Lolly fabric and fabric lollies



fantail wrapper box

 Yesterday was an all day all work group get together to discuss business planning, budgets and a few other things. Times are tough, budgets are getting tighter and we shared a packet of fantails and minties around the five tables - not sure what everyone thought when I asked for the wrappers back. Absolutely no idea what to do with them of course.
The reward after the long drive home on a Friday evening from Brisbane was made so much better by the arrival of Quilting Arts mag - and a fabulous idea or ten .. so thanks to budget cuts, lolly wrappers and Victoria Gertenbach's ideas for using up scrap fabrics I had a bit of a vision for the waxy papers.
This morning I laid out all the  wrappers, in no particular order in a kind-of-A4 size shape, and used a top and bottom layer of baking paper to protect the iron while they were bonded to vliesofix. The wrappers, which sizzle a bit under pressure, were then bonded to felt and then to tissue paper. The whole new "page" was covered with a fine gold lame and machine quilted. Sliced into 4" strips and cross cut into 4" squares. Tissue paper sides facing, the squares were again bonded together, in pairs, to make six "double sided"  squares. These were then stitched into the box  shape using a silk and stainless steel thread - which gave a bit more "ooomph" to bending the sides and having the box hold its shape.  After reading Victoria's suggestions for left over shot cottons - a slight adaptation and her "boro bobbles" make perfect lollies for the lolly box. I don't think I'll give up my day job but it was an interesting exercise in taking something (lolly wrappers) and experimenting with a way to use them - it's not "re-purposing" as such - but I do enjoy the role reversal of lolly fabric and fabric lollies. (Quilting Arts Magazine, Issue 47,  October/November 2010)