I'm just a puppet on a string ... or on a table, at least :D

Gift sewing is well underway now - here are some photos of finishes from the last week :)  Blogger, as usual, has it's own ideas about photo and text placement - apologies for the weirdness  >:)

"Use up scraps" flex frame bags - they'll go to Blue Hills :)

I'm very pleased with this hand puppet!  I didn't have a pattern to go by so I found a basic puppet pattern online, and modified it to be more beaverish.  He's perched over a spool of bobbin thread to keep him upright - you can see him leaning against it in the last picture.  He may or may not have gotten into the eggnog last night, hence the leaning ... ;)  This is a Christmas gift, that will go with Brandon Beaver that I made recently :)

This bag is made from fabric from a set of FQs I picked up ages ago @ Joanns - this will go to Blue Hills - the picture at the bottom is a close-up of the doggy charm I used for the zipper pull - it's antique looking, not holey or damaged, lol. 

 This bag is a Christmas gift for someone with a much loved dog - they travel with her so I thought that she could use the bag to carry her immunization information, any medication she takes, and perhaps some fancy doggy treats :D  The close-up at the bottom shows the twin needle quilting and the bead I used for the zipper pull :)

After I took this picture the camera went blaruupzzzt so I didn't get to take a photo of the inside.  This is my second Retreat Bag, and will be a Christmas gift.  I love this design :D  The pattern is free, and the frames are available here (NAYY).  I have more frames coming, and will be making more of these for Christmas gifts :)   My first Retreat Bag is here - it turned out a bit floppy because I didn't use enough interfacing.  This one is quilted with regular quilt batting layered with Pellon Featherweight sew-in interfacing - that's what was easily accessible to me so that's what I used.  The combination is JUST right :)  The lining is also interfaced, but with Pellon lightweight iron-on interfacing - I buy it buy the bolt from Joanns, where it's 1/4 of the price it is here in Canada :D

Hmmmmmmm I just looked at all of my pictures - the fabrics for all the bags came from Joanns trips, and the fabric for the puppet was from our LQS - apparently I do a lot of shopping @ Joanns ;)

Posting to Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew for November, New to Me for November, and Bag It!  :)

This is what I do instead of housework :D

When I read this post from Elm Street Quilts, I knew immediately that I had to try it out.  I grabbed some vinyl and got sewing.  Well, actually when I grabbed the vinyl (shower curtains purchased from the $ store a few weeks ago) and opened the bag, the chemical smell was very strong so I had to hang that puppy outside to air out.  Then I cut up the bag it came in, to use for this project, lol.  This was FAST and it is CUTE.  I posed it with some Wonder Clips because they're very helpful when it comes to sewing with vinyl :D  Another one for Bag It! and for New to Me for November - I'm on a roll!

I guess I should go do some housework now - sewing is more fun, but sometimes, as we know, you have to pay the piper ;)

Boxies for Bag It! and Busy Brown Beavers :D

I've been busy!  I wanted to make some boy themed bags for the counselling center this month - I still have more cut out, but here's what I have so far.  The first 4 can be entered into Bag It!, but the shark bag was finished in October so it's not being entered.  It would win a prize for sheer cuteness, but just not in Bag It, LOL!

Boy boxy bags for Bag It - I have another one (or two?) bag(s) kitted from this fabric as I wanted to use up the whole piece :D

Several more boy bags for Bag It! ... and check out the goldfish zipper pull on the fish bag!  ;)

SHARK!!!!!!   I'm very sure a young lad will quite enjoy tucking his treasures inside this cutie (I can't resist picking some of this fabric up whenever I go to Joanns - I hope they carry it forever :D:)

My first Brandon Beaver project - pattern from Shiny Happy World (NAYY) :)  He's very easy to make!  Thanks Nancy for the wool for his sweet cheeks :D  The book behind him is another part of the gift - I got it from Amazon.ca :D

This is what he looks like from behind - the stitches closing him up look like they were done by a mad scientist or drunken surgeon - if the fabric had been more patterned my poor stitches wouldn't show so badly :D  I'm going to have to rip them out and redo them - I can't gift it the way it looks - it's making me crazy :D

His tail, though!  I like big tails and I canNOT LIE!  :D

This post will go to Bag It!, Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew for November, and New To Me in 2015 also for November :)

Bag It! Retreat Bag version :D

I recently completed a new-to-me bag design that uses special internal frames:

Photo shamelessly stolen from Janelle @ emmalinebags.com (I hope you don't mind, Janelle!)

I can't even remember where I first saw the finished bag, but when I realized that the frames were from emmaline bags, I knew I could order them without incurring huge shipping fees, as she's also in Canada :D  I ordered 2 sets of frames to play with them, and shortly after they arrived (ok, it was more like a month after they arrived - I don't rush into new designs quickly because I'm a big ole chicken, LOL) ...

Oh wait - PLAY TIME FIRST - having fun playing @ fotoflexer :D

Blueprint :D

Drawing (this one is my favourite!) :D

This one is called Lomoish :D  I have no idea what it means, but it's cool :)

And here we go - the photo before it got flexered, lol!

