Sultry 2018
Hello Everyone! The humidity continues this summer – there has
not been much of a break, and I have been trying my best to stand tough though
I do get fatigued more quickly. Speaking of breaks, the three weeks to Fall semester
is soon over as a week from today I will have my first day of classes. Does
anyone complete as much as they really want?
From a project perspective, the green hat was re-done
successfully! I was meticulous about counting stitches and used more stitch
markers leading to no mistakes so I was content at last. Here is a photo of the
now completed hat:
I can let you know of three differences compared to the
previous hat: two rows added to the bottom band, more uniform diagonals, and lace
pattern going higher. Also, there was only an itty bitty piece of yarn left.
So, I am ready to move on to yet another hat with the previous purple yarn used
for the fingerless mitts.
Though Planet Nice Crafts is planning to continue with two more knitting projects, I am also at the project planning stage for the next
sewing project. I have had this roll of fabric residing in my craft room for
too many years since it was obtained from St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in
Libertyville.
And there is a lot of it too! The pattern is called “Country
Plaid”, it was printed in the USA, has a date of 1994, and was manufactured by
or for Greeff Fabrics. The designer is Stephanie Hoppen who authored home
decorating books such as Perfect Palettes and Perfect Curtains; those books were published relatively recently,
2009. Greeff Fabrics was a respected company supplying high quality wallpapers
and decorative fabrics. F. Schumacher & Co. acquired the Greeff brand in December 1996, and distributes Greeff products exclusively to fine interior designers, architects and upscale retailers (source: http://www.designbiz.com/biz/BrandProfile.asp?CompanyID=83680&BrandID=337). This fabric has credibility not reflected in its
thrift store place of purchase. Also, the fabric has Teflon™ fabric
protector to repel liquids and stains (source: https://www.chemours.com/Teflon_Fabric_Protector/en_US/benefits/how-teflon-textiles-work.html).
Brainstorming on what to do with this fabric has continued
to be quite the design challenge. That is the main reason why I have been
looking at decorating books, to gather ideas. One of the ideas is to pair
it up with a solid, one of the blues or a contrasting color like a dark, soft
red. Here are some of the images from the Better Homes and Gardens Decorating
book, the go-to midcentury textbook which, by the way, the most recent Instagram post from it had fewer likes, 9, than the first:
Source: Better Homes and Gardens Decorating page 104
Curtains are out because they are too custom and with the fabric being vintage, may not have a wide appeal. A upholstery project was considered, but at this time, I need to clear out items first to make room. There are home decorating sewing
patterns out there, which I prefer because the online only patterns can be vague.
So my top three ideas for projects are: an ottoman, a bean bag chair, and organizers or a
combination thereof.
If you have any feedback on the project planning for this fabric, please comment below or send an
email to planetnicecrafts@gmail.com
My next step is to sketch these items in Adobe Illustrator
and then place the fabric to have an estimate on how they would look, however,
these sketches will not consider that you can cut and piece the fabric creatively to make
the pattern the most interesting like a quilt. So, I am working on this too
when I have the extra time, which is a bit of a misnomer.
Keep cool.
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