A Clay Jar and Mug Rug

A Mug Rug inspired by... faith

Oh, dear little mug rug , how do I love thee?  Let me count the ways....

You are tiny... and anything "mini" is  cute!

You are a little "practice run" of a pattern or a  block or  an idea....

(translation:  if there is a mistake, I don't  lose a lot of time or fabric!!)

I am much more likely to try something different and new when making you, a  little rug  (Translation:  I am 'chicken' on big things! but will give it a try if it is small!)

Since you are little, you can be finished quickly....  that's closer to instant gratification (compared to a big quilt)

I always have a  source of PATTERNS  (easy, cute , seasonal, versatile) at my fingertips , for when I am in the mood to make a new mug rug.  Enablers Designers , The Patchsmith  and   Amy Made That! , create beautiful and fun designs for mug rugs...(Check out their  blogs to see their patterns  for sale on Craftsy!)  

One of the Patchsmith's Mug Rug Patterns-  Blackbirds

(This  Blackbirds pattern is on my "To Make" list!)

Amy Made That! 's  Tumbler Mug Rug
(I made something based on this Tumbler pattern, but can't show it until Christmas!)

You are so fun to give away!

Sometimes, my own ideas come together to  make a mug rug.  ( I also like that there are no set rules of what a mug rug HAS to be.)

One Sunday,  after hearing an inspiring sermon by Pastor Jim, at our church,   an idea for a mug rug just popped into my head.  The sermon was based on the scripture 2 Corinthians 4: 7-12 ;  treasures in clay jars.    

I found a machine embroidery pattern for the Presbyterian Church Symbol.  And also stitched the words , with my Viking Topaz.

I found a  paper pieced JAR  pattern online from Shape Moth!  Perfect!

I found a paper pieced pattern for making jars , at  Shape Moth.com, and then I ordered fabric that looked like terra cotta , for clay.

Clay Jars   Mug Rug  for Pastor Jim

Thank you for inspiring us every week, Pastor Jim!
When you see this little mini quilt , remember you are appreciated!

I'm off to my sewing room!

See more about this Sew Along in my next blog post!

Halloween Mug Rugs

Halloween Mug Rugs

I decided to make some Halloween themed mug rugs this week.  
I think that I have an bad case of "Mug Rug Fever" ...
Some mild symptoms first appeared  after I made my   Scottie Dog Mug Rug . I got  cranky mildly irritated when I didn't have time to immediately make a second one upon completion.  
Then,  my fever started climbing higher and higher as I read the recent posts  from Amanda,  The Patchsmith.

Spoiler alert:    Skip over  this next  area in red  if you don't want to know what Amanda's latest mug rug pattern is before you see her blog post! (or  if your immune system can't handle being exposed to the Mug Rug Bug  right now!)
*********************************************************************************************************                                  It is so darn cute and irresistible... 
                                                Elephants!!  
She has this new pattern and lots of other cute patterns available on Craftsy.              And, you won't want to  miss seeing  her blog post on Thursday, Oct. 4, as she will have an original design featured that day in  the Glorious Autumn Block Party by Quilting Gallery.com.   You will be seeing more of her patterns on Susie's Sunroom in the future.   She is so darling and talented, and makes me laugh. ;)

Spoiler End ****************************************************************************

Whiskers is pointing to her favorite one.... but she prefers bigger rugs to lay on!

 OK,  you can read now.  
I made myself finish the piles of clothes that needed to be ironed.  Then I treated myself to  some fun- by making  some mug rugs out of Halloween colors.  (Does anyone else make herself do the "chores" first ,  and then reward herself  with "sewing time" ?!)  (uh-oh...)

Here are my two new mug rugs:

Ghost  and Candy Corn Mug Rugs

 The ghost was fun to make, because I used scraps . I decided to make it scrappy for the background and the back side.

I sewed 1 1/2 inch strips together.  Then I cut the rectangle out  on on angle.

The Back:  even patchier and scrappier,  by sewing pieces together to form a larger rectangle.  

 I applied the ghost-shaped applique to the front, using Heat-n-Bond lite, iron-on adhesive.Then I  used embroidery thread to create  his eyes and mouth. (by hand).  Machine quilting was next-

I made "ripples" around the shape of the ghost, to machine quilt it

I blanket stitched the applique shape, using my Viking Topaz.  I love this stitch!

Now for the binding:   I have started  using this great machine binding method for small projects, like mug rugs , wall hangings and pot holders.  My clever sister, Amy, of Amy Made That! has put  her method together into  a free pdf file download (free pdf.)   (Treat yourself and go look at her blog!  I just love her style and fabric choices.)

Reality... I did not photoshop-out my imperfect binding.  It is  a little  wavy in  areas...  (And my photos seem to magnify the waves.) ....and a bit wonky at both of the right- hand corners.  But I can live with the way it looks .  Neat and clean. And it doesn't take much time to execute this method  on the sewing machine.  
Reality... Amy makes them near perfection! [ I have a lot of catchin' up to do to get even close to her level!!]

My Wonky Ghost Mug Rug

This is my Candy Corn Mug Rug:

 

Candy Corn mug rug  

 I just pieced some fabric leftovers for the back.

Back side.   No problems with this binding. I did this one BEFORE the Ghost... go figure!

Well, time to stop sewing and go shopping for some fall-flavored coffee! So I can use my rugs.
Let me know if any of you are running a Mug Rug Fever!    It is contagious!  :) sorry  not really

I'm off to my sewing room!