project // the great pumpkin stockings

"The pumpkins were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that the Great Pumpkin soon would be there."

That's how that poem goes, right?

For those of you who are new to Wild Olive, let me start this by introducing my family. I'm the oldest of six kids and my youngest sister is 9 years old. We love holidays and generally enjoy a bit of silliness.

In the last few years, we've started talking more about the Great Pumpkin (you know, as in, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown). We've left notes out in yard near where the pumpkins were growing, and other such things. My little brothers and sister know that it's all in jest, and they love it!

So this year, my little sis said that I should make some pumpkin "stockings" so we could hang them on the mantle. It was just too fun to pass up! Read on for the pattern and DIY, as well as some fun ways to use this, even if you aren't inviting the Great Pumpkin to your house.



You will need:
(makes one)

1/4 yard orange fabric (or two pieces if you would like contrasting lining)
1/4 yard mid-weight fusible interfacing
15-inch piece of ribbon
2 buttons (I used leaves, but plain ones will do!)
embroidery floss
black felt

iron
scissors
pins
sewing machine
needle and thread
fabric glue

Pumpkin Stocking PDF Pattern

A note on fabric: I was making six of these, so I bought six cuts, then staggered the fabrics for the linings, so I got contrast without waste. Also, if your fabric store doesn't always give you straight, full cuts, you may want to be safe and get 1/3 yard, as you will need a full 1/4 for this.



Iron the fusible interfacing onto the back of your outside fabric. The width of the interfacing will be just enough for the shapes to be cut.



Using the templates and adding a 1/4-inch seam allowance, cut two outside pieces and two lining pieces.



Pin an outside piece to a lining piece with right sides together. Sew across the top edge. Repeat for the other pieces.



Now, place the sewn pieces right sides together, so that the lining matches the lining and the outside matches the outside. Sew around the shape, leaving an opening in the lining section. You can see where I pinned the opposite direction to make sure I didn't sew it closed. Also, you'll want to back stitch at the start and stop, since you'll be turning this right side out.



Clip the curves, and carefully snip the indent. Just don't cut through any stitches!




Turn the pumpkin right side out and smooth the curves. You'll notice that on the sides where the shapes meet, it's a little puckered. Don't worry, that will go away soon.

Stitch the opening in the lining closed. I used ladder stitch, but whip stitch works too.



Push the lining into the pouch and again, smooth everything out. Give it a nice ironing too, because it will be wrinkly from turning it.



Trim the ends of your ribbon piece and sew it on at the two edges of the opening. You can stitch through all of the layers, the ribbon, and the buttons at one time using three strands of orange embroidery floss.



Cut out the face pieces from black felt and use fabric glue to attach them.

You could stitch these on before you start sewing the bag together, but remember...I had six to make. Glue sped things up, and it looks nice and neat!




Hey! Your pumpkin stocking is finished! Now, I realize that your family may not be quite as quirky as we are, so instead of hanging these by your fireplace, consider these options:

Halloween purse for your little girl
Trick-or-treat pouch for your little one in a stroller
Super special gift bag




But come on. You've gotta admit that a row of pumpkins on your mantle would be pretty sweet, right?

I've heard that the Great Pumpkin will be filling these with each person's favorite candy treat (because you never seem to get enough of your favorite while trick-or-treating). However, they would be perfect as a way to give kids healthy treats, let kids with food allergies have some special treats, or even some fun little non-sweet treats!



I'm hoping for Almond Joys in my pumpkin...what would you be wishing for from the Great Pumpkin?

pattern & project // spooky cat coasters

At Halloween time, you see lots of black cats around, and I especially like those that have a vintage look to them. That's what I was going for when I drew up a black cat for this month's character. He shows up on the calendar desktop, today's pattern & project, and if I get extra ambitious, a printable later this week.

You can stitch this spooky cat and some candy corn on anything you want, but to get you started, I've made a very easy coaster that is a nice companion to a cup of coffee or hot cider. Coasters are fun projects for me because they are small and simple, and nice to switch out seasonally.

But before I get too far, today's post is coordinated Do Small Things with Love. Go give her a visit and learn how to make a spooky cat hoop!



Nancy has been making all kinds of fun Halloween projects lately, so be sure to take a good look around while you're there. Now, are you ready to make a spooky cat coaster or two?



Here's what you need:

Linen or other solid fabric
Felt (I'm using a wool blend)
Print backing fabric
Embroidery floss
Scissors
Needle
Cutting mat/rotary cutter/ruler (optional)
Pins

Spooky Cat Embroidery Pattern

Here's what you do:

Transfer the pattern to the linen (I used this method) and stitch the design however you like.

