I've had a very productive day sewing, and this was the first project of the day - using a selection of Lecien fabrics and some orange velvet ribbon trimmed with lace. The plainer fabric is textured, and worked beautifully for the project that I was planning, and used a variegated Gutterman Sulky thrread for the quilting, and a plain Mettler thread in the bobbin. The lining fabric was the left over backing from my brown batik quilt, and is by Moda. It really was the perfect match. So - quilted and labelled... ...another cosmetic bag ready to use as a gift when I need one in a hurry! This pattern is by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa, and although the instructions are in Norwegian it is easy to make by following the diagrams. I have a few more Lecien fabric scraps and lace that I need to use up, and I'll show pictures of that project later on!
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My friend Sue is going on a very special holiday, and asked if I could make a tote bag for her to take with her, using these beautiful batiks that were left over from a quilt that she'd made. Well as you know I love batiks and I love making bags, so putting the two together and I said yes straight away. She had already chosen the pattern "På Quiltelaup" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. Well I was in batik-heaven sewing with these beautiful fabrics. I made a pocket panel using some of the smaller scraps, and a fuchsia pink zipper that matched perfectly. This panel is based on a pattern by Elizabeth Hartman... ...I used a YLI variegated thread "Great Barrier Reef" for the quilting. The lining fabric (one of my favourite colours!) was also left-over from Sue's quilt. It's great making super projects without having to buy anything new! I added a couple of scraps from my batik box - orange, turquoise and and of course lime green for some of the Prarie Points, and added a red button as the final embellishment... ...I hope Sue likes this as much as I do! I really enjoyed making this for her, and hope she gets as much enjoyment out of using it as I did making it!
This selection of batiks has been in my stash for simply ages - and I decided at the weekend that I really NEEDED to put them to good use! I used an AnnAKa pattern that I have used several times before, called "På Quiltelaup" and set to work, cutting and stitching and quilting. I used a Gutermann Sulky variegated thread that I bought a couple of weeks ago from the "Cosy Cabin" when I went to a Quilt Guild regional day. This bag has a "secret" pocket on the front and the back of the bag... ...I added my own twist on this bag, by adding internal pockets (I used a pattern by Elizabeth Hartman for this - it's my favourite method for internal zippered pockets) and also a special clip for keys -there's nothing so annoying as not being able to find your keys and having to rummage about in the bottom of your bag for them!!... ...and finally the large Prairie Points on the front of the bag are decorated with 2 buttons to secure them in place. This was made with a 5 fat quarters of batiks for the bag, the binding, the Prairie points and the pockets both inside and out, and a half metre of fabric for the lining.
What to do on a rainy Saturday morning? A rummage through my box of Lecien fabrics, and I found these that are mostly from the Flower Sugar III range. I needed to make a gift for a very special person who has a birthday in a couple of weeks, so set to work using the pattern "Anna's Sminkepung" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. I thought I'd used the last piece of this gorgeous lace-trimming, but found it screwed up in my box of zippers! I've still got some in different colours, but this is the last I had in this colourway. I've been desperately searching for more, but so far I've had no luck... ...the beautiful soft green fabric was left over from the Butterfly Garden quilt that I'd made a few years ago, and was perfect for the binding along the opening of this bag. Now I just need to buy a few more "pink" bits and bobs to tuck inside and it will be ready for the birthday girl!
This weekend I've finished making a selection of cosmetic bags, made with the pattern "Anna's Sminkepung" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. These fabrics are by Lecien, that I bought last year from Sew and So's at Bungay and were left-overs from a tote bag I made a couple of weeks ago. Each bag is different, made with different scraps of fabric and lace trimmings... ...I'd made one of these bags a couple of weeks ago with some of these scraps of fabric and lace, and blogged about that one here. This shows a close-up of the zippers and the trimmings that I used... ...down among the bluebells in a shady spot at the bottom of my garden seemed the perfect place for this morning's photo-shoot. These will do in my "gift box" so when I need a present for a friend in a hurry, I'll have the perfect present!
I've been playing with scraps today, and pulled out some co-ordinating lace trimmings, and made some cosmetic bags using a pattern by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. This pattern is called "Anna's Sminkepung" and I have adapted it to suit whatever size scraps I have laying around. I like adding trimmings too, lace and ribbon and sometimes vintage buttons. Even scraps of fabric were used to bind the seams - I really didn't waste any fabric at all... ...and here is one of the completed bags. I kept this one quite simple, using 2 different fabrics for the bag, and used the same fabric to bind the zipper that I'd used for the lining, and a narrow lace trim. My eldest daughter (she doesn't sew!) asked if she could have a bag like this when she saw the pile of scraps I was working with - and she's already got 3 in different colours!! Oh well, there's no peace for a sewing-mummy!!
