My Tips n Techniques

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Fabric Wrapped Bowls…..Tips & Hints



Here is your BURST of color for the day…



Clothesline Rope Fabric Wrapped Bowls




I have been creating these bowls for a few weeks…








If you are on my list, you will get one during the holidays…















I found this ruler at the thrift store…

it works great for cutting the fabric strips.








Fabric strips ready to wrap around rope…

I bag them up by color and keep them in a wash tub.







Here is the fabric wrapped rope laying on the floor…








Coil up the end…








Variegated thread works great on these bowls…

















Using a wide zig zag stitch…..

stitch the coils together in a circle.







Continue to stitch until the base is the size you desire…








6 or 7 inches in diameter is the base size of this bowl…








Tip the base on the side... 

and continue to stitch the sides of the bowl…








A couple of feet from the end…

I stop and remove the bowl from the machine.








I create a medallion from the opposite end of the cord

and stitch it together in a circle.

Then I put the bowl back on the machine 

and complete the stitching.






Here is the completed Fabric Wrapped Bowl

This is 50 feet of rope.









I can wrap the rope and stitch the bowl in 90 minutes….or so.















Go get some clothesline rope

You know you want to make one!





We just returned from a trip to California:



Paul Harvey Quilt at Mount Shasta


Paul Harvey is my personal lap quilt. It keeps me warm when I am on the couch at home, and it also travels with me everywhere I go. I sleep with this quilt when we are in motel rooms while traveling from state to state. It just makes an overnight stay a bit more like home, and I sleep better cuddling up with it.

Yes, I named my quilt "Paul Harvey" after the radio announcer 
that tells us "The Rest of the Story."
This quilt started out as a class kit in Idaho. When I returned home to Oregon I realized all of the fabrics were not in the kit. I waited months for the quilt shop to send the missing fabrics......but it never happened.
I eventually found fabrics on my own and incorporated them into the quilt top.
 The border fabric came from Canada.
This quilt took so much longer to complete than I had anticipated. After awhile I began to feel like it would never be done........when would I see....."The Rest of the Story."
I eventually began to refer to this quilt in progress as my Paul Harvey quilt.







CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts


May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn Kessi

19 comments:

  1. LOVE your final flourish in the form of a medallion - what a great way to finish the bowl!
    Great colours too!

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  2. Your friends are getting great gifts!

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  3. My, looks almost like you have a production line! Beautiful colours and your front spiral medallion really sets them off.

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  4. Everyone seems to enjoy the front medallion on the baskets! I want to try a few other embellishments like adding beads during the stitching process, just need to slow down and give it a try.
    Many thanks for your comments.

    Bye For Now,
    LuAnn in Oregon

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  5. I love making these things. In fact, I started one this morning. But the medallion...brilliant! Fun colors, fun project. In Houston, I saw a couple with an actual binding around the rim - another clean look. Thanks for sharing~

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  6. What beautiful bowls and such an original medallion on the front. Thanks for sharing the details.

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  7. Wow LuAnn you have gone gaga for the bowls. They are lovely.

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  8. Beautiful, informative and very cheerful.

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  9. These have been on my "To Do" list forever! (Along with a million other great ideas.)
    Thanks so much for posting your process and projects. I am always inspired when I visit your blog.
    June

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  10. I Love, Love, love making these baskets! I seem to have a problem. When I start the basket I have the coil flat, but as I continue to sew the basket (suppose to be flat) bottom seem to “bubble up” even though I am keeping the coil flat. I would love the bottom to be flat, but can’t seem to make that happen. Do you have any suggestions? It would be soooo appreciated.

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  11. I Love, Love, love making these baskets! I seem to have a problem. When I start the basket I have the coil flat, but as I continue to sew the basket (suppose to be flat) bottom seem to “bubble up” even though I am keeping the coil flat. I would love the bottom to be flat, but can’t seem to make that happen. Do you have any suggestions? It would be soooo appreciated.

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  12. HI Esther,
    Perhaps you are putting too tight of a wrap on the cord as you are zig zag stitching? I could see where that would make it bubble up at the bottom. You really don’t need to apply too much pressure as you zig zag….just keep the wrapped edges of the coil meeting together so the zig zag catches both sides. I hope this helps.

    LuAnn

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  13. I love the bowls and have made 3 in different sizes but how do you attach the medallion to the bowl. I stitched my circle at the end but had to hand sew them which seemed awkward and then it left stitches on the inside, do you glue them on? Thanks for the great tutorial, showing how you attach the medallion would be another great one!

    Lynda

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    Replies
    1. I had the same problem, so I started using hot glue, and it works like a charm. I usually put something like a button or a shell on top of the medallion, and I hot glue that on, too.

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  14. How do you keep the fabric wrapped around the rope before you sew ?

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    1. Hi Debbee, Use some glue stick on the end of the fabric, then wrap it around the rope to hold it in place until you get it stitched.

      Have Fun!
      LuAnn

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  15. 90 minutes is very impressive!!!! I have tons of fabric. Thank you so much for a great tutorial!

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  16. These are lovely. Have just completed my very first and used a few rows of wrapped raffia to finish. Am wondering if anything can be done to stiffen the bowl and make it not so flexible.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Joy, The lesser quality clothesline is soft and creates a limp bowl. You need to puchase better quality clothesline and you will get a firm, stiff bowl.

      Good Luck and Have FUN,
      LuAnn

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