Book Preview #3

When I think about it, I'm pretty amazed that the project I'm featuring today is one of my favorites. First off, it wasn't even my idea to design one of these; my editor suggested it. It's not an item I would typically make like a quilt or pillow, yet it is, without a doubt, one of my favorite projects in the book .

 I love this sewing machine cover on so many levels.

There's the simple fact that it's a very practical item. As someone who is forever cursing having to stop sewing so I can brush lint out of my machine, anything that cuts down on dust and drek in there is a good idea.
Also, because I'm always a little tentative whenever I engineer something, I'm awfully proud that I figured out how to insert a piece of cardboard in between the layers so that top of the cover would lay flat on the machine. And, the cherry on top of that is that the cardboard wasn't new or some fancy oak tag, but straight out of my recycling bin.

If I'm completely honest though, I'd have to say the element that endears this item to me most is the patchwork pattern. I based it on a photo of a window I saw in a magazine. I saved the photo and would periodically look at it and wonder how I could adapt it to patchwork. What's funny is that the final pattern is only dimly like the photo, but I guess it was just a jumping off point.
I love this pattern so much that I've already re-imagined it as this:

and this:

There are loads of variations on this pattern and the more it's re-worked the more possibilities are revealed. Maybe that's why I'm drawn to this project. The pattern can be adapted to a host of items in a host of configurations. And that's just what I might come up with. I can't wait to see what others figure out.