11.27.2015

Holiday Sales at Charise Creates & Fat Quarter Shop

Wishing you a wonderful day after Thanksgiving to all my U.S. peeps : )

This is a quick post to share a sale in my Etsy Shop ~ Charise Creates.
20% off with the code thankful20.  This is for all items in my shop.
Sale lasts until end of day Sunday.



If you happen to purchase a pattern from my shop and need fabric, Fat Quarter shop is having a Black Friday Sale.

They have 25% OFF all orders from Friday, November 27 until Saturday, November 28 at Midnight CSTExcludes purchases of gift cards.  No code necessary.

xo
Charise

11.25.2015

Handmade Gifts ~ Good Night Nightie



Today I am going to share a night gown I designed for Stitch Beautiful Bedrooms.
Another gift for a special gal in your life.

The neckline has a pretty ruffle detail made with elastic thread.
The armholes are bound with self fabric binding that also creates the shoulder straps.



A perfect night gown made in a lightweight cotton voile, it would be equally lovely made in a drapey silk or rayon.
The hem has a pretty lace trim detail.


A lovely gift paired with a pretty scented soap.

You can find the FREE pattern on the Sew Mama Sew website [HERE]

Happy Holiday Sewing!
xo
Charise

11.24.2015

Handmade Gifts ~ Lavender Pinwheel Sachet Tutorial


Today I am going to share a gift that would be perfect for a special lady in your life ~ Mother, Best Friend, Sister.....



The sachet is based on a coaster pattern that I designed for RJR Fabrics Supreme solids blog hop.  
I modified the pattern a bit to make a lavender sachet.  
It has a hanging loop so you can tuck it in a drawer, under your pillow or hang from a hanger in your closet.


It is also a fun little gift to pop into a stocking.
This is a perfect gift paired with a beautifully scented candle ~  I found this candle at a local gift shop.



I used Liberty fabrics for this sachet.  Since it takes such little fabric, it is a great way to use up some large scraps of fabric.

Lavender Pinwheel Sachet Tutorial

Supplies :
1 - 4" square background fabric 
1 - 4" Square yellow print fabric 
2 - 1 1/2" x 4 1/2" strips print fabric
2 - 1 1/2" x 6 1/2" strips print fabric
1 - 6 1/2" square solid or print fabric for backing
9" - 1/4" - 1/2" wide ribbon
1 Button
Dried Lavender Florets (Mine came from my garden.  You can also buy lavender florets online.  My favorite online store is Pelenduba Lavendar which is located on San Juan Island in Washington State)

Matching Thread
Rotary Cutter and self healing mat
Acrylic ruler

*All seams are 1/4"*

Follow the directions for the Pinwheel coaster - Step 1 - 6 [HERE]

Step 7

Baste the ribbon the the top center of the front sachet right sides ribbon to right side sachet.

Step 8

Place the front sachet right sides together with the 6 1/2" square.



Stitch around the perimeter leaving a 2" opening at the bottom.
Clip corners.
Press the seams open.  Turn right side out and press 

Step 9



Stitch around the border leaving a 2" opening at the bottom.

Step 10

Make a small funnel with a 4" square of paper.
Fill the center of the sachet with the florets. 

Step 11



Stitch the opening between the border and pinwheel center closed.
Slip stitch the opening in the outer border.

Step 12



Stitch the button on the center of the sachet using a backing button on the 
wrong side. 


Enjoy your beautiful fragrant sachet : )

Happy Sewing
xo
Charise



11.22.2015

Farmer's Wife Quilt Along - Carrie



Thanks for stopping by!  It is my stop (again) on the Farmer's Wife 1930's Quilt Along hosted by Kerry at Very Kerry Berry.
This week I am sharing my version of the block Carrie.
Carrie is the name of my maternal grandmother.  I have such fond memories of 
spending time with her when I was a child.  
We would play "Beauty Shop" and have tea parties together.

