Faith and Felt Obsession

Thursday 9 September 2021

Quiet Book Experiments - Epic Fails

Today, I want to share some of my Epic Fails with you. Making busy books can be a bit of an experiment, and sometimes the experiment fails. Anyway, I hope it will be an encouragement to know that we all make mistakes. A blog is generally full of all the good things, and usually the mistakes don't make it here. In fact, it is easy to hide mistakes by careful photography, and I have been guilty of that as you can see below if you are a Faith and Felt Obsession fan.

Epic Fails may make a comeback in future posts, but for now, here are the first 5 that I am willing to share!

1. Hot Glue Gun Epic Fail

Whilst this page remains one of Tahlia's favourites, I still count it as a fail. I was trying to cheat and make a quick and easy page with hot glue and a few old lids from baby wipe packets. The hot glue has not worked very well and the page threatens to fall apart every time we use it. But the idea is LOVED. You have to guess which door the pig is hidden behind. One person looks away while the other person hides the pig. Loads of fun to a child. I may have to make a better version out of felt some day, but for now, this will do until it finally does FAIL completely.

2. Speckled Felt - for Speckled Eggs Epic Fail

This was my attempt to make felt with a bit more character. In Australia there are not many options when it comes to buying patterned felt. Of course there are more options if you buy online, but I still don't see the options I have seen available in the U.S.

I wanted to make speckled eggs for a hen quiet book page I was making (will link to it once published). Now my felt just smells like bleach and did not turn out speckled at all. Thanks to Murphy's Law the bleach did not work when I wanted it to, but no doubt it would work very well if I spilled bleach accidentally on a finished page.

I tried using a spray gun to apply the bleach and left it overnight. That didn't work, so I tried wetting the felt first so it would soak into the felt better instead of sitting more on top. I dabbed it on in larger spots. That also didn't work. So I ended up with no change in colour, but a definite change in smell. I wanted speckled fresh eggs and ended up with a FELT FAIL that smelled more like century eggs!

3. Quiet Book Binding Epic Fail

I like a good finish, but I am willing to cut as many corners as I can to get there. I had seen Irina Sorokina's YouTube tutorial on how to bind a quiet book, but I was still feeling intimidated and overwhelmed. But I liked the finish so started thinking about how I could cut a few of those daunting corners off. Pun intended.

I decided that I could get a similar look by sandwiching the pages and wadding between a folded ribbon and sewing that down. You can see my efforts in my blog posts Easy Peasy Pocket Page 8"x8" Material Quiet Book, Puzzle Quiet Book Page Swap, and Post Binding Quiet Book Closure.

You may notice that I didn't post many pictures of the completed book. That is because I didn't want to show off my epic fail. I didn't allow enough ribbon in the spine for the book to open properly, so when it lays flat, the pages overlap instead of laying alongside each other.

Honestly, I still find the traditional binding method daunting. And that is why I keep trying to share alternatives with you all. Why not give some of them a go:

4. Buying a Heat Press Epic Fail

As I spoke about in my Sublimation Printing on Felt - Test post, I finally got around to purchasing a heat press so I can transfer sublimation prints onto felt. Actually this was the second one I bought. The first purchase was an EPIC FAIL too. I first bought one from AliExpress, where I buy a lot of craft supplies such as buttons, beads and ribbon. Apparently the postage was too great and then there were taxes etc - the supplier kept asking for more money. After expressing my dis-satisfaction they agreed to refund the purchase and gave my money back, thankfully.

My second purchase was from e-Bay. It was not much more expensive than the Ali-Express one and was coming from a company based in Australia, so it would be easier for me to make arrangements if there were any issues. It also included delivery. I thought I was doing great this time, but when it arrived I found more problems...

I stared at the box for months. It looked complicated to put together and I didn't have the mental energy to approach it. I was scared. Then when I finally opened the box... I found it was already put together and I only had to change it if I wanted a different attachment. But, it was too heavy for me to lift!! Now I felt I would have to nag my husband to move it for me if I want to use it 😁.

After he did lift it out for me, I have discovered I can move it from one place to another, so ling as it is already at bench height. So it is now in my garage on a shelf and I can get it out onto a bench if I want and put it away. although I am still yet to order any sublimation printed paper from Digitextiles as planned and am now considering getting a sublimation printer too so that I will actually use the heat press... watch this space.

5. Sewing Pleather to Felt Epic Fail

Okay, so this one is rather embarrassing.

I completely massacred this death mask. I guess that's a little ironic. At least it makes for a good Epic Fail post. I hope you can see all the tiny stitches from the pleather not feeding through my sewing machine properly, and all the skipped stitches which resulted in me going over the same area several times in an attempt to save it.

Stretchy pleather is a nightmare to sew. That is all.

