Alexa: Gourmet Crafter

If I know one thing about knitters and quilters it’s that we all have a stash. This would most likely be that Tupperware or basket of some sort that’s overflowing with the evidence of your many projects over the years. Whether it’s that have-to-have skein or fat quarter that you can’t decide what to do with, that left over ball (or 3/4 of a ball) from that sweater for your mom, or those endless quilt scraps one thing remains the same: we all have a stash of ‘leftovers’.

I think, however, that leftovers could be too negetive a word for this colorful array (remember that time you were really into pink and purple together?) of mixed up fibers. Instead of looking at your stash as projects past or undone or unfinished you should look and see the endless possibilities! I have discovered a wealth of scrappy projects that bring back lovely memories of projects past. I also really like that they tend to recapture whatever it was that I liked about the original project.

So after my big ‘finish that project’ push it is safe to say that I have a few leftovers. Firstly, I have a ton of leftover fabric. I learned the hard way (2 or 3 times) that you should always buy more fabric than you need because if you don’t you will make too many mistakes and the quilt shop will be out of the crucial fabric you need. I haven’t had that problem with yarn yet, but the pessimist in me says it’s only a matter of time!

Once I started looking I found a lot of projects for my crafting leftovers. Some were in books (Last Minute Quilted and Patchwork gifts was very helpful in this area) and I also found some cool projects online with free patterns. I wanted to make projects that used scraps and small bits but I didn’t necessarily want them to look that way. Although I think there are a lot of nice scrap quilts out there I dread the idea of something super mishmashed and out of place looking.

My first scrappy project was from ‘Last Minuted Quilted and Patchwork Gifts’. It’s pretty easy and a great way to use a dull quilting needle and your quilting scraps. To make it you sew scraps of fabric (appealing placed in strategic fashion) onto the front of a simple notebook. Seems really easy but I never would have thought of it! I love the way this project captures the colour palette in the quilt and makes something plain into something fabulous. I also thought it might be nice to make some mini-blocks and sew them on. A slightly ‘quiltier’ look if you will.

Another great scrap project is (of course) the scrap quilt. My mother (and quilting hero) Pat, is working on (and has been for the last couple of years) a beautiful scrap quilt using very small (1 inch after sewing) squares of her past projects in a ninepatch pattern. The use of the cream and navy to ground the quilt really shows off all the tiny little patterned pieces.

Whenever she pulls it out I love to look at all the little squares and remember all the things she has made for me over the years. The dress I wore on my first picture day, the funky dress I wore (with a sort of army type boots for some reason) in the 90′s. There are also little squares from the quilts she has made for which I fondly remember hanging on the walls of my childhood home. I love this sort of project because I am a big fan of all things historical and nostalgic. It reminds me of why we make things by hand in the first place: because they are unique pieces of art that are made to be passed from one generation to the next. Enough sappyness, go to your stash and remember the joys (and almost certainly the small frustrations) of projects and people past.

These are only two little examples of the many things that can be done with scraps! There are some great examples of scrap fabric projects on the Purlbee blog. I really like the ABC fabric magnets and I think I will be making them after my next quilt is finished!