3 itty bitties :)

I've been doing some sewing lately, but hadn't gotten around to taking pics, hence the lack of posts :D

Here are a couple of the bags I've finished lately --- the orange/linen one was made to use up some tiny scraps of orange, the butterfly fabric was a gift from my friend Nancy (the organza ribbon embellishment was an old Etsy purchase - I'm finally getting around to using it), and the butterfly keychain on the owl bag was a gift from my friend Deb in AZ :) 

A little teaser about a craft I'm working on - I had to borrow a candle from a neighbour to help me prep the item for sewing - hopefully I'll get it done this weekend and can post it ;)

Little owlies :)

Here are a couple of little owl projects I finished recently (and couldn't post until the recipient received them, lol) - the owl boxy bag measures 7x4x2.5" (I think I cut it 10" x 13"), and the little owls are made from scraps, using this tutorial :)

Moms Come In All Sizes, Sexes And Species!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers, and grandmothers, and mothers-in-law, and step-mothers, and mothers-to-be (congrats!), and mothers-by-proxy :)  They've said it really well over at cuteoverload --- "Many thanks to all of you who have mothered somebody – whoever you are, wherever you are."  

Special congratulations to my sister Sherry - AKA GRAMMIE!!! - on her first grandmotherly Mother's Day ... her daughter Jenn on HER first Mother's Day (hi, LL!!! *kiss* *kiss* from Auntie Sandra!) ... and to our niece Cassendra on her first Mother's Day with twins Madelena and Massimo (and of course big brother Matteo) - I hope everyone had a magnificent day! 

Eat your veggies :)

Between both of these bags there are probably only about 40 calories, LOL!

My knees are aching tonight - I was out walking with my neighbour and her dog today - I was behind the dog, and at one point she stopped suddenly -- unfortunately, I didn't!  I started to fall towards her so I tried going to the side so i wouldn't hurt her, and of course landed on my hands and knees on the sidewalk. She was unharmed, but it was definitely not a graceful or gracious moment for me :D

I almost forgot to post these, lol

Here are a few recent finishes - I was finally organized enough to find the camera AND the camera card at the same time :D

Cancan zipper bag - a birthday gift for a friend :)

Close-up of the zipper pull - it's a bra, LOLOL!!! 

 This is the Across the Pond pouch I finished last month - it's a birthday gift ...

I finally got the zipper pull done so I can wrap this and get it off to the recipient!  The camera seems to have given the beads an unusual tint - they're salmon orange and lavender purple, to match the bag :D

Here's a house pouch from Zakka Style - note that there's a kitty sitting in the window - imagine that!!!  :) 

Here's the back of the pouch - there are flowers growing in the back yard :D  My friend No-Blog Angela gave me the idea to use vinyl for the window (yay for trying something new!) - I thought it would be a hoot to see a kitty IN the window, LOL!

Dipes 'n wipes 'n bibs

Last night I worked on a new-to-me project that didn't work out quite as well as I hoped.    I tried an Aivilo Diapers and Wipes case, but will have to make a few changes the next time around.  I somehow got the pockets on in the wrong order (and believe me - they're better her way than my way).  Also - there are many layers of fabric in this (12, IIRC, including batting) - it's more than 1/2" thick in places!   I have to get a Huggies travel wipes container to make sure the thickness didn't make the pockets too snug for the case.  If the case slips in and out nicely then I'll probably use the batting again, but if the pockets are too tight I may try flannel instead of batting.  We shall see!

These worked out fine, though, in contrast with the dipes 'n wipes case :D  They're for next year - I wanted to use up the last of this Easter print :)

From the humour files ;)

A friend  sent me this - it made me LOL :D

And then we have ... 

Hellmann's Mayonnaise - a bit of history!

Most people don't know that back in 1912, Hellmann's mayonnaise was manufactured in England . In fact, the Titanic was carrying 12,000 jars of the condiment scheduled for delivery in Vera Cruz, Mexico , which was to be the next port of call for the great ship after its stop in New York . This would have been the largest single shipment of mayonnaise ever delivered to Mexico . But as we know, the great ship did not make it to New York . The ship hit an iceberg and sank, and the cargo was forever lost. The people of Mexico , who were crazy about mayonnaise, and were eagerly awaiting its delivery, were disconsolate at the loss. Their anguish was so great, that they declared a National Day of Mourning, which they still observe to this day. The National Day of Mourning occurs each year on May 5th and is known, of course, as -

Sinko De Mayo.
 

Usain Bolt :D

Today our oldest lad nicknamed our cat Usain Bolt - every time he says it it cracks me up, as ... well ... Zoomer is rather ... horizontally supplemented (18 pounds, 8.6 kgs), shall we say?  ;) 

Shape Collage - cool!

