It is starting to feel like spring here in Quebec. Almost all the snow melted this week.So, I thought it was time to share with you two of my patterns that appeared in Stitch Spring 2014 (Interweave Press/F&W Media).

I was waiting to get my projects back. But since Stitch Summer is already out, I decided I wouldn’t wait no more. Here they is are as pictured in the magazine (photography by James Weber): a clothespin bag and a quilted pillow cover.

The clothespin bag was a project I originally proposed back in July 2011 for the Stitch Spring 2012 issue. There was a oil cloth theme planned but it was dropped of. For this spring issue, there was a Mixed Up Prints theme. I thought it was a great occasion to redo the bag in more recent prints. Last summer, there was a keen interest in the Briar Rose collection by Heather Ross for Windham fabrics. I thought it was perfect for a clothespin bag. I love the tear drop shape I came up with for the design of the bag and I find it great to feature different prints. I use a karabiner to hang the bag to the clothesline. Here it is pictured on my design wall before I sent it out to the editor.

Here were my first prototypes.

The one on the right was a bit too small (prints from the Verna collection by Kate Spain for Moda). The one on the left is the same size as in the magazine and I still use this one in my laundry room (prints from the Early Bird collection by Cosmo Cricket for Andover fabrics).

Here is the one I sent out for the original project.

It is in laminated cotton (except the binding and lining) and the prints were from the Nicey Jane collection by Heather Bailey. I had made one for my-self that I left outside for my clothesline. But, the polyurethane finish on the laminated cotton didn’t withstand the sun well. It turned yellowish-ed pretty quickly. I should have stored it inside after each use, but I didn’t. I actually cut a dozen of this one in laminated cottons. I had planned to finish and sell them when the magazine would go out. But after more than two years, I don’t even have the courage to get them out of the box where they are stored.  Lesson learned, don’t make a series of samples in advance.

As for the pillow, I proposed this design for the Taking Shape theme. They were looking for projects using basic shapes (rectangles, triangles, circles, …) to create modern objects. When I sketched this, I played with basic half-circles and rectangles to illustrate in an abstract way two hands meeting to share something. I had called it Share Pillow (it looks like they dropped the name for the magazine).

I made my shapes using needle-turn appliqué. The fabrics I used are Kona in Ash for the background, in Purple and Caribbean for the central circle. The prints are from the Mixmasters Monochromatix collection by Patrick Lose for Robert Kaufman and Oval Elements by Pat Bravo for Art Gallery. For the back, I did a panel split in two using the same fabrics as the central circle.The junction of the two fabrics is aligned with the halves of the center circle. I quilted both panels and made a zipper closure at the bottom.

I hope you’ll like my projects. Now, I’ll go out  enjoy the sun and the starting spring. Hope you have time to do the same!