Bug scraps - be GONE!

Late last month I grabbed a small container of scraps from my craftroom and decided to use them all up in July.  They were all bug/critter fabrics - mostly just bits and pieces, and I thought that using upcycled denim from thrift store jeans and heavy duty canvas from hubby's work pants, would be the perfect statement to go along with the use of the scraps :)  I got them all finished rather quickly - it's almost as if I've made zipper bags before!  ;)  The last bag is my favourite - I don't like the product samples my dentist gives me after each check-up so I donate them :D  The goodies have now been tucked inside the tall denim zipper bag, and hopefully, someone will make good use of them :)

... and this is just ONE reason why I love my neighbour :)

Our kitchen - 5:00 p.m. (ish).  I was making supper (aka taking containers of leftovers out of the fridge :D).  Phone rings, hubby answers it, then I hear ... "OK, I'll tell her."  "Hey Sandra - that was Maria - she says that if you grab a plate and go to her fence ..." - at which point I grabbed a plate and ran like the wind. not listening to anything else he had to say :D   I knew what she was baking today, so I knew what was coming!  Two minutes later I'm in her kitchen (after receiving kisses from Xena the dobie, who greeted me at the fence), and she's carving us off a hunk of homemade zucchini cinnamon cake, freshly baked, and frosted by her son Stelio.  LOOK AT THIS CAKE!   I put the butter in the photo to give you an idea of how big these pieces are - that's a dinner sized plate - not a little dessert plate!  I've already eaten my piece, LOL.  Hubby got called out on a service call before he could eat dessert - his piece may be in mortal danger, IYKWIM :D  I love my neighbour - and not just because she bakes us treats :D  She's rather ... ummm ... raunchy ... ummmm ... dirty ... saucy ... - it's like seeing a younger ME over the fence - one that's a better cook, lol!  We get along very well - I'm so so lucky!

I'm on my touch screen laptop and can't figure out how  to move this photo up so it's beside the text instead of below it.  I also can't figure out how to get rid of the stupid pop-up keyboard that keeps showing up - this is a laptop, not a tablet, and I have a full keyboard, but for the life of me I cannot figure out how to get rid of it!  Annoying beyond belief - especially since it just started showing up a couple of months ago out of nowhere, and none of the solutions I find online, work to elininate it. Sometimes, technology is a royal PITA!   But then I eat cake and forget my problems :D  Problem solved, finally - so NOW I can eat cake :D

Red Riding Hood and superheroes :)

Here's a Red Riding Hood gift set that I finished this morning - a simple zipper pouch with a themed drawstring bag to hold it :)  All supplies from stash, yay!

Red Riding Hood drawstring gift bag ...

Red Riding Hood gift set - zipper pouch and drawstring bag :D

Here's a closer picture of the bag (from my dreary basement, lol) :)

Close-up of the Lecien RRH print :)

And another finish - a Superhero (fabric from Joanns) bag - this, along with the RRH set ^^, is being donated for an upcoming fundraiser :)

Retreat bag - lined with royal blue TOT fabric :)

Close-up of the zipper pull - I'm not sure if this is an actual superhero design (I got it on Ebay), but it looks pretty hero-ish! :)

Last of the June finishes :D

Some of these are projects that were finished in May but I didn't get around to getting pictures for my "Completed" file :D  I used up, at a rough estimate, 37 zippers in June (along with 12m fabric, 10m ribbon and 10m rattail).  However, my final "zipper out" tally was closer to 18, as I ended up buying 19 during the month :D  Hey - a girl who loves zippers can't turn down a 50% off sale ... especially when the fabric store has increased the price of zippers substantially (30% on some - OUCH!) and I was snatching up stock that was still priced at the old, lower price :D

It's no wonder I spend so much time in the basement - we had a lot of hot days in June, and the furnace and air conditioner are in my sewing dungeon, so it's way cooler down here than it is upstairs.  So much so, in fact, that I frequently have to put on a sweatshirt and socks to be able to spend time in here, haha!

