Balzer Designs

Quilt Block Pillows

I don't know about you, but summer weather mixed with social distancing means we spend a lot of time on our porch. I discovered that an easy way to jazz up my outdoor furniture -- and make it feel more homey -- is with some throw pillows. As you can see, I made two throw pillow covers from the same quilt block pattern. But even though the pillow covers are both made from the exact some pattern, they look quite different! It all comes down to fabric choice. As you can see, I made one with solids and the other... Read more →

Two Magical Rings are Great Sewing Tools

I've been working on a lot of Make It Artsy projects lately. Last night I was sewing up a storm, putting together quilt blocks. When I sew, I use two magical rings: a pin ring and a cutter ring. They make everything quick and easy. I do have a tutorial on making your own pin ring. Find it HERE. I bought the blinged out cutter ring years ago at Quilt Festival in Houston and you can buy your own HERE. It's an easy way to have scissors with you, without having scissors with you. Thanks for stopping by! Read more →

Dancing with the Wall: Quickstep with Irene Roderick

I took a live online quilting class with Irene Roderick last week. Over the course of a week, we were to create a two-color improv quilt top. Take a peek at my progress: And here it is all stitched together: I'm quite pleased with where I ended up, even if I did end up grabbing a third color. Rules were meant to be broken, after all. You can see that I completely dismantled my design between photos 3 and 4. It looked too much like houses or silos or something recognizable. I wanted something truly abstract. I haven't determined whether... Read more →

Quilt-as-You-Go in Progress

Just before the baby was born, I put together some improv circles. They grew and grew into quite a fearsomely large quilt top. For scale, each quarter circle section is 8.5x8.5. At some point I add some black and white sashing. And then this design sat on my design wall for five months because I was so intimidated by the notion of quilting a quilt that large. I posted a photo of some of the blocks on instagram and someone suggested quilt-as-you-go. Fun fact: I started a quilt-as-you-go project back in 2007, and blogged about it, but I'm pretty sure... Read more →

Adventures in Arting Podcast: Carol Soderlund

On today's podcast I'm talking to Carol Soderlund about her journey to becoming an expert in fabric dyeing, slow stitching, Nancy Crow, and so much more. If you do not see the podcast player above, please click on this link. On the off chance that you've never listened to a podcast or don't get why anybody would want to, here are some facts: (1) Podcasts are convenient. It's a recording that is available to you whenever and wherever you'd like to listen. You can pause, stop, start, fast forward, and rewind. Stream it through Apple Music or any podcast service.... Read more →

Fabric Face Mask with Filter Pocket

Like many people who sew, I made some cloth face masks. I used the template provided in the description of THIS video tutorial to make these particular masks: I used all kinds of fabric: hand painted, hand printed, hand dyed, sun printed, and commercial. The ones I made are for friends and family and I sent them out into the world with this video I made on how to use them -- proper fit is very important to functionality: This particular mask design calls for 6 pieces -- 2 outer, 2 lining, and 2 for the filter pocket. I cut... Read more →

Chip Bag

Anyone else feel like they might need to social distance from their refrigerator?! ;) Well, if you can't stop snacking, you're actually just making materials for future craft projects. I took a Doritos bag and a Ruffles bag and turned them into this fabulous zippered bag: It has a flat bottom... ...and a lining... ...so it's perfect for art supplies, makeup...or even snacks! (PS: Do you recognize that fabric? It's a piece I printed during #PrintInktober!) Some tips on making a bag like this: I washed and dried the chip bags before I used them. I cut the bags open... Read more →

ScanNCut: Videos for Sewers

I have a super fun project for you today! We are going to take advantage of the fact that the ScanNCut makes cutting shapes from stiff felt quick and easy. We are making this booklet-style felt needle case: These needle cases make great gifts and can be customized for the recipient with a variety of motifs and even their name! Watch the video for the how-to: Here's a peek at some of the details of that gorgeous needle case! And here's what it looks like inside: It's beautiful and functional. Can't beat that! I love to create "technique" videos for... Read more →

Sun-Printed Shamrock "Galaxy" Fabric

What can you do with these little shamrocks? Well, let me tell you! As I mentioned yesterday, I made a stencil... ...and I was about to throw away all of the cut-out shamrocks when I had an idea: Why not use them to sun print some fabric?! And so I did! To me, the colors I chose and the way I laid out the shamrocks ended up making this piece of fabric take on a quasi-galaxy-like appearance. It isn't until you take a closer look that you really see the shamrocks: I love how some of them are crisp and... Read more →

Two Day Class with Susan Lenz

Just before I went into labor with the baby, I attended a two-day workshop with fiber artist, Susan Lenz. Class was wonderful and got me super excited about making things. Susan uses a combination of fast (burning and machine stitching) and slow (hand stitching and beading) techniques and does a ton of transformation of ugly items into things of beauty. I loved class. Unfortunately for you, I did a terrible job taking photos during class -- i.e. I didn't take any. But I do have photos of some of the things I made in class. I actually walked away with... Read more →