I was able to do an acceptable job by using glue to secure the pleather to the felt prior to sewing, which helped a lot. You can see the results in my Genesis 50 - Joseph's Bones Quiet Book Page post.

I'm thinking I might buy some glitter felt for the next gold project...

Ultimately, if you don't give it a go, you won't give yourself the chance to learn and improve.

Epic Fails can teach you a lot!

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Have you had any Epic Fails? Comment Below!

Thursday 12 August 2021

Amos 3 - The Lion Roars Quiet Book Page

In Amos chapter 3, Amos preaches to the Israelites about how they have treated God's messengers. Even though they are not willing to listen to the prophets and have told them all to shut up, Amos is more afraid of not listening to God than listening to them - and their efforts to shut him up will be futile.

Memory Verse: “Surely the Lord God does nothing,
Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.
A lion has roared!
Who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken!
Who can but prophesy?” Amos 3:7-8 NKJV.

Materials needed to create the The Lion Roars quiet book page:

A4 felt background sheet - I used dark brown
my free Amos 3 - The Lion Roars Bible Quiet Book Template Pattern
felt in light brown, hot pink, light pink/very light brown, black and white
6 black grommets and tool set - I used 3mm inside diameter (perhaps 5mm height)
2mm elastic in black or gray - I used 3 lengths of about 20cm
two round buttons for the eyes
various ribbons in orange, gold, yellow, red and browns for the mane
two 33mm white horn buttons for the teeth - I bought this in colour 4 (not an afiliate link)
sewing threads to best match the page
scissors!

Cut all the pattern pieces (you can use these to help with positioning pieces later).

Cut the ribbons into lengths about 12cm long and melt the edges - see my post on How to Stop Ribbons Fraying. Sew them down as a mane under where the lion's head will be. I used a lot of zig zag stitch to sew things down underneath where they wouldn't be seen.

I often make more than one page at a time.
The extra sewing is not too bad when you
don't have to change thread colours, and
that way I can have extra pages for presents
and a practice run before sewing the real thing.

Sew the inner ears to the outer ears and then the outer ear to more felt and cut them out. Sew them in position too.

Cut and sew down the white teeth to the pink inner mouths about 5mm from the edge to allow the sewing machine foot to pass later on.

I cut out the mouth from black instead of pink, but thought
it might make a good experiment to do it that way too.
I took a photo so you can see and compare
and decide which way you prefer.

Sew on the white horn buttons to form teeth making sure that the upper and lower jaws will close without the teeth impeding on each other.

Then sew the pink inner mouths to black outer mouths (upper and lower) and sew the lower mouth/jaw in place.

Sew the nose to the head and insert the grommets. Thread the elastic through from the front to the back and back to the front through the opposite grommet. When you pull the top right whisker it should shorten the bottom left and so forth. Knot the ends to prevent the whiskers pulling out. I taped mine down out of the way so I could sew the next section.

Using matching threads to the mouth and head (match the felt not the spool and bobbin), sew the upper mouth/jaw to the head underneath where the nose and whiskers are along the outer edge only (otherwise you will have a sewn line across the lion's face), stopping about one centimetre short of either end.

Place the head in position and fold back the top section so you can attach the inner jaw lining using zig zag stitch. Sew the head using normal stitch to attach the head on top of the mane and ears along the outer edge meeting your previous sewing at the jaw.

Sew on the buttons as eyes.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Intermediate

The hardest part of this page is sewing the the top mouth section together with the teeth already handsewn on - just make sure you leave enough room for the sewing machine foot to pass.

Installing grommets can be intimidating, but once you try, they are easy and make you very satisfied with your efforts! The following YouTube tutorial by Irina Sorokina from My Craft Quiet Books should help.

Eyelets and grommets - My Craft Quiet Books

Key Learning Areas and Skills

Amos 3 - It is better to listen to God than man
Imaginative play - open and close the lion's mouth and give a big roar (ok, so this page may not be so quiet!)
Pull Strings - do you dare to pull the lion's whiskers?
Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Tahlia says the memory verse and explains how to

pull the lions whiskers and make him roar.

Read the Chapter

Amos 3

Devotional

Amos chapter 3 contrasts Amos chapter 2 where the prophets of God are silenced by the people.

Amos has a healthy view of God and man however, and knows that when the lion roars you better be scared. And when God speaks, Amos prophesies!

If there is something we need to know about beforehand, we are assured God will (or has) let us know. Amos is warning Israel, Judah, and their neighbouring nations about the coming destruction of Assyria and Babylon. But of course the coming destruction prefigures the coming destruction of the entire world at the end.

When the lion roars, we would do well to listen. God has told us the end from the beginning and continued telling us all through the middle. God makes no move without telling us - just like a parent warns their children that if they don't eat their dinner they won't get desert. The end should come as no surprise to anyone who has been listening.

