Hello and welcome to my blog! We at Stitch Mischief headquarters are deep into week two of the Finch Bucket MAL. Have you been following the hashtag on Instagram? I have and it has been so wonderful to see so many makes and shares.
When the idea of a MAL was suggested to me last year (thank you Cindy!), I was nowhere ready to tackle it. The whole idea sounded cool but also incredibly overwhelming and I didn’t know where to start. This summer, I was in a better place to host it, however inexperienced I may be.
I honestly did not know how it would turn out. Would it be large and impersonal? Would I drop the ball and leave people disappointed? Would people join in? What if no one joined? What if I was just sitting here in this corner of the internet making a fool of myself? But, what if people did sew along? What if hosting it was enough to encourage some to stretch their comfort zone and learn a new skill or two, or brush up on an old skill? What if it turned out amazing?
The results have been so much better than I could have anticipated. I would say it’s been an incredibly warm and welcoming MAL. People are cheering each other on. Many are learning to sew while sewing along with us. There has been a communal sharing of tricks and tips.
I’ve really enjoyed making along with you, too. I had ambitiously planned to have several new varieties of buckets made and finished by this point. While that may not have happened, I did finish one this morning and hope to have another done by the end of the week along with a special surprise.
This Finch Bucket is the original size that I have made here using the panels from my last blog post. The fabrics are various scraps and pieces that I’ve had in my stash for years, waiting for that one special project. For the bottom contrast panel, I used a favorite Essex linen from Robert Kaufman.
I lined it with this fun geometric fabric whose make/brand I cannot remember. I also added Cotton & Steel arrows for the pockets.
While there are lots of opportunities in this design for fussy cutting, and I planned for some, I didn’t expect them to turn out so cute. This little row of bunnies (fabric from Lecien Fabrics) makes me so happy.
It feels so good to wrap up this bucket. It started as a sketch on a sheet of paper, which was then translated to fabric and then an actual tutorial. I’ve seen a few of these Scrappy Maple blocks on Instagram and some in Finch Bucket form as well. This makes me ridiculously happy.
Have you joined in the fun? If so, how are you doing? Is there anything you need help with? Do you have questions you might need answered? Leave a comment and we will do our best to help out.
XO, Jade
That lining is amazing! 😍