woof

I took a quick trip to Mitsua with a friend for lunch and some time in their bookstore a few weeks ago.

This title grabbed my attention -

It's English translation on the spine is "Let's Make School Bags & Goods!"

Okay, don't mind if I do.

Can you tell I bought the book for the pattern on the cover? Trixie needed a new thin tote to carry her piano book to lessons. She loves dogs as much as Ellie loves cats.

I loved the details in the pattern like the buckle embroidery.

All the materials were in the stash from thrifting over the years. I love the old white buttons. They had centers that were deep enough to hide the shanks on the grey buttons.

I didn't vary one bit from the pattern other than color. I've learned that when a child sees a pattern in a book, they expect it to look a lot like that picture and if I vary it, I'm accused of not making the item to which they agreed. We made one concession though - Trixie requested pink, "My new favorite color, mom. Pink, not purple. Don't forget that, it's pink now."

This was a fun little sewing reward for completing my common threads quilt top from round one! Tomorrow it's back to my common threads commitments. The quilt needs to be sandwiched and I have some block challenges that need my attention.

mischievous gnome messenger bag

This bag has been two years in the making. I bought the pattern from Montessori by Hand - long enough ago that she now uses a different name for her business. My eye was drawn to it because I had all the fabrics shown in her photo of the completed project. However, when it came time to use them, I couldn't. I think it was a combination of the brown wool with a lighter cotton with a white background. One says fall/winter, the other spring/summer. I'd never feel comfortable carrying it. (Yes, I'm one of those people who has a problem with white shoes after Labor Day) The pile of fabrics sat month after month.

In an effort to clear my sewing table of projects I'd put aside, this one was finally tackled during a warm spell a couple weeks ago. (By warm, I mean close to the freezing mark.) I pulled out the Heather Ross fabric with the white background and pink/orange/brown polka dots. It still didn't seem right and then I spied the orange and red polka dots leftover from another project. Perfect.

It all fell together after that. The button and ribbon practically jumped out at me from my stash.

It's taken me ages to cut into that gnome fabric because I love it so.

The lining is a Heather Ross stripe sold as a companion to the gnomes.

The pattern is very well written and goes together easily. The zippered pocket in the lining is a great detail that can easily be used for other tote projects. I was also leery of there not being a closure under the flap to support all the junk I carry around. Other messenger bags I've made have not held together at the top very well. Because the straps are placed directly on the sides rather than on the back panel, that's not an issue with this pattern. The interfacing called for is just the right amount of support. The front of the bag has two pockets for a cell phone and keys. There's a larger pocket on the back for a quilting magazine. My embroidery pouch fits inside with room to spare.

One more project off the to-do list.

bag o' badges

Have you seen the American Express commercials with the frowns and smiles?

I picked up this bag on the Target clearance rack this past weekend. (It's from the Converse One Star line.)

Shouldn't it have its own spot in one of those ads?

Now it's happy.

Now it's fit for a grown up who's still a girl scout at heart.

Small bits of hand sewing like this are all I've been up for lately.

I promise not to wear it with the skirt.

library tote

I'm still working away on projects even though it's been quiet around the blog. For some reason, I've lost my routine here and can't seem to figure out a good time to catch up and post.

I'm trying to work through projects that have sat half finished or are just piles of fabric pulled for a reason, but never started. The pajama top pillow seemed to give me a little momentum.

This one was next:

Nothing exciting, just a basic, very large tote. There are actually two of them. I needed some large bags for trips to the library that will fit oversized picture books and the puzzles that Trixie likes to check out. They also needed to be very smooshable so I could cram them into my purse or keep one inside the other when we don't need to use both. For that reason, they aren't structured with any interfacing, but they are lined with some pockets inside for the paper receipts the library gives at checkout. Those usually wind up lost or wadded into a ball at the bottom of whatever other bag I was using and then I miss due dates too easily.