I like my bags on the soft side so I didn't use the "dense fusible fleece" that the pattern called for - I only used my usual batting, with matchstick quilting.  I'll add something more the next time I make this - I think it would look better with a bit more body.   The bag is easy to make - VERY easy to make - I'm waiting for Janelle to get more frames in so I can make more of these little beauties!

Posting to Bag It! and to this month's Celtic Thistle Stitches New to Me linky when it gets posted :D

I'm Bagging It! again :)

Last week I posted some projects I had finished for the Bag It! challenge that Patty is hosting over @ Elm Street Quilts :)  I've finished several more bags to add to the challenge, and I'm not done yet, LOL.

Up first are a couple of sets of Double Zip Pouches that I finished - these were actually all made with fat quarters I got on sale recently @ The Quilt Store, and with zippers I won on Ebay :)  The pattern is really easy to do!  Just be careful if you use directional prints - they're not the best thing to use for this design, LOL.  I didn't take a picture of the back, but let's just say that on the back, my airplanes are headed for a crash landing ;)

And last (for today), but not least - a Lazy Girl Designs Bendy Bag, and a flex frame bag made  with the leftovers :)

Pom pom photo embellishment idea shamelessly stolen from my friend and fellow Canadian Katherine, who blogs all the way from Alberta :)  Her poms are nicer than mine - they must be Alberta Clipper poms or something - maybe mine are Maple Leafs poms!  *groan* :D

I notice today that Patty posted links to bags that have been entered in her challenge, so I'm headed there now for some "baggy" inspiration :)

Oh yes, I bagged it :D

A couple of days ago I posted about a challenge I recently found, called Bag It!  Patty from Elm Street Quilts is running it - basically, we create and share bags that we've made (between Nov. 2 and Dec. 14).  This one definitely has my name written all over it, LOL.

Here are several of the bags I've made since November 2 - my first entries for Bag It! :)  I've actually finished several more but I try to do them in sets so when the set is finished, I'll take pictures :D

This is the one I started on Saturday - I like to call it my "I'm not a  hot pad! birdy pouch", as this is Crafty Staci's August hot pad of the month, in zippy form :D  This was a new to me project, and I'm very pleased with how she turned out :)

Here's beaded butterfly pouch #2 - I posted the first one on November 3, and got this one finished a couple of days ago.  I wish I was able to get close-up photos of the beading, but I don't have a great camera.  I used clear and turquoise beads on some of the butterfly spots - it does look sweet, IIDSSM!

 Here are the two bags, side by side - both are Christmas gifts :)

This is a pattern I did once or twice a while ago, and decided to revisit for this challenge.   I forgot that this is a bag better suited to non-directional fabrics - my scotties on the back are upside-down, and then, while that goof was fresh in my mind, I cut out two more bags ...with directional fabrics as well, lol.  Hopefully I won't make that mistake a 4th time :D

 And here are the bags I worked up this morning - they were inspired by this post, and I've already made one (that I can recall!) :D  I thought it was a good one to do for the challenge!

Here's the back of the bags :)   6 bags so far - the counselling center is going to score big-time after this challenge!






The hot pad zipper bag will be posted to Celtic Thistle Stitches' [hi, Fiona - Novelty Pouch Factory signing in, LOL!!] New New To Me linky party for November  :)

Bag It!

A few days ago I came across the Elm Street Quilts blog post that mentioned a fun project Patty is hosting in November (and into December) - she calls it Bag It!  Of course I had to investigate further - I think I could be persuaded to make a zipper bag or two (or twenty!) to celebrate Bag It :D  I've put her button on my sidebar so you can go take a peek at the latest posts about this fun series :)

I've already completed a few bags this month to post - hopefully the sun is out tomorrow so I can get some pics.  In the interim, here's something I started today that I hope will finish into a worthy entry ;)  I'm planning on trying some new and fun bags for this - if I don't post some new goodies, please feel free to give me a figurative kick in the a$$!  ;)

YAY Vicki is the winner :)

Last month I hosted the October Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew linky party - there was a draw for the people who posted to the party, and Vicki won, with her parade of snowmen - YAY!  Congratulations Vicki!  Lucky lady - she won F8's of Liberty fabric *swoon* (fabric generously donated by Sarah of Duck Egg Threads :D) :)

 Now - also on the Christmas sewing front - I finished a zipper bag this morning - the recipient doesn't know I have a blog so I have no worries that she'll see this :D  I posted about it a few weeks ago when I was almost finished the beading - I got that part finished last night, and got the bag done today.  I actually had enough fabric for 2 pouches but I haven't started beading the second one yet.  In front of the bag you can see some little odds and ends I'm going to tuck inside - along with chocolate, of course :D  She's a nurse, which is why I'm including syringe pens, hehe.

Here's a close-up of the beading - I only beaded one side, but I'm very pleased with how it turned out :)



The parts for the second bag are sitting beside the couch so I can work on the beading while I watch TV with hubby :)