God Reveals His Secrets To His Servants (Amos 3:7)

(Country Living)

The memory verse for this chapter is one of my treasured verses. I have been researching the Second Coming for a while now, and here, God claims that He will do NOTHING without telling us first.

It is a very common belief that Jesus will surprise everyone at His second appearance, but I have found that God tends to be very predictable. And I think that is because He is trustworthy, and repeats Himself in so many patterns in an attempt to get things through to our distrusting selves.

History has followed the pattern,
so will the future.

Jesus fulfilled prophecy to the minute at His first coming - he died at the time of the evening sacrifice on Passover, having entered Jerusalem on the 10th of the month, just as the lamb set aside for the purpose must have done. Why would He not fulfil prophecy exactly at His return?

The spring feasts were fulfilled at His First Coming - I believe the fall feasts will be fulfilled at the Second Coming.

To see how No One Knows The Day or Hour fits into this, you can read the article by Hebrew Roots.

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Thursday 29 July 2021

Interview with Michelle Dawson - Using a Cutting Machine to Help Make Quiet Books

Today I would like to introduce you to Michelle Dawson and find out how she uses her cutting machine to help make quiet books. I know a lot of people own or are thinking about buying a cutting machine for quiet book making so I thought you might like to read about how useful it may or may not be before you make a big investment.

Carissa D: Which type of cutting machine do you own and would you buy it again?

Michelle: I have a Brother Scan'n'Cut, a CM 300. I have had it around 4 1/2 years now. I do a lot of paper crafting and I initially wanted the machine for this reason. I am really not techy at all, and I actually find the machine very easy to use; on occasion I find the Brother Canvas programme a bit frustrating - this is an online programme where you can design your projects and edit them before moving them to the machine (my machine doesn't have WiFi, I have to use a USB to transfer the project, but I don't find that an issue), although I think that's more a lack of regular practice. I love that I can easily access free files on the internet and download them, pretty much anything I can think of is available. My machine happily cuts a huge range of materials, from thin papers to vinyl to felt to construction board and I'm yet to find something I want to cut which I can't.

Carissa D: I am not a big fan of cutting machines, but I know you really liked using it to make your quiet book. What are the advantages in your opinion?

Michelle: I have mainly used my machine to cut a paper template and then pinned this onto my felt and cut that, but that's personal preference. I like that it is really really easy to resize the image and/or to add an offset line for a seam allowance. I find that I am able to mock up pages in paper and try them in different layouts before I commit to felt which is much more expensive, and this has meant that I know if I'm pleased with the overall effect first. As I said before, the internet has myriad free SVG cutting files which means that I can create pages with just about anything I want, or which fits with my mini man's interests. I find that using my Scan'n'Cut to cut my templates has saved me a lot of time, something really important to me.

Carissa D: Do you have your cutting machine permanently set up somewhere, or do you store it away and get it out each time you use it?

Michelle: My cutting machine is permanently set up. I have a desk in the spare room and I keep my Scan'n'Cut on it. I find that the actual footprint doesn't take much space or get in the way, it's about 10 inches deep and I have it turned so that it's the depth of the desk, so only takes that 10 inches ish of space

Carissa D: Did you notice any disadvantages or things people considering using one should be aware of?

Michelle: In order to cut fabric on my machine, I have to stick it to a mat (as far as I'm aware this would be true of any cutting machine). I found it frustrating that the felt looked a bit 'fluffy' after this, although only on the rear, and mainly that the mat very quickly became furred up, and therefore not sticky, but by using a paper template I addressed this issue.
If you're good with scissors you can probably print and cut a very good shape without the cost of the machine which I admit is considerable, but as the new mother of a baby and now toddler (and another little addition on the way) time is very much of the essence and being able to set the machine going as I get out of the shower or similar is really valuable to me.

Carissa D: How many quiet book pages have you made using your cutting machine and which is your favourite?

Michelle: I have used my Scan'n'Cut to create at least an element of every page I have made so far, from cutting templates for basic shapes (circles, squares, triangles...), to cutting a crocodile and balloons.
My favourite page is a large ladybird who has black spots which attach using press studs, I like the textures and the simplicity of the image. The page was probably 2-3 hours work because I hand sew, and having a ready cut paper template saved me a lot of cutting time.

Carissa D: Which is your favourite Faith and Felt Obsession post and why?

Michelle: Your quiet book making tips are absolutely invaluable. It's so helpful having so many hints and tips in one easy to find location, and things which are tried and tested.

Last year I joined in the sew along [Quiet Book Sew Along Facebook Group - Events Tab] and I loved the motivation and the ideas, even though by the end of the year I did lose my oomph with it. Your page suggestions were fun, a good range of simple and detailed and also covered a lot of activities and skills.