The fabric was bought at a garage sale in the neighborhood. In fact, the sale was put on by the people selling Jan's new home. The lining is out of the stash and the webbing was from the quilter's garage sale. (It seems I've made the straps too long. They're perfect for slinging the bags over my shoulder even with large items poking out of the top, but the bags drag on the ground if I just hold them in my hand. I'll probably be grateful for them in the winter when I have to get them over the bulk of my coat.)

I do have some fabric left with the following letters intact:

scrap 1- x,y

scrap 2- e,f,g,j,k,l,o,p,q

scrap 3- same as scrap 2

scrap 4- x,y,z, x,y,z, a,b,c, a,b,c,e,f,g,h,d,e,f,g,h,d,e,f,g(i-m are on this scrap, but there is very little seam allowance below them.)

I loved this fabric when I saw it and hate to see any of it go to waste. If you want any of the scraps, I'm happy to mail them off. Just email me with what pieces interest you and your address. One other note about the fabric - I'm not sure what the actual fiber content is, but I know for sure it isn't 100% cotton.

Edited to add: The scraps have been claimed :)

trixie's party - goodie bags

Each girl headed home with one of these:

The Beatrix Potter fabric is new and was purchased with this in mind. It's a very basic, lined tote pattern (sew up all the sides, then box the corners). I lined it because the quilting fabric isn't terribly sturdy on its own for a tote. A basic(cheap) muslin was used for that. The cotton webbing is from the garage sale. I have oodles of it in my stash. The tag is from the Peter Rabbit Party Book and was supposed to be a placecard. (I label all the gift bags so any prizes won during the party can be collected in them. No lost treats or tears that way.)

Inside each bag was a Peter Rabbit coloring or activity book. I bought 12 of these on clearance when I was still teaching. I could never bring myself to use them. They're so old the pages have yellowed a bit. Hopefully, the girls didn't notice or care. (Trish, my hoarding/collecting paid off on this one.) School supply sales gave me an inexpensive way to include a set of colored pencils, a sharpener and a box of crayons with the books. We used little bags of Jelly Bellys (from Costco) for game prizes and those were collected in their bags as the party was going on.

It was a great afternoon for both Trixie and me. I've got this one out of my system, now it's time to start planning Ellie's bash (her birthday is in two weeks). She's made it clear that she doesn't want a home party. I'll let it pass. Last year I got to do a fun Halloween party for her.

*I know today is usually "Thrifty Thursday". When I figured up the cost of this party, it turned out to be one of the cheapest parties we've ever had because we used so much of what I had on hand, so I think this post qualifies. Of course, if I were to include the cost of the Beatrix Potter collection I've amassed over the years, well, not so thrifty then.

dharma eco-bags

Long weekends totally throw me off. I keep thinking it's Monday - the day I meant to post these. That and I'm cleaning like crazy because Carol arrives tomorrow!!

Dharma Eco Bags - pattern by Serendipity Studios.
I'll be teaching this class in two weeks for those of you who are local.


This pattern is unlike any other tote I've put together. They're constructed like plastic grocery sacks with the same side pleating(which you can see a little better below). The handles open the same way as well. Pictured are the small size (good for a lunch which is why I put a coordinating napkin with the model), and the largest. It's HUGE. The medium is more of a standard plastic bag size. Both are lined.

Each tucks into the pocket on the front so they store very nicely. In fact, the pocket on the large size is roomy enough to tuck another folded down bag inside it.

No idea if I'll get around to posting tomorrow. I'll try to sneak one in between our thrifting and gabbing and me forcing her to go through my wardrobe to help purge stuff.

dot to dot backpack

Our little friend, Nate, turned 2.

Just the right age to need some entertaining at a restaurant. That was the plan for his gift this year. It's a small backpack that holds crayons in the outer pocket. The inside holds a small notebook, a dot to dot book, a toy plane and a little magnetic game (remember the ones where you put a beard on the face?).

I used a pattern from a magazine, but threw it out after finishing this. This is one of those things I was just better off listening to my instinct. It's VERY thick. I used some thrifted cordouroy in green with flannel for the lining, pockets and straps. It's also quilted. As I said, it's THICK. The binding at the top had to be added to hide the mess created by quilting all the layers after the instructions told me to sew them into the panel first. It all turned out fine in the end. And the fix didn't take long. It was just one more step when I'd have preferred to have the whole thing done.