One of my fondest memories is when we shopped for fabric for a purse that she was making for me.  I vividly remember the pink and green floral I picked - very much of the era - 1970's.
She was a big influence in my love of sewing.

[ Left to Right] My Grandmother Carrie, Great Grandmother Bertha and My Mother Ann,  at the Yakima Farm House
Carrie wasn't a farm girl - definitely a city girl like me : )
She grew up in the city of Chicago, Illinois and moved to Seattle in the early 1930's. 
Her parents, August and Bertha, owned a farm in the Eastern part of Washington State in a town called Yakima.
My mom, Ann, shares fond memories of her times spent there every summer.


This block was a fun one to make and, of course, I couldn't resist fussy cutting the small squares.
The fabrics used for this block are:
Bunny and bird print from Lecien, Tiny Cherry print from Sevenberry Fabrics,  and Pink Floral from Windham Fabrics "feedback" Inspired by American Jane


The Carrie block is a straight forward one to make.
I did a little planning this time and cut all the fussy cut motifs at the same time.
First I arranged the pattern.  Second I drew arrows showing the direction of the print.
I then cut the squares for the block.
It was a great way to keep the pieces in order and made it a fast block to stitch together.


Be sure to tag your Farmer's Wife block on Instagram with the hashtag #fw1930sqal
I have enjoyed seeing everyone's blocks on Instagram!

Happy Sewing
xo
Charise

11.19.2015

Charise Creates Round Potholders at Hawthorne Threads!



 I was so excited to open my inbox this morning and see my Round Potholders featured on Hawthorne Threads newsletter.
Photo from Hawthorne Threads on Instagram

They used their Winter Fawn fabric collection  to make my Vintage Bowls.  I love the prints, they are adorable.
You can find my Vintage Mixing Bowls Pattern [HERE]

Photo from Hawthorne Threads on Instagram

I love the way they used the stripe as binding - it is just so cute!

These pot holders make a Perfect Christmas Gift paired with some coordinating kitchen utensils : )

If you want to make a set, You can find the round hot pad tutorial [HERE]
The Winter Fawn Collection from Hawthorne Threads can be found [HERE]

Happy Sewing!
xo
Charise

11.18.2015

Handmade Gifts ~ Pencil Pouch




I am back again today to share another fun Holiday Gift.
This one is fun and easy to make.

This cute little pencil pouch is a great gift for kids and adults.  
I actually made a few for Teacher gifts last year.  

The crayon is paper pieced and is a perfect first paper piecing project if you'd like to give this technique a try.



Add a fun set of pens and a colorful kneaded eraser and pencil to tuck into the pencil pouch.



You can find the Crayon Pattern [HERE]

and

The Pencil Pouch Pattern [HERE]

Happy Sewing!

xo
Charise

11.17.2015

Handmade Gifts ~ "SKETCH" book


With the Holidays right around the corner I thought it would be fun to share some
of my favorite gifts to make. 

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing tutorials and patterns if you want to do a little
holiday gift sewing for your friends and loved ones.

This week I will share gifts for the little and big artists in your life.

This Sketch Book has a paper pieced pencil design on the front.
  
This is the "girly" version but it would be fabulous in Boy colors too.  

Include some Moleskin sketch book refills and some fun pencils for a fun gift.
I tied whimsical twill tape around pretty Orla Kiely Pencils to add a nice little touch.


The back has a pocket for pencils and pens. 
 I designed this because I was always forgetting to include pens or pencils in my purse!  
Now you will always have them handy!


It also has a twill tape book mark to help keep your place.

You can find the tutorial and pattern on the Sew Mama Sew blog [HERE]

I will tag all post with "Hand Made Gifts" if you want to search on the blog.

Enjoy!

xo
Charise


11.13.2015

Diamond Patchwork Bag In Stitch Winter 2016



Happy Friday!
Last Spring I made this "Diamond Patchwork Bag" for the Winter 2016 issue of Stitch Magazine.


