teaching sewing confidence, tip by tip

Monday, 29 June 2015

Multicoloured Moods Cushion - A Butterfly's Transformation!

Love is like a butterfly as soft and gentle as a sigh
The multicoloured moods of love are like its satin wings.
Dolly Parton                                      

Cast your mind back to November 2012 - I know it's a looong time ago quite possibly before you started following my blog but way way back then I did my first ever foundation paper piecing pattern test for Juliet @The Tartankiwi.


I love this 12.5" butterfly block so much and though I had plans for making it larger using this Kaffe Fassett fabric I just never got round to it.  If you want to read my original post you'll find it here and the butterfly pattern is available to purchase here.


Fast forward 2.5 years and I've finally done something with it, which is only what it deserves.  Pulling it from my WIP pile and I realised I no longer liked the Kaffe Fassett Shirt Stripes with it - it seemed to deaden the colours so I opted for bordering with the same green solid I used for the butterfly body and adding this vibrant Kaffe Fassett grape spot instead.  


After adding the borders I created a quilt sandwich and fmq'd the piece






You can see more fmq detail here on the muslin backing.


Thread: 
Aurifil 40 wt
1135 - Pale Yellow
2423 - Baby Pink
1147 - Light Leaf Green
2588 - Light Magenta

Then I chose two fabrics and a zipper to create a cushion back.

Fabrics:
A selection of solids - see my original post for full details of brands and colours used
Kaffe Fassett Spot in Grape by Westminster Fabrics
Belle Epoch by Kaffe Fassett for Westminster Fabrics
Clown Stripe by Michael Miller Fabrics


 And finally my foundation paper pieced butterfly block is transformed into 

my Multicoloured Moods cushion.


This is a variation on my hidden zipper cushion cover tutorial - this is the type of hidden zipper I teach in my classes but you'll find my original hidden zipper tute here if you want to make one yourself. 



And where's the cushion now?  On Flicky's bed of course - one of these days I'll get to keep something I make for myself!!!  I'm not complaining really, it's fab to have her home for the summer, can you believe she's been living in Scotland for two years now and about to go into her third year at St Andrews University?  If you're new to the blog you might want to have a look around St Andrews I did a couple of blog posts here and here when she first started there.


So that's my butterfly's transformation - what would you make with this butterfly block?

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34 comments:

  1. Vicki in MN30 June 2015 at 08:07

    It is just so cute and right in time for summer!

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  2. Lin30 June 2015 at 14:20

    Beautiful butterfly and a great cushion Chris. Great to have Flicky home I am sure. xx

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 19:46

      Thanks Lin, and yes it's really great, I miss having her around and all the girlie things we do together - Chris :D

      Delete
  3. Unknown30 June 2015 at 16:47

    Beautiful block, beautiful cushion. So cute.

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  4. Sharon - IN30 June 2015 at 20:35

    Bright and cheery.

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  5. Angela Lee1 July 2015 at 11:20

    Beautiful pillow! I love all the bright colors.

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  6. Unknown1 July 2015 at 13:47

    What a lovely butterfly, it's a lovely block and a great way to show it off!

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  7. Allison1 July 2015 at 20:32

    I think that some projects just have to sit for a while before it works out just right. It looks like the wait was worth it... the color choices are just so much brighter and have a better overall look. This pattern is on my to-do list, but I am still contemplating fabrics... perhaps I should pull it back out again.

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 19:57

      Oh do Allison, you have such gorgeous fabrics in your stash I know you'd create a beautiful butterfly - Chris :D

      Delete
  8. Unknown2 July 2015 at 00:38

    Its Beautiful!

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  9. annies home2 July 2015 at 22:23

    so very pretty and colorful
    come see us at http://shopannies.blogspot.com

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  10. SuperMomNoCape3 July 2015 at 18:12

    Your butterfly pillow cover is gorgeous! I think you made the right decision when you replaced your original fabric idea with the green and the purple dot fabric. Those fabrics compliment the butterfly and allow it to shine without competing with it as the stripe would have done. I love the fmqing you did on it!

