Grocery Bags

Wow! It's been a month since I've posted. What a slacker!

Actually, I haven't been working on too many different things right now, because I'm in the process of making a wedding dress for a friend. There will be plenty of pictures once it's done :)

But here's a project from the spring. I've been working on various grocery bag designs, and one of the things I try to do is to make the handles a different color from the bag, so they're easier to fill.

I made a set of 6 for my brother, and asked him to report back how they work and if he manages to break any of them. I needed a good product tester :) 

 On this set I tried something new. I took a one-inch strip of denim and fused it to the top before making the hem. This is one of the weakest parts of the bag - the joint between handle and the top edge - so I think strengthening it there will help. The rest of the bag is a medium weight twill, and the handles are cotton.

 Look at the nice french seams, too =)

More Corsetry

I have a friend getting married in a couple weeks, and a mutual friend wondered if I would make a corset for her bachelorette party. The theme was red and white polka dots.

It was SO much fun to make a surprise corset. We measured one of her ready-made corsets and I just dove in, no fittings at all. Kind of intimidating, but also very exciting.

She was thrilled with the final product, so I think it was a success.



On a completely different note, here's a project that I've been wanting to do for awhile. I took an Ikea picture frame and wanted to drape a mesh fabric over it for earrings. One of my crafty friends suggested cutting up an old pair of fishnets, and voila! I put red fabric behind the plastic. All that's left is to paint the frame, and I'll have a lovely earring rack.


- Mobile post -

Coffee Cozies and Baby Gifts

As usual, I've been busy. Here's a quick snapshot of some current projects.

Last weekend we had a volunteer appreciation party for those of us that foster and/or volunteer their time to find homes for kitties, and I made some coffee cozies as party favors. Our group's color is purple, so I lined each one with purple. It was lots of fun picking out the cat-themed fabric!

Speaking of cats, here's one of our current fosters, named Long-Stripe Todd. He's a cutie :)

Awhile back I'd made a baby blanket for a friend who had a little boy earlier this year. I used a cotton-acrylic blend, which works up nicely.

So recently I got to finish the OTHER part of the gift, a cream colored super-soft bamboo teddy bear, and a matching hat with bear ears.

By the way, my doll's nightgown was made by my mom. I believe I had a matching one once upon a time :)

And lastly, here's the current state of my front garden. I'm gradually clearing back the weeds at the end of the yard, and doing useful stuff with the dirt. So far I mostly have lavender... I love lavender! Plus it grows well here, and the deer don't eat it.

The futon planter box has a lemon balm in the middle, and a rosemary on the right. On the left is a newly replanted calla lilly bulb which I hadn't seen for awhile. Fingers crossed that it survives. The white planter has a lilac in it, and you can also see my newly planted orange and lemon trees! (Also Casper keeping watch over things)

Coffee Cozy

This is my first attempt at a fabric cup cozy.


I'm fairly happy with how it turned out, and it's reversible!


I know I'll be making more of these, and still have a few tweaks to get them looking even better.

Baby Quilt

A friend of mine is having a baby girl in a couple of months, so I made her a little flannel quilt.

Picking out the fabrics was great fun, and the piecing went together fairly quick. Then I made little knots with some pink yarn. I thought this monkey fabric was just TOO adorable, even though it didn't fit with the front color scheme. So I used it as a border for the back.

I didn't get a great picture of the finished quilt, but here are all the blocks laid out and ready to be sewn. I had a great time making this quilt, and I'm sure I'll be making more of them in the future =)

Lunch Totes

I finished the handles for my little sock yarn lunch tote!

Isn't it cute?

I was very happy with how it turned out, so I made another with cotton/acrylic worsted weight yarn leftover from a baby shower gift.

This is one of the first projects where I've mixed fabric and crochet, and definitely won't be the last. I have to do some fine tuning for the handles, but then I'm hoping to put these up in my craft booth. That's right! I'm getting ready to sell my things in a holiday craft fair. Check back in six months or so for an update on that =)

Halfway through sewing the fabric on the sock yarn tote, (the color is called "clover") my sewing machine started jamming. I had to disassemble the needle portion to get it moving again, but I'm afraid I didn't put it back together exactly how it's supposed to be. Good thing the Bernina just came back from having its motor rebuilt! Eventually I'll have two machines that work, at the same time.

Happy Valentines Day!

I hope everyone had a lovely V-day yesterday, whether or not you celebrated or did anything special. I just had a lovely dinner with my husband, which was take-out Indian food from one of our favorite places.

I also made Oreos again as I did last year. I don't remember which recipe I used, but this year I chose a recipe by The Baker Chick.

I made a couple modifications, including coloring the frosting pink. They were so cute!

I also used cream cheese in the frosting instead of shortening. The filling turned out a little soft, and they have to stay in the refrigerator. Next time I might add more powdered sugar so they travel better.

I brought some of them into the office, and I would have taken a picture whole, but I forgot and started eating it =)