He seems to like it and with any luck, his parents can enjoy a meal out very soon.

a day at the beach

A friend sent me some upholstery swatch books that she'd saved for a time. I added them to the stash, revisiting them every now and then, but still had no idea just how to use them. It took another friend to see the potential - "Make a quilt for her!" In one instant it was clear.

A beach quilt, named as above.

For a friend who loves the beach.

No batting, backed in a twill I had on hand and tied with embroidery floss at all the corners.

I had four squares left over, perfect for a matching tote to carry it to the beach or park.

Our weather today (65 degrees in Chicago!) had me hoping it gets used soon.

(To that friend: I'm headed to the post office later this week.)

paper, plastic or cloth?

I can finally post some gifts I made for the holidays. (The flu has struck our household, so I'm a little behind on posting.)

My sisters and brother-in-law each got two cloth grocery sacks. The fabrics all came out of the stash. The green is estate sale upholstery fabric. Nice and sturdy.

Pears for Heather.

Pomegranates for Cindy.

Something a little more masculine for Michael.

better late than never - again

Angie, I may be months late, but your pencil roll is finally finished. I know you were going to let the Dirt Monkey use it, but I've decided it's officially yours.

In case the kids forget, you can point to the monogram.

To appease the little guy, he can carry plenty of crayons or colored pencils in this. In fact, there's even room for a toy car or two.

Want to take any bets on how many days it takes me to get to the post office?

sock monkey goes to school

Thought you'd seen the last of the sock monkey projects, did you?

Trixie couldn't start preschool without a backpack - one that wasn't larger than her.

The basic size/pattern is McCalls 5341, though I didn't use their embellishment patterns and I altered the straps.

The applique is woven fabric from the funky monkey line by Moda with wool felt for the arms and mouth. (The brown fabric was also used to line the pack.) The orange cordorouy fabric was thrifted. I sketched out one of the basic monkeys from another fabric in the same line. The ears were sewn separately with a pleat in the center so they'd have a little dimension. The applique was attached with wonder under and a zig zag stitch. The wool felt was applied with edgestitching.

The pattern calls for a standard length of strap, but there's no way the same size will fit Trixie if she has her winter coat on. I cut the straps longer and added D rings for future adjustments.

If I play my cards right, I might have a sock monkey on Halloween...

halloween tote

Gearing up for Halloween.

Yes, I need a tote specifically for the month of October. The pattern is Haunted Handbags by Artful Offerings.

I changed a few things from the original pattern. They call for black felt as the lining, but I wanted to use some of the fun Halloween fabric I have stashed. That completely changed how I put the bag together. I changed the pockets a bit too. And while it's not shown in the picture below, I tried my hand at finishing the seams ala Vera Bradley. Because all of her bags are of quilted fabric, the inside seams are finished with bias binding. I did the same and it worked very well. One of these tools came in very handy.

The "31" charm (it's hung on the button by ribbon) was done using my machine's needle punch attachment to applique the wool pieces together with felting. The ovals were put together with a machine blanket stitch. I need to use that stitch more often. It's very easy to make the stitch larger and looks great on applique.

I'll have to plan my entire wardrobe for the month around this bag.

spooning

Did you see this bag at Target? I love it. Don't have much use for a plain tote without pockets though, since I tend to use them as purses as much as tote bags. My stuff gets all mixed up and I can't find a thing.

It's easy enough to add a lining with pockets though. (I swear this is just regular lining fabric and doesn't burn your retinas in real life. I think it was too sunny when I took the picture.)

I just used the bag's dimensions to make a lining the same size. Then I folded down the top edge and slipped it inside. It was pinned in place just below the hem of the bag's top edge. I used an edgestitching foot to sew the lining in place. (Grey thread in my needle and white in the bobbin.)On the outside it simply looks like another row of topstitching.