Shield Cover

This was another crafting game project  This is my write up:

Bias tape is super cool because it can do things that fabric not cut on the bias can't. I took advantage of this fact when planning my design. It has an amazing ability to do curves while remaining flat, and with a little pleat, it can also do a nice sharp angle. I chose to do a shield cover because I currently had a lame shield cover, and because it was a nice round object that would show off the cool bias tape techniques. I used three different kinds of bias tape in this project. I had a specialty quilting bias tape (the black one) left over from a project, some regular white 1/4" doublefold bias tape left over from another project, and I cut my own bias tape from a dark blue cotton fabric from my stash.

I started by tracing my design onto the blue background fabric (left over from a dress I made). I pinned the black bias tape down, but it looked too mono-chromatic, so I pulled up all the pins and added a brown and a green fabric underneath (both from my stash).

 I used heat-n-bond (from my stash) to secure the fabric and then re-pinned the black bias tape in place. I ironed down the bias tape in sections, smoothing out all the wrinkles and adding in pleats for the sharp corners and sewed a scant 1/8" seam on both sides of the tape.

Then I measured the cover against the bevel in my shield and through math and fabric pencils marked where I would add the blue border. 

I cut the blue fabric on the bias in 7/8" strips and backed them with heat-n-bond.

 I cut off part of the white double folded bias tape to turn it back into singlefold bias tape and used Steam-a-Seam to turn it into quilting bias tape. Then I pinned the white and black bias tape over the blue bias tape and ironed everything down. I sewed a scant 1/8" seam on the black and white bias tape, going through the blue bias tape as well. 

 
I finished the cover by sewing two strips of blue fabric to the cover and using a drawstring and toggle stoppers to pull it tight. The shield cover will well outlast the shield now, so I made it compatible with any max small round shield, up to 4" thick. 

The technique I used is commonly referred to as "stained glass appliqué" because the project resembles stained glass when finished. I tried to use a minimum of colors so that the Celtic knotwork of the bias tape would take center stage rather than the fabrics that simply help bring out the details of the design.