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:01

      Thanks Susan, changing the fabrics was absolutely the right thing to do and now I don't feel as bad about all the other ufos I have, maybe I'll make better design choices for them too when they resurface! - Chris :D

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  11. Daytona Damsel4 July 2015 at 09:09

    Beautiful butterfly. I think the green and polka dot are much better with those colors. I would make a cushion for my granddaughter who loves butterflies. Debbie

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  12. Pat4 July 2015 at 09:28

    That is so pretty. I really wish I had the patience for PP, but I don't. I'll just admire yours. :-)

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  13. Heide4 July 2015 at 13:08

    This is so Pretty! I just love your colors and the addition of you boarder fabrics adds a whimsical touch to it. I so want to give this a try, not sure about PP, I made a small table runner that was easy peasy, this looks just a tad bit more complicated.

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:09

      Oh do give it a try Heide, having done quite a few fpp projects using patterns by various designers I can tell you that not all fpp patterns are equal! There's def good technique and bad technique in creating fpp patterns but I have done many of The Tartankiwi's fpp patterns and she's absolutely one of the very best. She creates all her designs with the sewist in mind and even patterns that appear complicated aren't. If you can join three fabric pieces together using an fpp pattern then you can join 100, it doesn't get more complicated it just takes longer. If you decide to give it a go, I'd love to see what you do with the pattern - Chris :D

      Delete
  14. Michele5 July 2015 at 06:47

    It looks great and yeah to you for getting it off your UFO pile.

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  15. Stephanie5 July 2015 at 12:59

    So many pieces! It looks wonderful + the wing colours remind me of stained glass.

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:10

      It reminds me of stained glass too Stephanie, I'm so glad you've spotted that too - Chris :D

      Delete
  16. Jan5 July 2015 at 18:41

    I'm a butterfly fan and this is lovely, the green boarder matching the green in the center balances it out lovely. :)

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:12

      I'm delighted you've spotted and commented on how I've used that green. I really wanted to repeat it and after all this time I didn't have much of it left in my stash to create the border but just managed to make it work, your comment alone has made it all the more worthwhile! - Chris :D

      Delete
  17. Carolee Crafts6 July 2015 at 00:58

    Just beautiful and who cannot love butterflies

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  18. Lucy Blossom6 July 2015 at 02:51

    It is beautiful Chrissie, I love the combination of colours.

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  19. threads 'n' shreds6 July 2015 at 05:23

    That butterfly is stunning, the folds and shapes are exquisite, I love the bright colourway too, a lovely cushion. Love the Dolly quote too! X

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:16

      Bit of a Dolly fan - well actually when I still lived in England my much loved Mini Cooper was called Dolly after Ms Parton, I was so pleased to manage to squeeze a Dolly quote in with this blog post!!! - Chris :D

      Delete
  20. Anonymous6 July 2015 at 11:54

    This is a beautiful cushion, I love the colours and of course the butterfly, perfect.

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  21. Sum of their Stories6 July 2015 at 13:58

    Bea-u-ti-ful! I love the bright colours.
    I have 2 big people home from uni at the mo, eating food quicker than I can buy it but I agree, it is lovely to have them home and you would give them the shirt off your back as well as the cushion from your chair!

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    1. Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD6 July 2015 at 20:20

      It doesn't matter how big the fridge is does it or how often you shop, it's always empty when the kids are around?! I wouldn't have it any other way though and I'd give anything to turn the clock back 10 years and have 3 teenagers and all their mates around my kitchen table again - Chris :D

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  22. Kathy Shea Mormino, The Chicken Chick8 July 2015 at 17:50

    Just love your 'butterfly' and it's nice bright colors. Especially like how great it looks with a variety of backgrounds. Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop! I hope you’ll join us again next week!

    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick
    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

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  23. Unknown13 July 2015 at 06:33

    (L) In Love!

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  24. Maria24 July 2015 at 17:56

    I just fell in love with your pillow, sorry it took me so ling to comment, i have been so crazy busy! but the workmanship is amazing! Thanks for stopping by all my Fabulous Friday!
    Hugs Maria http://www.simplenaturedecorblog.com/fabulous-friday-party-34/

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  25. Clare Lloyd28 July 2015 at 02:24

    Stunning cushion. Hopped over from sew cute Tuesday to say...fab work!

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  26. Jayne28 July 2015 at 09:35

    Beautifully bright! Love it! I love the idea of the two colors on the back...perfect!

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I love to hear from everyone, thank you for taking the time to read my blog and share your thoughts. Please leave a message to let me know you visited, it's a great way to get to know you all better too :)

Chris Dodsley


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