THE DRAPERY BLOG

  How good is natural linen? It's great for garments and just about any other fabric-y purpose. Recently, I couldn't resist its call for a quilt I'd been planning. I was looking for a not-white neutral, something to go with the indigo-hued scraps I'd collected and something with a bit of texture... but of course - natural linen ! This quilt is a kind of modified wonky, scrappy string quilt. I'm sure there are plenty of tutorials for this kind of thing out there on the internets, but here is how I made this one. There are no hard and fast rules for this kind of quilting, and it really doesn't matter if your corners don't match. The four segments that form each diamond shape aren't supposed to match, either (but of course, they can if you prefer!) It's a great way to bust through your stash and would look awesome in a variety of colours, or monotone like this one. Finished quilt measures : just over 100 x 130cm (lap quilt size)

The lovely Toni Coward of Make it Perfect Patterns asked The Drapery to be part of her Pattern Parade. So today we're showing off one of her patterns and giving one of our readers the chance to win a Make It Perfect pdf pattern of their choice. A very warm welcome to any new readers who may be encountering The Drapery for the first time via the Pattern Parade. You can read more about us here . First up was choosing a favourite pattern. Toni is a mum of four and has produced an extensive range of patterns for babies, boys, girls and grownup women, many of which we are delighted to sell in our shop. Truthfully the women's Poppy Tunic is probably my favourite - when Toni released the pattern it was one of those must make now moments for me - but since I have made three ( this is my favourite ) I really didn't need another one! Another Make It Perfect pattern I adore is the Sprout (ever since I saw it made up here  - beware, cuteness ) but I have no little girl recipients t

I hope no-one minds that this is just a slightly edited version of the post for my personal blog... it's school holidays and two-for-one posts are about all that's manageable! Ever since I saw the sample of this woodgrain fabric by Kokka of Japan that we ordered in for The Drapery, I had been imagining this. The fabric is a mid-weight 100% cotton, very stable, and ideal for the Grainline Moss skirt . And Grainline, Moss, woodgrain - irresistible, right? Presently the pattern is only available as a pdf download but Jen at Grainline is working hard on getting all her excellent patterns into print and we're poised to order for the shop. Aish Printing on Glen Osmond Road is a good place to get pdf patterns printed out if you hate all that taping of A4 paper. This skirt is simply a fabulous basic. There's a goodly stack of excellent versions of it out there in the sewing blog-o-sphere so Google Image it up.  The fabric looked like just a straight woodgra