A perfect mid size bag I thought it would also be lovely as a project bag.  
 I will be keeping my current embroidery project in there : )

The fabric is an adorable line by Brenda Ratliff for RJR Fabrics - Pie Making day.
I also made these cute hot pads with the same fabric and you can find the pattern [HERE]
A Perfect Holiday Present!
(We are less than 2 months away from Christmas!!!!!!)  


The bag has an inside pocket and is beautifully finished with binding trim.

Sadly, this is the last issue of Stitch Magazine.  I have had such fun being a regular contributor.
You can see my other projects for Stitch Magazine [HERE]

Have a lovely weekend!
xo
Charise


11.08.2015

Welcome Belle and Betty ~ Farmer's Wife Friday



This week I added two blocks to my Farmer's Wife Quilt ~ Belle and Betty.
This is a quilt along hosted by Kerry Green at Very Kerry Berry.  Find more details [HERE]
I'm enjoying the slow pace (2 blocks a week)  so it is easy to fit in my schedule : )

Both of these blocks were lots of fun to fussy cut.   
These are my favorites so far, but then I feel that way every week.

Belle was a bit of a challenge with four Y seams!  If you've never attempted them before, I have a tutorial on Y Seams you can find [HERE]



*************
Fabrics used:
Cherry print - Darlene Zimmerman for Robert Kaufmann Fabrics "Clothesline Club.  
Floral print - Boho by Urban Chicks for Moda.
Both fussy cut prints are Japanese prints I've had in my stash for some time.
*************


Betty is a more straight forward block with no Y seams and easy construction.

Fabrics used:
 Gingham - Mama said Sew by Sweetwater for Moda.
 Blue Print - 1974 by Urban Chicks for Moda.
Kitchen Print -  Older Japanese print by Kumiko Fujita

A good substitute for the Kitchen Prints,
is the line, "Lighthearted" by Pink Penguin for Kokka Fabrics.

Happy Sewing!
xo
Charise



11.04.2015

Amy's Maker Quilt



This week has been all about finishing projects. 
Amy's "Maker" quilt was close to being finished but needed a few finishing touches.  

A little background on the quilt ~ Amy, Melinda and myself decided to do a round robin quilting bee.
Amy sent the Zipper and Sewing Machine block to Melinda who added the needle, stitch and thimble blocks.  She then sent it to me to add my blocks and send it back to Amy.

*** I have added links to the blocks that are available at the bottom of the post ***



I made three blocks for Amy - the scissors, "SEW" and the iron.  I'm not sure how Amy
is going to assemble the blocks, but I wanted to fill up the last bit of space in the quilt.


After a bit of ruminating on the layout, I decided a trio of notions jars would be perfect.  I used the jars from my Jam Jars and Fruit pattern and enlarged them to fit Amy's Quilt.
The yellow print is one of my favorites -  An out of print Japanese fabric by designer Kumiko Fujita.  It was fun to find the perfect text to include on the jar. 
The Buttons fabric is a Japanese print from Suzuko Koseki.
The labels were made by designing them on the computer and then printing them onto printable cotton fabric sew in fabric.

It was fun to collaborate with the very talented Melinda and Amy.

xo 





11.02.2015

Design, Carve, Print ~ Apple Print



A few weeks ago I signed up for an online block printing class.  I have always wanted to design my own fabric so I thought this would be a good place to start.  The class is taught by Jennifer Hewett.  I have admired her hand printed garments which are just beautiful!
You can see more of her work [HERE]
The class is wonderful.  Jen's instructions are clear and concise,  and she teaches at a pace that allows you to accomplish each lesson without feeling too rushed.  


I decided to create a simple print with a favorite design.  If you follow my blog, you know how much I love using an apple motif in foundation paper piecing and other apple projects.  


The technique uses soft carving blocks and screen printing ink.  It didn't require a lot of new supplies, many of which I already had : )


The lining is a fun, quilted polka dot fabric.  The lining pocket is from a test print and seemed like a perfect use for the lone apple. 


Added to my list of "to do's", is enough fabric to make a knee length pleated skirt!

Happy Sewing : )
xo
Charise