Happy Canada day to my Canadian friends ... and Happy 4th of July to my American buds!  It's funny that we're sharing a long weekend to celebrate our countries' birthdays, but they're on opposite ends of the weekend - Friday - Sunday ... and Saturday - Monday :)  Stay safe!

(photo source)

Strawberries and farm animals and vinyl flexation :D

Strawberry zipper pouch - tute here :)

Here's a new to me (19 of 52 in 16) project that worked out so nicely that I decided to put it in my Christmas box as a gift :)  It actually has red seed bead "seeds" but I couldn't get a clear photo of them - they do give the bag a pretty little glitter!  I think I'll tuck strawberry lip gloss and Strawberry Shortcake stickers inside, making it a a sweet gift for a young lady :)   The tutorial for the bag, along with the strawberry applique pattern, is from Jennifer Heynen (aka Jennifer Jangles) @ JenniferJangles.com :D  The little inset picture on the right, is a close-up of the strawberry zipper pull ;)

Farm finger puppets - tute here :)

Another Christmas gift finish --- this was a tiny little finish, but it was the last item I wanted to make for this specific gift, so I'm really happy to have all the pieces completed, ready to be "bagged and tagged"  :D   The pattern for these little farm finger puppets is here :)

The gift consists of a Cargo Duffle bag with some goodies tucked inside.  There's a set of farm animal hand puppets and a book to go with them ... they were posted here.  I made a drawstring bag to hold the puppets and book ... it's posted here. The finger puppets are ^^ above ;)  What do you think - is this a cute gift for a young lad?  I think (hope) so :)

Oh!  One last new to me (18 of 52 in 16) project for June - a vinyl flex frame bag!  I've made vinyl bags, and I've made flex frame bags, but combining the two - that's a first!  The tutorial is here - I have more of these cut out already - they're a great way to use up fabric scraps!  Next time around I'll put a gentle curve in the bottom - it was impossible to get the square corners completely turned RSO :D



Posting to:
New to Me for June 2016 and Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew for June 2016 :D

Happy Fishy Drawstring Bag Day!

Friday was Pineapple Day, and today is a new and fun theme day, lol.  Did YOU remember to celebrate Fishy Drawstring Bag Day today?  No?  Well then pull up the tutorial (which was created to take care of an UNtutorial problem :D) that Caroline from SewCanShe.com was sweet enough to write for us - and make yourself a fishy bag :)

I made the simplest version with no embellishments - I wanted to try out the pattern and wanted instant gratification, LOL.  It worked out perfectly, and it's a SIMPLE sew.  I used about .8m fabric, and 2m rattail (instead of fabric drawstrings) - nice stash busting!  It's unlined, so I zigzagged all the raw edges to give it a nice finish.  I appliqued an eye on either side, so it's reversible ... in a manner of speaking, haha.   I'm SO very pleased with this bag, and glad that it was chosen for May's Untutorial project - I voted for it myself :D THANK YOU CAROLINE for your work and for sharing it with us!

Bonus points for me, as it counts as #17 in my quest to try new designs in 2016 (52 in 16) - plus I'll be able to post it to Fiona's New to Me for June - I am ON A ROLL :)  I'm going to print off the pattern at 50% to see how it looks as a smaller bag --- this one measures about 28" long from mouth to tail, and about 18" wide, so a half size bag would be cute to hold a kiddy item :)

Posted to New to Me for June, @ Celtic Thistle Stitches :)

Happy Pineapple Day!

