“Fiddle-de-dee’s not English.”

This is in response to Weekly Geeks 2009-04!

#1. What are you passionate about besides reading and blogging?

It’s not really a passion, but I like patchwork projects! When I feel like making something, I definitely go into it with a lot of enthusiasm, but once I pack things back into my box they can stay in there for months.

I like sewing but I’m not very good at it. The seamstress in my family is my aunt — she makes traditional baju kurungs (not the best-written article in the world, I suppose, but it will do. I am surprised there’s no Wikipedia entry!). She taught me how to make the baju kurung, but I never quite got the hang of it, but I had always liked playing with the scraps left over when she was done. Noticing this, she introduced me to the art of patchwork.

Of all things in the world, she started with teaching me how to make a patchwork using hexagons! I don’t know what she was thinking — I know I was a quick little girl (I was maybe ten or eleven at the time), but starting things by having me trying to calculate how many hexagons I needed to complete a pattern was quite evil, don’t you think? Anyway, hexagon patterns almost always end up as a variation of this, and mine was a skewed variation of that — my hexagons weren’t quite the same size, creating havoc all around.

I haven’t used a hexagon since in my patchworks.

Hexagon asides, I like patchwork projects, since I can use anything and they’re easy to complete. It also appeals to the organised part of me — structured, but not too rigid. I usually choose very small projects, like making 16″ x 16″ cushion covers or small bags or pouches, often for my own use. I don’t quilt, though. Too much hassle to find the material for batting and then quilting those delicate, intricate designs. So non-quilted cushion covers it is!

Here’s a cushion cover I’m using right now. It’s actually one big square in the middle bordered with blue cloth, but I like it:

Also seen with the cushion: a copy of Nicolò Rising by Dorothy Dunnett that I keep thinking of starting but I still haven’t yet, and the one set face down is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K Dick (very short recap here), which I had just finished a few days back. Hmm, I should’ve arranged things more artistically before I snapped that photo!

Most people probably think that patchwork, especially using geometric shapes, isn’t really that difficult. Just cutting scraps of fabric into squares and rectangles and perhaps the occasional hexagon and you’re done, right? Not really — it needs planning and precision, otherwise your end product won’t end being the shape you want it to be! (This is the voice of personal experience speaking — heed it.) You need to know how large the final product will be, and plan out how your pattern repeats (or doesn’t) and what colours to use. And the measurements need to be right — or you might end up with a pillowcase that doesn’t fit the pillow because you forgot to take into account the seam allowance . . . (guess who forgot to do that).

There are software out there that helps you with the designs, but I prefer the old fashioned way using pencil and grid paper. This is where I find my engineering drawings classes of yore to be useful. XD Here’s how my floor looks like when I have my fabrics and patterns laid out:

The seven squares laid out are for another cushion cover. The hearts on the two corner squares were appliquéd on, but that’s the extent my appliqué skill. Anything more fancy, I’d probably poke my finger with the needle instead. The other side of the cover will use the rail fence pattern — that’s what the three strips are for.

There’s also an almost finished bag there. The “handles” aren’t sewn in yet. Here, have a look at it the right way up:

Also in the photo: books! From the top: Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World, due for a re-read; also re-reading Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising after the movie left a sour taste in my mouth; The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, which I haven’t started; and Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny, which I stopped after a few chapters and have yet to continue because I was wondering whether everyone in it was high on something (they were not — they were just from another world). Also in the photo: a mug of tea on the table and a part of my notice board. (You might wonder where I sit as I type this. The answer: on the bed.)

I also like gardening. Not really a passion, either: it’s just something I like doing on weekend mornings. I don’t even know the names of half of the plants. Photos of some of them:

Uh. This has ended up being a photography session, it looks like. Photography isn’t one of my hobbies, though.

#2. Get us involved.

For patchwork, I like going to The Quilter’s Cache, especially the Quilt Blocks Galore section. I like looking at the patterns even though I always end up picking the easy ones.

If you’re just getting started, try making the Rail Fence Block! The instructions there are easy to follow — I’m pretty sure that’s the easiest block ever to make.

For gardening, I sometimes flip through my mother’s Laman (literally: “Lawn”) magazines. Sometimes I call my mother up for advice, but that’s about it.

Aside from that, I don’t really have much reference for either patchwork or gardening. I just do the best I can in both and sometimes end with disastrous results (gardening, especially, is not really my thing with my schedule) but I carry on!

#3. Visit other Weekly Geeks.

I’m looking forward to reading what the other Weekly Geeks are passionate about! I’ll update this section as I visit.