Whether She Wanted It Or Not

One of my co-workers had a birthday last week. With only two days to come up with something, I decided on a bag. We don't know each other well, but you know me..... I'd rather make a gift than purchase something. I made it up as I went along because that's the way I roll these days. I may have gone a bit out of her comfort zone color-wise. It's kind of a lunch bag, carry-all type of thing.

 I took these pictures with my phone the morning I finished it.

 I should have been on my way to work.

 The color is brighter than I remember it being. Poor woman, I think she prefers black.....

It's the thought that counts.... right??

I've Finally Did It!

With some help from a sweet girl......

I've opened an Etsy shop.

Tell me what you think!

Let's see if I can keep this up! 

A Little Bag

We got our grandson blocks for Christmas. I know he can't play with them now but he can't play with much yet. I asked Jess if she would like a bag for them to live in. She said yes and she even had the perfect fabric. Anne Kelle's Urban Zoology whales in Bermuda. I love this print. I wanted the seams nice and finished so I ironed them open, turned them under and sewed through all the layers. I like seeing the finishing seam on the outside. In this case I think it makes it a bit more interesting. A simple casing with grosgrain ribbon finished it off.

Two hundred tiny blocks waiting for their boy.

A Bag For Jessica

Jessica and I were discussing what type of bag she would like to have when baby M is born. She even sent sketches because that's fun for her. When she mentioned she liked the way the Multi Tasker tote by AMH looked I started thinking of combining the two. Not sure if this is exactly what she was looking for, but it's a start. I made this with our new organic canvas and one of the gorgeous chambrays from Kaufman.

I used the pattern and it was fun and simple. I just added more pockets. These two were not in the pattern. I figured everyone needs a zippered pocket and the other gets wider at the top for, well, odd wide at the top stuff.

I also put fleece between the layers to give it more body. Moms need to be able to use just one hand sometimes, right? I added a pocket that follows the fun outer pockets on the pattern.

In it I put a changing mat with a fun Amy Schimler surprise. I had to use the iron on vinyl. Not a fan but you do what you have to do. Dear Ms. Schimler, have you thought of coated cottons lately?

She might even  be able to sling it across her body if she absolutely needs both hands.

What do you think Jess?

Did someone say bags?

This is the scene out my kitchen window at 7:30 Saturday morning. It was almost a blizzard. It was cold, like freezing, so I didn't leave the house until I had to go forage for food. Which silly enough was 12 hours later when I realized there was not much in the house to eat except chocolate. Can't survive a whole day on coffee and chocolate. We tried,  it didn't work. When I walked to the store, It. Was. Still. Snowing.

I cleaned a bit. Then I started sewing super silly simple market bags. The same kind as in my last post. Per the request of some, I'm trying to write a simple tutorial and to do that, apparently, I need to make a lot. Either that, or I am seriously obsessed.

 It takes about 3/4 of a yard because I like longer straps. You could peice the straps though and use less. Hmmm, should of put a ruler next to these to show the size. They wrap about 5 inches long and and 1.5 inches wide. Perfect for your purse or pocket.

This is mine, I just love this fabric.

The rest? Who knows... I think they would make great gift bags too.

I got a little crafty

I made this for a young friend of my Mom's. She'd gotten a gift for this tyke and since it was small loose pieces, I decided the pieces needed a bag. I love my fabric stash. It is not nearly big enough (you know who does not know what he's talking about) but Mom found something she liked and off I went. I made it the same way I make my small zippered bags only added the canvas handles. I put one of my tags on the outside this time. My design with my tag, thanks Jess and Jen, how fun is that? You know who said, "I like the tag on the outside". (So maybe sometimes he knows what he's talking about.)

Jessica's having a giveaway!

If you havn't seen this bag yet, it's cute! See her blog here.

Distracted by a sunny day.....

It was one of those gorgeous days. The kind where you either want to curl up in the sun and sleep like a cat or go wandering...... I was able to do a bit of both and still managed to be a bit constructive. My Dearly Beloved and I headed out to the Schwabenbrau, one of our favorite places for a sunny day. People watching there is just fun. The pictures are from an area we drive through. No, they don't do it justice. As for the constructive part of my day........ Hey Mom, here's your bag. Now, if I can just get it in the mail.......

1 day off + scraps from my apron = a bag

Ok, at least I got the vacuuming, laundry and dusting done......