It's been raining most of the day, and my husband is at work all day too, so I've been sewing again! This fabric was a fat quarter bundle in my stash, (bought last year from Sew and So's) that I teamed up with some pretty cream print that I bought on Saturday from Quilters Haven. The pattern is "På Quiltelaup" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. I made a pocket panel is made inserted into the lining, using up some of the left over scraps from the outer part of the bag. I changed my mind about the lacey zipper, as I decided it was far to pretty to be hidden inside the bag! But I've got a cunning plan about using that tomorrow... ...this bag is great for using up FQ's as you can see with these two pictures, each side looks different. I used the same fabric for the straps that I used for the lining. I really love the scrappy look to this one... ...well it finally stopped raining long enough to take some photographs. I used some leftover strips of fabric to make a key holder, and added a large blue floral button to each side of the bag to keep those prairie points in place... ...this is much more subtle than the other tote bags I've made recently. I love the linen fabric that was in this bundle, and one is a "waffle" type fabric which has a wonderful texture to it. There are lots of small pieces of fabric left over, probably enough to make a couple of cosmetic bags, and I'll be able to use that pretty lacey zipper too!
Mr F has been busy at work this weekend, and Alice has been working too, so I was home alone with my sewing machine. What should I do? Well I had a very crafty plan! I really needed a large tote bag to take all my sewing sewing supplies in when I spend a sewing day with my crafty friends, so used some leftovers from the sewing mat set that I'd made recently, and used the tote bag pattern "På Quiltelaup" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. Once the main part of the bag was pieced together, I marked the straight rows for quilting with a Clover Hera marker. This just leaves an indentation in the fabric so you have a guide to stitch along. I used a variegated YLI thread in black and white - again using everything from my stash!... ...these black and white spots work well with the newspaper print. I made another pocket panel too, based on the pattern I'd downloaded last year, designed by Elizabeth Hartman (her blog is Oh Fransson!) and this really is my favourite go-to pattern when I need pockets inside a bag or a folder... ...2 smart buttons have secured the Prairie points into position, and one of my labels has been stitched into place too. Now I just need to arrange another sewing day with my friend Sue, or get myself booked onto a class or two as now I've got the perfect bag for taking along all my supplies with me! I love how this pattern can look so different depending on what fabrics I've used. And it's great for using up small scraps for those co-ordinating prairie points too. Now, somewhere I've got a nice FQ bundle of blue and cream florals that will work perfectly with this pattern.
I've recently had a good clear out of my fabrics and I sent a large bundle of Laurel Burch scraps to a quilter in need! After I'd posted them off I found this FQ from the "Felines and Canines" collection by Laurel Burch. I teamed it up with this bright blue/gold stars print and some red/gold spot (again both fabrics by Laurel Burch) and made a small pouch to keep my phone charger and camera cable and bits and bots in when I go on my hols. I've got a huge Laurel Burch holdall (bought about 8 or 9 years ago from my local quilt shop, Quilters Haven) that I usually take with me when I go travelling, and this pouch goes with it perfectly/ The pattern is "Anna's Sminkepung" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa... ...when I had a rummage in my button tin I found some small cat charms that are the same as the cat on the fabrics, so added one to the front of the pouch as a little flourish. Now I'm all set for my travels!
While I was "in the zone" for making tote bags, I whipped up another one ready for my holiday this summer. These fun giraffe prints are part of the Laurel Burch "Jungle Songs" collection that have been lurking in my stash for several years, and teamed with a jade green Laurel Burch print for the lining they were perfect for the project I had in mind. I used my favourite tote bag pattern, "På Quiltelaup" by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa. Trying to use up my extensive thread stash as well as my fabric one, I quilted this with a YLI variegated green (shade is called "Amazon Rainforest") and black thread for the straps and binding... ...I added a centre panel of pockets to the lining, based on a pattern by Elizabeth Hartman, that I've used several times before, and added a narrow strap to hang my keys on so they don't get lost in my bag. I've had these tiny silver-coloured "hand-made" hands for ages, so as I'm trying to use up my "stash" I stitched one to the pocket binding. The top edge of the tote bag is finished off with a strip of binding using the same fabric as the straps, and slip-stitched by hand to the lining... ...I was so pleased with this tote bag. It's really roomy, especially with the extra pockets, and will be really useful in the summer when I'm of on my hols with Mr F - there'll be no-one else on the trip with a bag quite like this one. I've already got a really large Laurel Burch tote bag that I bought a few years ago that I when I'm travelling, and now I'll have two to choose from!
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July 2023
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