February was a month of ...

PSORIASIS HELL!!! I'd post a picture of how bad it got but it's ugleeeeeeee. I had to make an emergency visit to the specialist, and am now on 4 different medications ... some parts have improved, others have gotten worse, so I can't tell if the medications are kicking in or not. I think maybe they're starting to work a tiny tiny bit - I hope so. It got better for a few days in a row, but today it seems to be getting a bit worse. Same old same old - I'm getting used to this pattern of progress, sadly!! 'nuff about that :)

I did manage to make a tote bag and matching make-up bag today - I wasn't able to sew much in February, and I had an urge to sit down and actually finish something. They came out quite nicely - I busted a bit of stash getting these done :) The tote is 15 X 13 X 3, fully lined, with a small pocket inside. No pattern, just created "on the fly". The makeup bag is about 7 X 5, and fully lined. I have lots more of floral fabrics to use up, so I'm going to bag up some "kits" ready to work on when my hands are in good shape - then I can just grab a bag and go to town!

Church fundraiser ...

Still having fun making totes!! This one is for a friends' church fundraiser. It's lined with the floral fabric that's on the outside and handles, and it measures 18 x 11 X 4. The pattern is the Charm Party Tote by Penny Sturges. I'm going to make a couple of little bags to go inside, with some of the scrap fabrics :)

Happy Valentines Day! Hubby and I don't really do the V-Day thing, but we're ordering Chinese food for supper - so I guess that's my present, HAHA.

New tote ...

More stashbusting = a new tote and matching little "wallet" :) The tote measures 15 x 13 x 3 ... and is lined with the cream fabric that the little wallet is made of. Notice the tiny little yoyo on one strap, just for tarting up purposes ;) The little wallet (4 1/4" square) is pinned to the tote for the photo shoot - I'll tuck it inside as a little surprise :) I got the idea for the wallet from the delightful Mary Grace @ Hooked on Needles - she just made a few herself - aren't they adorable? I *really* love the fabrics she used - this little project would be a good excuse for picking up a couple of really special FQ's! The pattern is available from here :) Thanks for the idea Mary Grace --- it's a very sweet little project! I can see it being used as a mini first aid kit ... or to hold some bus tickets/tokens ... for a credit card and a few dollars ... to hold a little container of pills/medication or a couple of wet wipes for those accidents that life hands us ... a little bit bigger and it would be great for carrying a couple of "feminine supplies" ... the uses are endless! Make it in denim and guys (and wimmens too!) could use it to hold condoms ;) Go ahead, ladies - make one and find a cool new use for it!

Nope - not liking my faux box ends :D

I've long been convinced that this method of boxing bag ends, was a trick - it looks like it shouldn't work, and in my case, it didn't! LOL! I may not have sewn the ends 100% accurately - they're close, but the sides may be a bit unequal - perhaps this explains the wonkiness of my results. The pattern came from Corinne @ Heart of Mary - I think I would have liked the "soft" boxy corners if mine had worked out better. I like this bag and will try it again - next time I'll MacGyver square cut-outs for step 10 and see how that works. I really should try to practice the faux technique so I can get it to work, but sometimes you just want to get a project finished, rather than learn a life lesson ;)

So - I give the pattern an 8/10, and I give my sewing skills, for today, a 3, lol. I blame it on my hand problems - of course my stitching would normally be perfect. *cough* *cough* *choke* *choke* *wink* :)

Tote finished :)

My hands were feeling better today (can you say ... CAPRICIOUS!!!) so I got off my duff and made a tote bag - I have just enough of the black floral left over to make a little make-up bag to go with the tote, but I need a zipper to make it. It's in the To Do pile now :D The tote measures 14" X 13.5" X 5" - I sized it to use up the floral. It's lined and has a little pocket inside. I may add a yoyo out of the salmony print, just to tart the bag up ;)

Tote is based on this pattern :)

I'm a winner :)

The delicious - and FUN!!! - Barb over @ So How Was Your Day? recently had a giveaway for some tea mats she had made - and I was one of the lucky winners! Check out the fabrics she used - absolutely frigging CUTE! Thanks for a fun giveaway Barb - congrats to all the winners ;)

I found another cute tutorial the other day ... a soft sewing bag ... from the same lady that posted the makeup bag tutorial - Corinne from Melbourne, Australia :) I studied the instructions last night and I think I'm going to give this a try - it looks like fun! My psoriasis is in overload right now so hopefully within a few days I'll be able to get some sewing done! This is what the project looks like - - I'll post a picture of my own project when I get it finished :)



And since I don't like to post without photos ... this is what I made my SIL last year for Christmas and for her birthday - I call it the Punta Cana bag as I made it for her trip to Punta Cana last month :) The little bags were to go inside the big one - maybe now I'll make her a makeup bag too! ;) As you can see, my Zoomer enjoyed the bag making process ;) (Tote is from the Charm Party Tote pattern designed by Penny Sturges)

Fabulous zippered bag tutorial :)

Thanks to Miss Corinne in Aussie,I've now learned how to make a sweet lined and zippered bag where NO raw edges or seams show - it's frigging AMAZING! The whole thing takes under half an hour to make - it really is incredibly simple! The tutorial is here - I'm definitely going to try the version with the strap, when I get the hardware. Sweet project, Corinne - thanks so much! I'm typing this post on the dinosaur computer in the studio so I'll get a picture of my two bags and upload them from the laptop upstairs :D

Most of the zippers I had in my stash were too short to use for this project, so I had to use whatever I could find --- I didn't want to use "special" fabric until I made sure I could make these with no problems. I've already pulled out some nice fabrics for which I'll get matching zippers - I'm already planning on making more of these little pretties!

Pizza Bites!

Hubby made these little morsels of deliciosity - I made a batch yesterday with one bag of pizza dough, and he made the other batch today with the other bag of pizza dough. THEY ARE YUMMY! Recipe found here - thanks Katie @ Chaos in the Kitchen - this is definitely a new family favorite!

Haiku 'n stuff :D

Psoriasis sucks.
Capricious, painful, PITA.
No more cane for now!

Things are looking up right now, so I'm happy, and not limping much, wooooohoooooo - and enough about THAT! :)

A late shout-out to our oldest son Nick, who turned 20 on January 29 --- I wasn't able to post about it - I wasn't even able to make his special birthday dinner! Sorry about that, shorty! Love you lots, very proud of you, happy belated birthday :) (and sorry your Patriots didn't make it to the playoffs!)


Tried some new things with Miss Husky - freemo quilting on her is a DREAM! I just taught her how to paper piece (some veggie blocks for future hotpads), and now she's learning how to make strip blocks with decorative trim (stash busting trim I received from freecycle). She does everything she's asked, and doesn't complain. Best damn $45 I've ever spent!

Happy belated birthday too, to my sister's sweetie Barnie ... he turned 112 yesterday - Happy Birthday Pickle Dog!!! Picture blatantly stolen from my sister's blog - if she wants it back, she can come to Toronto and GET it!! ;)