Come on in!

A new Nearly Nothing tempting you to call up some friends to grab their sewing and "Come on in" for some girl time!

This would be a great little project for a morning of sewing, chatting and tea-drinking!  Who can resist that?
Plus it'll make a great little by-the-door wall hanging in a frame or as part of a swag with a few of the other Nearly Nothing house patterns.  Click on the Nearly Nothing tab at the top of the page to see the rest!

And... enjoy your tea!

Smile, Laugh!

Here is a recipe to help us smile and laugh, something we can all use a lot more!

Take one Nearly Nothing......

Add another Nearly Nothing.....

Fiddle about a bit, add some buttons, a whole lot of love and lots of enjoyment....

And viola!

You have a cute, bright little swag for the first month of 2013! Both patterns are available, just go the Nearly Nothing tab!


PS - Don't forget there are only 5 more days of the Fabric Give-away left, so get me your email or comment fast!

Take care

Erica

Tips and Tricks for Buttonhole Applique

I LOVE buttonhole applique...always have, always will!  I love the simplicity of the technique and the way the stitching outlines the shapes.  I guess thats my graphic design background shining through:)

Demo Table

My in-progress example

Anyway, when the KZNQG ladies asked me to do a demo at the last meeting, I picked my favourite...buttonhole applique:)  For those of you who know and love the technique like I do, here are my handy hints for buttonhole applique:

Peppa-Jo's Tips and Tricks for Buttonhole Applique

• Use a nice sharp needle.
• Always sew anti-clockwise.
• Use good quality embroidery thread.
• I prefer to use 1 strand of thread; it seems to give a neater finish but thats only my preference.  You should try with 2 strands and see what you prefer.
• Keep your stitches evenly spaced and the same length.
• Use good quality applique paper to avoid the irritation of fabric lifting while you are sewing.  I usually buy mine from the Tollgate Guild.
• Plan your picture well before hand.  Number each piece and take note of which pieces slot under each other.  Number 1 should be the piece that goes on first and so on...

• Don't be afraid of small shapes, just make your stitches smaller.

And there you have it!!  Happy Stitching:)

On a personal note, my son and I have taken on the HUGE task of painting the inside of our house!!  If Peppa-Jo is quiet this week its because I am exhausted and covered in paint!!  Luckily we only have two more rooms to go:)