It's Not All Christmas

It might be called the Holly Bazaar, and it definitely has a Christmas theme, but the gals who run the craft table also welcome items that can be used year round rather than just during the holiday season, so I like to try and ensure that they get a bit of variety.

Several years ago I made journal covers and a set of placemats for the bazaar, so I got to rummaging in my batik stash (it's actually just a tray of fabrics that I have somehow kept to a manageable level).

As I was playing with a few ideas I came across several strip sets, remnants from a project I had tried and abandoned.

Leaf-shaped potholders, to be exact. My sister, Dori, had made a lovely pair so I decided to give them a try. I wasn't as taken with mine as I was with hers so they never got bound, left to a life of limbo in the batik cubby.

Anyway, back the the remnants. There were four strips, which was perfect, so I trimmed them to a three-inch width and tucked them into a blue floral batik. Too easy!

A little straight-line quilting and I had a set of placemats ready to bind. I've just put the last stitches in the binding - a creamy beige - so there's now a set of four to add to the Holly Bazaar goodie pile.

The backing is a mottled tan with several colours running through it which works well with the binding and I think they could easily be used either side up. The photo is a tad on the dark side but the print is warm shades of brown.

In addition, I've got the last five I'll Be Gnome for Christmas potholders prepped and will spend the day hand stitching them down because there's no time to dilly dally.

Roberta has already quilted all of the goodies that I dropped off for her last weekend so this bundle of joy is now waiting for bindings. Not surprisingly, she has done just a superb job on them; I'll have more to share as they reach the finish line. Who knows? I might even decide to bind those leaf potholders and see if they appeal to anyone....M