(Well, to be fair, it's been shown to tourists at the Georgia Aquarium line...and the folks at Sewtopia Atlanta, who watched me stitch and cut on Thursday.)
I am a big fan of cephalopods, octopi tying krakens for my favorite real/mythical options. So, I was overjoyed when Cotton & Steel added Mystery Food to their collection. I'm glad it's shown up in various colorways, especially the blue in Bluebird.
I love the blues they picked for their Bluebird line.....oh, and let me just say I love Cotton & Steel...like ridiculous fan girl love. I have a piece of every quilting cotton they have issued (except the Christmas lines). I got to see their studio Thursday. I'm already budgeting for their next full line (and their upcoming Halloween line). *swoon*
Most of the ladies are local, and I squee a little bit every time I spot one of them. Yes, I do have to make conscious efforts to reign in my inner dweeb.
Anywho, when Rachel posted the #bluebirdsewoff I was really excited. I proposed a reverse applique octopus throw. Honestly, I wasn't expecting to get chosen but I was! I asked for Mystery food (of course) in sapphire and Papercuts in natural. Thank you Pink Door fabrics for sending me my starter fabrics!
I pulled some knit remnants and set to work. My vision was an Octopus and bubbles.
First, I washed everything.
Then, I cut the Papercuts piece in half length-wise and sewed it on the edges of the Mystery Food.
I sandwiched the fabric between two layers of knits, then pin basted the heck out of it. I traced various cups and bowls to get the right sized bubbles. I blew up an octopus outline on an overhead projector, using several pieces of posterboard taped together. Then I used a Clover chalk pencil to make my marks and just sewed away!
After that, there was the magical moment (or rather hours), I cut away the bits to reveal the fabric underneath.
The hardest part was folding the edges over and making a binding of sorts.
I added a little bit of the bluebird from my stash to the bottom edge.
Here he is in all his glory, Bubbles the Octopus!
I was shooting at the Aquarium (not seen in these photos because it was so windy, Bubbles kept blowing off the railing). You can see my tiny bluebird tag on this one.
It's hard to see in this photo, but he's got a red heart sewn in perle. You can see it better on the back.
I really loved making this. It was amazing to be working on this the same day I got to go to the Cotton & Steel studio. (I only wished I could have finished it to show it to Sarah Watts.)
I have a whole lot of reverse applique throws on my list now to make for family members for the summer.
