Friday, December 11, 2020

Mug Cosies!

A few weeks ago I had the brilliant idea to make Brady a mini tea cosy to put over his cup of tea. He has loved tea since he was oh about 3, maybe younger, but that's no surprise since his mum, his nana and his nanny (my mum) all love tea. When the "I've got Major Tea" tea cosy arrived at Brianne's house this week, apparently he was quite devastated that Nana hadn't put anything in the padded envelope for him. So I knew I had to get his mug cosy done pronto and send it off to him with nothing else in the padded envelope!

There are two, because I had to make a prototype which will be for me!
Here is the one and only in-process shot. I got carried away with this little DrEAMi of sorts.

I had the idea to put a little tab on the top for ease of lifting it on and off the mug. Brady loves dogs, and these little Scotty dogs are scraps of a pillowcase I made him a couple of years ago. The lining is scraps of Henry Glass fabric I won three years ago. I think the Scotty dogs will work for the entire winter, not being overly Christmas-themed.

Here is his over the cup you saw in the first photo, a perfect fit. I've been putting a coaster over the top of my coffee or tea and setting it on a mug rug to help keep the heat in longer, but this will be even better.

Here's what they look like inside. I made them a little different than the tea cosies.These don't have the fancy binding around all edges, and I quilted the lining onto the batting. The little reinforcing stitching under the tab helps keep all the layers together. The batting is scraps of cotton batting. Love being able to use up small pieces. And I actually remembered my satin labels!
They are bound with scraps of binding I had in my binding leftovers bag! What a pleasant find, to have good chunks of the perfect colours, black and the candy stripe, a Nancy Halvorsen fabric that I bound Shine with. Here's one for you Rose: the cute snowman print in my prototype cosy? A VIP Cranston print from about 30 years ago, pre-quilting days, used to back cross-stitched ornaments, and for various other Christmas homemade décor. It's a real classic print, one I love. It's nearly all gone now. The red front is scraps of a Sandy Gervais red from about 10 years ago. Rather cool to have that combination of vintage with brand new fabric all in one little mug cosy.

I'll be sending off Brady's cosy tomorrow, an early Christmas present for a much-loved grandson. 

Speaking of presents, if you missed it on Instagram, I got happy mail on Thursday:
This was my Black Friday purchase from Connecting Threads. (affiliate links in this paragraph) I behaved myself. I am so happy to have got Kathleen's book at a good price! (it's still on sale for 20% off) It's got loads of inspiration; the quilt I am currently binding was heavily inspired by this book. Thermore (also still on sale) is just awesome batting, terrific for smaller items, runners, placemats, etc, and quilted clothing! Hence the fabulous drape with beautiful texture. That pale yellow thread is Custard, 50 wt cotton, (affiliate link) such a terrific all-over colour as quilting thread. I'm nearly out of the first spool I bought. Why didn't I snag a couple more colours or two of that yellow? I dunno... I was behaving!


And with this little finish, I'll be back to hand-stitching down the binding on the secret sewing quilt. What are your favourite needles for stitching down binding? I am liking the current needle, though it's a bit too thick for my taste. However, the thin ones end up literally poking holes in my third finger, the push-through finger, and no, I haven't pulled out my leather thimble, though I may have to, as the finger is already tender and I'm only a quarter of the way around. Here is the last sneak peek that was on Instagram you'll see until the big reveal in the spring.



Linking up


20 comments:

  1. Love Brady's cup cozy, what a great idea! Older fabrics I have some percolating and just used a piece dated 2000.

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  2. What a great idea! I should make one of these for myself. I must nuke my coffee half a dozen times before I get it all down. I know Brady will be thrilled and those little scotties are precious.

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  3. That's a fun idea, Sandra, and I bet Brady will love getting a surprise early gift from you! I'm always happy when I find that perfect scrap bit for a project like a piece of batting or binding.

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  4. What a great idea. Love that everything stops, so Brady can get something of his own in the mail. Someday I'd like to be that kind of grandmother. :-)

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  5. Oh how fun! Maybe I don't drink all my tea because it gets cold! I usually waste half a cup. Silly me. I think I shall try this one of these days.

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  6. cute idea - and how sweet - he wants to be like you all ❤

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  7. What a fun idea for Brady, I bet he will love it!

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  8. Well, I just love that cup cozy. I'm always reheating my tea and it gets a little bitter. Brady will be so pleased the you designed something special just for him.

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  9. I love the tea cup cosy. Think I'll have to make one for my husband for his coffee; he always seems to throw half a cup away. Bet Brady will be so pleased to get his present.

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  10. We use a coaster on top to keep a sneaky kitty out of the cup. This will really confuse the kitty (and keep the contents warm) double win.

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  11. Such a cute idea, and I love the scottie dogs with holiday hats!

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  12. A cup/mug cozy! Great idea! I’m going to borrow that one! Hurray!

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  13. Hi Sandra! Now this is a fabulous idea, I think. You'll think this odd, perhaps, but I would use this on a daily basis for my coffee! I have one little itty bitty fruit fly that visits me at work every day only when I make my cuppa coffee with flavored cream. I guess it likes French Vanilla, too. Just to keep it away and my coffee hot is a fabulous idea! I am 100% certain that Brady was thrilled with his special package just for him from Nana. And why not?! I'm glad you were able to quickly remedy the faux pas. {{Hugs}} ~smile~ Roseanne

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  14. I’ve never heard of a mug cozy before, but I can see the logic behind it. I drink my tea and coffee very hot while my husband likes his luke warm. I love using up small pieces of wadding too, I have decided to make rice bags as Christmas wrapping next year so I’m saving it up. Yes I know this year isn’t even here yet but I made and filled Christmas stockings this year using mostly what I could find in the supermarket and get delivered with my shopping. It’s worked out so well I’m doing it next year with rice bags.

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  15. A mug cozy is perfect! I could have used a few in the little porch craft sale today. It's a perfect cozy present.

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  16. Brady will love his Scotty Dog cozy and feel the love when you send him his own parcel I’m sure. What a wonderful pre Christmas gift!

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  17. Such a cute tea cozy. I can't wait for my Custard to arrive. My order is taking forever getting here.

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  18. great idea! I always forgot my cup of tea...

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  19. I like the little tab on top idea. I'm not a tea drinker, but one of these would definitely keep the pesky flies out of my coffee? Beginning to wonder if they are now resistant to winter?

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  20. What a fun gift for Brady! I'm sure he's tickled to know you're using one made at the same time :)

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