Pineapple zippy - front :)

Pineapple zippy - back :)

If Pineapple Day isn't an official holiday, it should be ... to honour my latest finish :D  Tutorial is here - pattern is here :)  I did change the pattern up a bit - I quilted the outside in a cross-hatch design (which doesn't really show because of the zigzag print, hehe) and eliminated the embroidered design from the original.  The bag worked out perfectly, and tomorrow she's headed via snail mail to ******, who has a birthday coming up :D  I've tucked a little notebook, a key cap cover and a book of stamps inside as a bonus :D  I already have 2 more of these little sweeties cut out ready to make!  This counts as #15 in my 52 in 16 attempt :D

Pocket Tote Library Bag

Here's another new one from this week - a simple Pocket Tote Library Bag.  I spotted the tutorial online and thought it might make a good stashbuster project - making bags to send to the counselling center, with the added bonus of busting some fabric :D  I used leftover corduroy for this one and decided to quilt it. Next time, self, don't quilt corduroy.  That was definitely not necessary, and made for some mighty thick seams, lol.  I'll be making more of these - it's a simple bag, and very cute :)  It's fairly small, though - 12.5w x 11t x 3.5d - that would suit a younger kid.  I'll upsize a couple of inches in each direction to make it more versatile, for older kids.    Yay for #16 in 52 in 16 :D

Here's part of a Christmas gift I got finished earlier this month - I made it to hold the farm hand puppets I made last month.  I tucked an Old MacDonald book inside, and I have some farm finger puppets printed out to make, which will finish the gift off.  When I get them done I can post this to June's Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew linky party :)


Pineapple bag posted to Celtic Thistle Stitches New to Me for June :)

Ho Ho Ho --- covered now for May ;)

Thank goodness for deadlines - I tend to get things done last minute when there's a firm and definite deadline :)  Here are a couple of projects I finished this month that were planned for May's Ho Ho Ho linky party :D  The duffle bag got finished this morning, but the puppets were finished a while ago - I just hadn't gotten photographs :)  Both of these items are for Christmas gifts, so into the gift they're going :)

First up is a set of Old MacDonald puppets, plus the book I bought to go along with them :)  I'll do a drawstring bag (appliqued with farm bits and pieces) to hold the puppets.  I may also do a couple of finger puppets to go in the bag - and I was thinking I could maybe find a farm colouring book as well :)  The free tutorial is here :)

Next up is my newest completed Cargo Duffle bag :)  I took pictures outside this afternoon but it was so bright and sunny (YAY!) that the colour washed out.  I grabbed a couple more pics down here in the dungeon - the black background isn't faded like it is in these pictures - this is lovely Japanese canvas fabric but I'm an inept photographer :D

Here are some close-ups of the fun zipper pull I got on Ebay - it works perfectly with the bag - and both sides are perfect for the space/robot theme :)

[X] Cargo duffle gift #2 - completed :)
[X] Old MacDonald puppet gift set - completed :)

Posted to May's Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew linky party :)

May owls ... and things :)

One of my goals for May was to use up 5 owl charms I've had in stash for a while. Mission ... almost accomplished :D  I did get 5 bags done, but I still have one kitted to use the last charm - I had a brain fart and used a wood bead zipper pull for one, lol.   5/5 done ... but not quite as planned ;)

I got some flickies done for Nancy ...

15 flickies :D

... a humbug/triangle bag finished (for Blue Hills) ...

Ladybug humbug bag (pieces cut 5.5" x 10.5") - note the cute gold birdy zipper pull - a great find from Ebay :)

... a rocket drawstring bag completed (to go in my gift box) ...

Rocket drawstring bag

... two Pokemon bags finished for my neighbour's daughter and her BFF (note the zipper pull I used, indicative of the purpose for the bags :D) ...