Trim the embroidered fabric, felt, and backing fabric to 4 x 4 inches. A rotary cutter is super helpful for this, but not required.



Layer the fabric pieces with right sides facing out, and the felt in the middle. You could use cotton batting here, or double up on the felt for extra protection. Pin the layers together.



Stitch around the edges using blanket stitch. Someday I'll make a tutorial here, but for now, check out Future Girl if you need some help.



Make your way all around the coaster and you're done!




You can also stitch some with a little candy corn in the corner. These are quicker to stitch, so I'll be making a couple more with just the candy. It matches the backing fabric perfectly because this was cut from my Spoonflower swatch. Four pieces can be perfectly cut from that one swatch!



By the way, one of the things I like about using felt between the layers is that with the blanket stitching, you can still see the color of the felt poking out a little! That said, I'm not sure that I'd trust it with a SUPER hot beverage on your priceless antique table. Use your best judgement and consider adding extra layers.




Grab a cup of coffee and start stitching your coasters! Oh, and when you do, I'd love to see! Tag your photos with #OliveStitching on Instagram or Twitter.

project // half-hexi spider web

With my growing love of english paper-pieced hexagons, I've been thinking about and trying a few other shapes to piece together this way. I have some templates on hand, but one of the shapes I've been looking at is a half hexagon. It's a little different from regular hexagons, but similar to the diamonds that I've also been playing with. So...I jumped in!

Hexagons naturally have a spider web shape hinted in them, so that's where I went with this. It's a nice way to get your feet wet on half hexies! Of course, since this is a spider web, don't be surprised if you end up feeling like you can't break free and just NEED to keep on making them!

Here's what you need:

Small amount of fabric in two colors
Backing fabric to fit a 6-inch embroidery hoop
Embroidery floss
Needle and thread
Pins
6-inch embroidery hoop
Scissors
1-inch hexagon templates printed on card stock



Take 3 hexagon templates and cut them in half from point to point. Grab one, and pin it to one of your fabric colors. Cut around the shape, leaving about 1/4-inch of fabric around each edge.



Starting on the long side of the half-hexi, fold the fabric over, then fold over the next side and take a couple stitches with your needle and thread.



Continue basting the half-hexi by folding the fabric over and tacking down the corners. Don't stitch through the paper...only the fabric.



When you make it back to the start, your shape should look like this. Those pieces hanging out are often referred to as tails, which you are to "leave wagging." You can baste these half-hexies so that the "tails" wag in different directions, depending on how you want things to fit together, but this way seems to work well for the applique that this will end up being.




You'll need a total of 6 half-hexies (three of each color) and 1 regular hexagon. They'll go together in a larger hexagon shape.



Hold a half-hexi and the center hexagon with wrong sides together and stitch the edges. You can use running stitch, whip stitch or ladder stitch, as I'm doing. You don't need to knot off the thread when you get to the end, because you'll continue with the next half-hexi on the next side of the main hexagon.



Using the alternate color of half-hexi, join it to the next edge of the main hexagon. You can see here that the first half-hexi is there, off to the side.




Keep adding alternating colors of half-hexies around, until they are all attached. At this point, the half-hexies are only connected to the center hexagon, and not to each other.




Now it's time to join the half-hexi edges. Pinch them together and stitch them as you did the other seams. You may want to take an extra stitch at the point where the three pieces connect.



Remove the papers from your hexagons. You may want to press your shape with an iron, and at the same time, you can press those wagging tails to the back, but you can also do it without an iron, as I've done.



Place your backing fabric in the hoop, then pin the hexagon shape in the center. Make sure that those tails are hidden away, nice and flat.



Stitch the edges of the hexagon shape down to the fabric. I'm using a blind applique stitch. As you go, if any of those tails try to poke out, you can use your needle to smooth them under the shape.



When the hexagon is all attached to the fabric, thread your needle with three strands of white embroidery floss. Actually, I'm using a creamy color to match the dots in my black fabric. Stitch three long lines across the center hexagon, working from point to point.



Stitch lines connecting each spoke of the web, but don't let them touch the spokes. Well, really you can do this any way you want. I was going for essence of spider web...



Make your way to the center with those lines, then take a small stitch to tack down the center.



You could leave this as just a web, but I think a little spider really finishes this off. So, to make the spider, use three strands of black floss. Make a standard french knot (with the floss wrapped two times), then right next to that, make a larger french knot with the floss wrapped three times. Add eight straight stitch legs coming off the sides.




Finish the back however you choose, and your spider web is all ready to hang and display!

And even more exciting, you've just made a new english paper-pieced shape! This was my first go at half-hexies, and I liked how it went. I'm excited, because I have some ideas in mind for making more things with this shape. Oh, the things I can stitch!