out and iron it flat. Top stitch along the edge. 

Step 4: Putting it all Together

This would be the time to add any closures that you need. I used iron on Velcro so I was able to do this as the last step, but if you are doing snaps or buttons you may want to do it now before we sew the wallet together.

Figure 5

Lay out your pieces as seen in figure 5. The 4 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle should go on one side while the two pieces you stitched together should go on the other side of the 8.5 in. x 8.5 in. rectangle without interfacing or quilting. Lay your closure strap on top, right side facing down. Basting them in place is optional but helpful.

Lay out the main, quilted fabric on top, right sides facing together as seen in Figure 6 and pin.

Stitch around the edge with a 1/4 in. seam allowance, but leave a 2-3 in. gap so you can flip it inside out.

Figure 6

Clip your corners, as seen in Figure 7.

Figure 7

Flip it inside out. Iron it out. Top stitch around the edge. This should stitch closed the gap you left open to flip the wallet inside out, but if you feel more comfortable you can use a ladder stitch to close the gap.

Figure 8

At this point, if you have not added a closure yet use some iron on Velcro. Its my favorite for quick projects like this!

Done!

Your wallet is done. Admire it. 

Looking back on the pattern, I wonder if I should have done the pockets differently. They are nice and clean, but I felt like they should be a bit thicker (and less flimsy) to house my giant Samsung Galaxy S2. If I were to make this pattern again, I think I'd cut the fabric for the pockets twice as long and fold them in half to create the pockets instead of using a rolled hem. Maybe for another day! 

Doctor Who Pandorica Fabric

Depending on whether or not you like www.spoonflower.com, you might rejoice in the in the fact that many of the projects I will be posting will be from Spoonflower. Although lawyers probably have a blast sending out seize and desist orders over copyright infringement, I think companies need to be more lenient with their fan's creativity. I think many of the fans use Spoonflower more for an outlet to celebrate their fandom and less to mass produce a copyrighted product.

Doctor Who Pandorica Fabric Box

With that being said, user jennofalltrades on Spoonflower has created this wonderful Doctor Who Pandorica fabric. You can buy the fabric as a 1 8in x 8in swatch for 5.00 USD. If you wanted to create a cube, you would need to order 6 swatches for a total of 30.00 USD plus shipping and handling charges. This would be a wonderfully easy plushie to make, and extremely cute, too.

I just wish it had a slightly more productive purpose than a toy or decoration. You can use it as an ottoman, but at 8in by 8in, that's a rather small foot rest. Possibly a tissue box cover, but the fabric is far too big.

You could purchase 5 swatches for a total of 25.00 USD and with some interfacing and some lining, you could create an awesome and rather functional storage cube. Maybe something like this tutorial from The Sometimes Crafter blog!

Fabric box featured from The Somteims Crafter blog.

I hope that provides you with the inspiration to go out and make your own project. If you make anything, please feel free to share it with me! I'd love to see what you come up with!

Starcraft Overlord Pattern

Another quick PSA.

The pattern is available for purchase here!

I normally try to provide as much free projects as possible, but a lot of the projects on here will have a pricetag on them. Unfortunately. If you're looking for free projects only, check out the "free label" in my tags.

Starcraft Overlord Pattern

I've seen this pattern floating around on Etsy and I thought it was only proper that I share it with you guys. This pattern was created by arixystix on Etsy, featuring an adorable Overlord plushie from Starcraft. The pattern is available for purchase here at the price of 11.00 USD.

Also available in arixystix's Etsy shop are patterns to make Plants vs. Zombies plushies! A killer Christmas gift for any of your zombie-loving friends and family members. (Cough, cough... me?)

I also stumbled upon arixystix's blog where she features some really adorable projects. She's got everything from Bioshock: Infinite to Diablo 2.

My favorite being these incredibly well crafted Diablo 2 characters. Take a look at her work, its absolutely amazing. She mentioned making a pattern for Diablo but has yet to deliver on that comment. I for one would be absolutely ecstatic if she provided the pattern, for purchase or for free. However, as someone currently working on her own patterns I understand how difficult it can be to design a pattern and then a tutorial on how to use it.

Diablo has never been cuter, even when he was incarnated as Leah.

Star Trek Quilt

A quick PSA.

When I made this blog, I had the intention of including a tutorial with every project I do. However, as a college student a single project could take me weeks or months to finish. The blog would move a little slow, don't you think? Thus, in the interest of providing interesting and exciting, new content, I have decided to post projects with or without my personal tutorial to go along with them. I am sincerely sorry. I hope to include my own personal work and tutorial for all of these projects when I get the time for them.

Star Trek Quilt Pattern

You can find the design on her tumblr here!

A couple weeks ago, reddit user /u/girlntheotherrm, posted this awesome design for a Star Trek quilt she was working on to /r/sewing. You can find the pattern on her tumblr here! 

Definitely check it out, she deserves all the credit for this design. (Well, her and the costume designers for Star Trek.) She includes the measurements to make your own throw (or baby) blanket. If you wanted a full size quilt, I imagine you would just double most of the measurements.

The trickiest part would probably be the insignia, but I'm sure with a quick Google search you could easily find an image to base your applique off of. 

I think I'll make this project as a Christmas gift come the holiday season. For who? (I'm sure half of my friends would die to receive one, but I'm not telling anyone who's getting it!) Expect to see a walk through for this pattern in a few months as I work on it. 

Go forth and create!!