Carissa D: Thank you so much for sharing with us Michelle! I love that you were able to find a way to speed up the process of making quiet books. Anything that will keep us motivated to create is great. For those of us who do not own a cutting machine and are wondering how to re-size their images you can read some other suggestions on my How to re-size printable quiet book templates to fit your page size post. Your pages are pretty cute and I'm sure your mini-man loves playing with them. Well done!

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Do you use a cutting machine to help make your quiet books? How do you use yours? Comment below!

Thursday 15 July 2021

Genesis 40 - The Baker's and The Butler's Dreams Quiet Book Page

In Genesis chapter 40, Joseph correctly interprets the dreams of Pharaoh's Chief Baker and Chief Butler.

Memory Verse: “Then he restored the chief butler to his butlership again, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.” Genesis 40:21-22 NKJV.

Materials needed to create the The Baker's and The Butler's Dreams quiet book page:

A4 felt background sheet - I used light tan
my free Genesis 40 - The Baker's and the Butler's Dreams Bible Quiet Book Template Pattern
felt in dark brown, yellow, white, mint, light blue, mauve, light tan and tan
wadding scraps
gold grommets and tool set - I used 3mm inside diameter (perhaps 5mm height)
1mm elastic in mint, purple, and yellow - I bought these (not an affiliate link)
vine leaf beads
grape cluster beads
colourful bird beads - I bought these (not an affiliate link)
three small buttons
material suitable for the white baskets (don't choose anything too thick or it will be difficult to sew)
sewing threads to best match the page
hot glue and glue gun
scissors!

Cut all the pattern pieces (you can use these to help with positioning pieces later).

Use the template to help you position your pieces before sewing

Cut and sew down these pieces in the following order using matching thread - benches, butler's rear leg, butler's front leg, baker's legs, butler's head, dream circles, butler's outstretched arm, butler's torso, butler's bent arm, baker's torso with arms, baker's head, side loincloths, middle loincloths, pharaoh's cup (in butler's hand), and vine.

Draw basket outlines onto the wrong side of your basket material. Sew a very tight zig zag stitch along the top edges of all three basket outlines (excluding the basket base). Cut out the baskets, being careful not to cut any of the stitching. Sew the base basket onto the baker's dream circle using a very tight zig zag stitch along the top edge only. Lay the largest basket and top of the basket base and sew both edges down with a tight zig zag stitch till just below where the next basket's top edge will sit. Lay the next basket on top and repeat this process. Lay the smallest basket down and sew all the way around with a tight zig zag stitch from one side to the other, catching all the baskets along the bottom edge.

The material I was originally using was rather thick so I did a test to see if my machine could handle all the layers. It could, but to my dismay I read the story again and discovered that the basket was white!

I had to change my basket fabric... thankfully everyone on my Facebook page comments liked the white baskets better. That was encouraging because I liked the look of the dark basket better, but I do like to get all the details as correct that I can. Although the baskets being white may imply contents of white bread... but scholars are not sure, and I had already made the bread (including some white bread).

I also tried a quilted calico fabric but I think
it would have been too thick

Use the pattern pieces to mark where you need grommets and install them (see video below).

Tie a grape cluster bead to the end of some green elastic and thread on a couple of leaves. Thread the elastic through the horizontal grommets along the vine adding beads to the elastic as you go. Finish by tying the end to the last bead. The elastic end should look like a tendril. Repeat this process with another length of green elastic along the vertical grommets of the vine.

For the birds eating the bread, thread three coloured elastics through the grommets from the back on one side of the baskets, adding a bird bead before re-entering the same hole. Continue threading the elastic through an opposite hole on the other side of the basket and add another bird before re-entering back through the grommet. Thread both ends of each elastic onto a button and tie the ends together. The button will prevent the knot from being pulled through the grommets and onto the right side.

To make the dark rye bread rolls, cut out the top pieces and sew onto tan felt around the slits. Cut them out and sew to another dark background then cut them out again.

Repeat this process in a similar fashion for the oval bread and pie. For the pull-apart rolls, cut out the top and sew down onto another piece of felt with a piece of smaller wadding in between. Add stitching down the long centre and two lots of stitching down the shorter part to add the 6-pack detail, then cut them out.

For the croissants, cut out the top pieces and sew them onto another piece of felt and cut them out. Roll them up using a small amount of hot glue to keep them in place.

Of course the baker would have been anticipating Pharaoh's birthday and have made him a cake. So cut out two cake pieces and sew the icing pieces on. Hot glue the cake together along the sides and top edges, leaving the bottom edge open to form a finger puppet.

Fill the baskets with the baked goods.

Finished!