Pokemon Shark Week Bags :D

... and last, but not least, another New to Me project - a "Jungle Jalopy" zipper pouch.  I simplified the pattern by putting the zipper in the middle of the back, instead of on the curved top.  I think it needs button tires, and I'm going to pick some up for the next bags :)  Posted to May's New to Me linky party :)

Jungle Jalopy :)

I still have a few projects in the pipes to work on in the next few days, but hubby and I are going to Pennsylvania on Friday for a few days, to visit Mickie and her delicious poodle Seamus, and hopefully her husband ... aka The Phantom :D My hubby suggested the visit 2 months ago so we got our passports renewed and we're heading out :D  There will be some time @ Joanns - guaranteed :D

Cargo Duffle #3 :D

Here's what I'm working on this month - the goal being for it to be completed in May.  It's going to be a Christmas gift.  It's a Cargo Duffle (a free pattern designed by Anna Noodlehead Graham) - I've made 2 already, and am FAR from finished with this great design, as I have fabrics picked out and zippers bought for several more of these bags :D  So far I have the front and back quilted and prepared, and will be working on the zipper gusset next :D

Cargo duffle under construction - this is a photo of the large charm I found in stash to use for a zipper pull on the bag.  I bought about 5 of these on Ebay a few years ago - isn't it adorable?!  It's not a tiny little thing - it's 2 1/4" tall x 1 1/4" wide - the duffle bag needs something substantial for the zipper pull, and this will be perfect. 

Here's the reverse of the charm - look how well it matches the design in the fabric! 

Here's a bigger photo of the fabric, quilted - it's a Japanese linen/canvas - I believe it's from Lecien.

Cloud zipper bag designed by Cloud 9 Fabrics :D

Here's a bag I forgot to post when I finished it - it's #10 in my 52 in 16 personal challenge - a cloud zipper bag designed by - who else - Cloud 9 Fabrics, lol!   This lil gal will be posted to Celtic Thistle Stitches New to Me linky when it opens this month :)

What are YOU working on today? :)  I have ladies coming over tonight for a crafting evening ... which generally means that we're going to sit and talk and carry on and get very little actual crafting done - HA!!  :)  ETA, later in the evening:  yep very little crafting got done - we didn't even PRETEND to do any.  I did make Nancy put the zipper pulls on 14 "zipper by the yard" zippers (similar to this) I bought - 2 heads per tape - my fingers couldn't handle the work, but she did a great job, LOL.  Thanks Nanc!

Pink Tease - The Finale :)

Inspired by Anne's version @ Play Crafts, I whipped up this doxy bag :D   When I saw Anne's finish I fell in love with the idea :)   I have to boast ... when stitching sections of foundation pieced blocks together, sometimes your sections don't match perfectly.  In this instance, with the blocks positioned in opposite directions and with the areas to match not easy to access because of batting, I managed to literally (I measured!) come within 1/8" of a perfect join :)  I'm posting this to May's New to Me linky party :)

As Anne mentions in her post, the block is from a book called It's Raining Cats & Dogs, by Janet Kime.  Bag #13 of 52 in 16 is now complete, and I believe that there shall be some frontback cat bags forthcoming from the Dungeon of Sandra :D

Hehehe a freebie for your viewing and listening pleasure - I originally posted this in 2012 and just came across it again :)  Check out the other videos in the series - too funny :D

Pink Tease, part deux :D

Pink Tease, part 2 :D  

Yesterday I posted a teaser photo of a small project I have underway.  Here's the second part of the block - it didn't take me long to realize that I really should have drafted the entire block before stitching.  Between (enlarging the block by 50%) + (cutting the block in two [but not in half]) + (adding to the block size to frame it and make it bigger) - there was a definite need for pattern drafting before I started cutting and stitching :D   Valuable lesson learned!  I worked around the problems ... and hopefully tomorrow will have a finish to post :)

Pink Tease :D

Here's an in-progress picture of the project I'm working on today.  This is part of a new-to-me project - I've done lots of paper piecing before, but this project has a bit of a piecing "twist" to it.  I'm foundation piecing it - thanks to the lovely light table my hubby made for me it was easy enough to trace the pattern onto an old sheet, but the block construction and then it's insertion into the actual project, is something I haven't done before.  If it works, I can see at least one more application for it!  I'll post another picture when I get the other part of the block done ;)