I saw something today on a friend's blog - she had done a collage of the projects she completed in April.  I was going to email her to ask how she did it, but then I noticed the watermark on her photo so I went a searching and found the program - and bonus, it's a free download!  I tried it out and came up with this collage of my April projects :D

A little fun with the cat :D

Our oldest son was having fun with the cat the other morning - he plopped a quilt on top of Z and the cat took off to the kitchen for food ... while still wearing the quilt, LOL!

I got it right this time ;)

I made one of these bags a few days ago but got things turned around so the window was at the top (not very practical).  Tonight I paid closer attention and did it properly :)  Tutorial is from Make It Perfect - the vinyl is from a $2 vinyl shower curtain I picked up @ the $ store - I can probably make about 367 windows for bags with that curtain, LOL!

Who else watches Touch with Kiefer Sutherland?  Tonight's episode made me sob like a baby (when the family got reunited at the end) - I think it was the best one yet!  I am LOVING this show!  And I love Ravi Kapoor (Bug from Crossing Jordan) - would it be wrong for me to call him yummy?  He even shares a birthday with my youngest son, lol!

Several new finishes :)

 Mini boxy bag - 7 x 2.5 x 4 - I have a few more of these kitted to use the last of this fabric - they'll be great for a little boy :)

 Pink Gingercake Max the Owl stuffy, made with scraps!

Another scrap project, using some of the smallest scraps of these pink prints :)

iFaux Pas'd :D

This is a Peek a Boo sack from Make it Perfect - the peek a boo window is supposed to be at the bottom so the contents show - don't ask me what I was thinking when I started the final assembly and got things upside down!  Hopefully the 4 year old recipient won't notice :D 


It's so grey and overcast outside - I couldn't get a proper photo - this is the quilt set (quilt, 2 bibs, owl stuffy) I made for baby Madelena ...

... and here's the one for her twin brother Massimo.  The owl colours are closest to the correct colours for both of these photos - I'm not sure why the quilts and bibs look so washed out.  Perhaps my lack of photography skills has something to do with it ;)  The owl pattern is from Gingercake - I love this pattern :)

I have one more set to post but it'll have to wait just a bit longer :D

I'm in spring mode - hopefully this set will get my mind off of the white yucky stuff!  ;)

I've found my people - apparently Google is THEM!

My friend Nancy sent me an email today telling me to check out Google's .ca homepage because ... "I think it might be the national holiday of your people.... :-)"

AND IT IS!!  It's my people -- I'm home at last!!!!!  :D

When you pull the zipper down, it opens to a Google search about the man who invented the zipper, lol!  MY PEOPLE!!!  :D

While snow on April 23rd isn't unheard of ...

it's certainly not appreciated - not by me, anyways, lol!  This is what I saw out my kitchen window a minute ago - that's my back yard :D  At least the white stuff isn't sticking around - yet?!  :D

Wordless Friday :D

Quilt set 1 of 3 ...

I have 3 baby quilt sets under construction right now - here's the girly one.  It seems my camera doesn't want to give an accurate representation of the fabric colours - they're softer than they appear here :)

Across the Pond pouch :)

It's hard to tell from the photos, but this is a really curvy pouch!  I have it tucked with plastic grocery bags so I could show off it's curves with the camera :)  I still need to make a zipper pull for it -- I have to check my bead box (ok, boxes, LOL) for purple and coral beads.  This will be a birthday gift for a friend - she doesn't read my blog so I'm not ruining a surprise :D

The tutorial is here --- I've made a few pouches in my time *ahem* so I only needed the basics and the pattern, but for beginner sewers the tute is very detailed and well photographed - she really was very thorough!

Hexies :)

Hexies zipper bag - front

Hexies zipper bag - back

Hexies zipper bag - zipper pull

Hexies zipper bag - lining

Here's the zipper bag I completed today - the hexy construction is loosely based on this tutorial, and here's the page that got me stitching hexies :D

A gift for a friend :)

This little zippy is for a friend - it's made with the same fabric as a tote she has made (and which I don't yet see posted to her blog, hint hint :D).   I didn't add any embellishments to this (other than the twin needle quilting in variegated orange thread) so that the recipient can decorate it to match the tote :D

Today I tried something new - I did some hexies to try a project I spotted during my internet travels.  The project is done but I have to make the "bling" to go on it - hopefully I can do that today so I can post a photo.  I cheated on the hexies - you're supposed to tack stitch them on the wrong side when you fold the raw edges in - I just pressed them and then appliqued them on to the project.  It wasn't difficult, and saved me the extra step ;) 

iBead :)

I tried Kelly's "Bling your Thing" challenge, and added beads to this zipper bag :)  You can't really see them very well - that's what happens when you put black beads on a black background, LOL.  I'm looking forward to seeing what other people post (Allie!) so I can get more ideas!