Pink tease :)  BTW - the white foundation is showing in parts only because I left myself almost 1" borders, to allow lots of fudge (room for error and angles) when assembling the project :D  I didn't come up short anywhere - a common problem with paper piecing and angles, lol

On an unrelated note, who else uses the OneNote program?  I really just started using it a few days ago on my Win10 laptop - I didn't look into it until I got more comfortable with Windows 10, then decided to try it.  I like it!  I had to get a Microsoft account to use it, and then Microsoft hijacked my laptop signin and changed it from a password I had chosen ... to the Microsoft password.  It took me a couple of days to figure out how to undo that --- how about, Microsoft, we opt in instead of having to opt out, hmmmmmmmmmm?  Hijacking is rude! Now I sign in the way "I" want to, and I'm having fun playing with this program.  It's good for me because I can easily share information between my two laptops :)

How NOT to make a vinyl bag :)

I picked up some vinyl recently and decided to try out this new-to-me tutorial to make some drawstring bags.  It's helpful to read through the instructions and at least half-a$$edly follow them - who knew?!  If you don't, you may mis-cut one of the fabric pieces and end up with a misshaped miscreation that is literally and physically, trying to implode upon it's own self.  And it's doing it while leaning.  NOT pretty!  Top left you can see that the scale of the fabric/vinyl is off - that's because the fabric is cut to HALF of the correct height - that's where the problem began.  Because that piece wasn't tall enough, the bag wasn't able to draw together properly and the implosion began (bottom left and center).  Bottom right shows my fix - I cut off the mis-sized part, recut a new one in the right size, then stitched it back on ... resulting in the picture top right.  SUCCESS :D  It pays to pay attention to measurements, and bag #12 of 52 in 16 is completed :)

Nailed. It. :)

Earlier this month I completed my first Cargo Duffle - a free (YAY!) pattern designed by Anna Graham (Noodlehead) :) There are lots of blog posts about this project on the interwebs - sew alongs, hacks and modifications - the pattern looked VERY detailed and scary to me so I did a lot of reading, decided on some simplifications, and then I jumped in.  I haven't taken proper pictures of it because it needs a good pressing to be camera ready, but here it is pre-pressage.

First Cargo Duffle - a New to Me finish :D

I didn't like the pockets on the original so I changed mine to a simple slip pocket.  I QAYG'd (quilt as you go) the outside and lining with a layer of medium weight sew-in interfacing along with a layer of quilt  batting - that's the "recipe" I use for my Retreat Bags, and I love the finish.  After a press, I'll likely be using this bag myself - maybe for hubby's and my Joanns runs ;)

I was so excited about how well #1 turned out, that I started a new one almost immediately.  I have a bit of a stash of Japanese canvas that I purchased from a local quilt store last year when it was on sale for $8 per meter cut.  I bought about 10 meters, mostly boy prints - I believe it's Lecien.  It's PERFECT for this project.  The inside raw edges are bound with the lining fabric (you can see this in the photo below).  It looks lovely inside, IIDSSM.  I changed out the pieced/quilted straps from #1, to webbing (thanks to my friend Nancy for the idea :D), and changed up the design of the slip pocket a bit.  I found a cute 3D car keyring in stash and used it for the zipper pull.  Presenting ... Cargo Duffle #2 ;)

My 2nd Cargo Duffle - nailed it!  :)

This one is a Christmas gift so it will be posted to April's Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew, along with the New to Me linky.  I have one other gift underway that I hope to get finished in the next few days, so I can post it as well.  But I couldn't wait to show off my duffle!

ETA:  OH!  I forgot about my 52 in 16 plans - the green one actually counts as #11 of my attempts to try new designs this year --- #10 has been finished as well but I haven't taken a picture yet, lol.  11 done in 4 months - I think I'm falling behind schedule if I want to get 52 done for the year!