Bad day X 1, good day X 2 :)

Bad day x 1:  I sat down with Zoomer this morning to give him one of his pills.  He had woofed his cookies on the loveseat during the night.  I found it with my butt.  Wearing shorts.  Welcome to MY world, lol!

Link

Good day X 1:  when I checked my email this morning I found I had won a blog giveaway for some Aurifil thread!  I haven't tried that thread before, so I'm looking forward to it :)

Good day X 2: just now - my next door neighbour showed up on my front doorstep with some homemade baklava - guess what we're having for dessert tonight?  Thanks Maria!!!

Part of a gift ...

2 space bibs :)

Here are a couple of bibs I made to go with a gift set I'm working on.  I need to go to the fabric store (darn it!) to pick up fabric to finish the other part of the gift, so hopefully I'll have a completion soon :D

House pouch :)

House pouch :)

Here's the house pouch I completed for week 2 of the Zakka Style sew along - it's quite cute, if I do say so myself!

The twins are here :)

I don't have any photos yet, but welcome to the world, great niece Madelena and great nephew Massimo (I hope I've spelled the names correctly - I'm waiting for confirmation!), born yesterday to our nephew David and his sweet wife Cassendra :)  Matteo, 4, is now a big brother!  

I've been dealing with round 2 of The Creeping Crud (aka a head cold) so I haven't been doing much of anything.  I did get a bit of work done on week 2 of the Zakka Style sew along - this project is actually one I've done before - a House Pouch - easy peasy :)   I brought the bits and pieces upstairs to hand stitch the button flowers on - I wrapped masking tape around a ruler so I could keep the buttons in the right order, lol.  Hopefully I can  finish this one tomorrow, in between naps, LOL.  Nancy I'll give you back your book for now - I'm not doing the next couple of projects so I won't need it until the end of April!  Thanks SO MUCH for the loan!

Zigzag bag completed :)

The first project in the Zakka Style sewalong is a "Zig Zag tote".  I did mine a little differently - I wanted log cabins on mine, so I did log cabins in front, and a modified zigzag (one seam 3D flying geese) in the back ;)  The bag measures 12.5" wide x 14" tall x 2.5" deep, and is lined with a turquoisey-aquay blue.  It came out beautifully!

Week 2 starts on Monday (Apr. 9) - the next project is one I've made before, but of course I'll be making a new one ;) 

+manly -girly :)

A few days ago I completed a messenger bag that turned out a little (LOT!) girlier than I had planned :D    I made a few changes, and here's the result - a manly bag for a young man to carry his treasures in.  Actually I'll be tucking a book inside before giving it to him, so he can use it as a book bag ;)  Those things on the front are jeans buttons - I think they make a great embellishment!  The tutorial is here :)

Zakka Style sewalong bag under construction

I took this picture in the basement so I can't get the colour quite right.  The main parts of the bag are a neutral taupey lineny type fabric, with log cabin blocks for the front, and some one seam 3D flying geese blocks for the back.  They're top-stitch quilted onto Warm and Natural batting.  This is the first project I'm doing for the Zakka Style sewalong - they call it a zigzag bag, but I'm doing it a bit differently :D

 Here's the "Snap Trap" bag I tried out yesterday - I'll make a few changes when I do it again - this one was just a trial run out of ugly-ish fabric.

 Here's the inside of the snap open part ...

and you can't really see it well, but the inside of the zippered pocket shows the wrong side of the lining fabric.  I don't like that - I'll fix that when I make the next one, by adding an extra piece of fabric there.  I'll also make the bag a bit bigger - this one is quite small - 5 1/2" x 4 1/2".  It's a great design idea though - those measuring tape snap bags are great, and I have lots of measuring tape (reclaimed from construction sites!) I can use up!  :)

Radishes at the seaside :D

Yeah - that's a REALLY bad title, lol.  It's late and I couldn't come up with anything :D

Here's a "Wildwood" shopping bag I made yesterday to use up some of my food fabric (right, Allie? LOL!).  I like the shape of the bag (formed by the gusset at the bottom) but the sizing needs adjusting - their straps are WAY too short.  Next time I'll make a few minor changes :D

Here's a wee zippy that I made to use up the last of this seaside fabric - I actually cut out two but screwed the zipper up on one and was too lazy to froggy stitch it ;)  (Nancy would be horrified!)

I also got started on my bag for the Zakka Style sew-along - I posted the focus blocks a few days ago, but forgot to take a picture today.  Will post an update photo tomorrow :)

Tomorrow's project ...

These are 2 of the blocks I'll be working with tomorrow --- they're not part of the sew along that starts tomorrow, but are for something different :D