From one charm pack....

Last weekend I did some sewing. It was my MILs' birthday 2 days before DHs' and what to get someone who has everything?

So I made her a present:


Quilted Tote Bag

Pattern: Mad Quilters' Quilted Tote Bag

Fabric: 22 5" charm squares of Moda Glace (which was given to me by a very lovely knitter), plus green cotton from my stash.


I added a few changes including a magnetic clasp


a magnetic clasp


an internal pocket

and


and a key retainer

The bag is very roomy for it's size:


2x 50g balls of sock yarn inside with plenty of room to spare

All these modifications were new to me and I used this tutorial for the Internal zipped pocket

I enjoyed the pattern but as a relative beginner found a few things a bit confusing.

Another 6 charms from the same pack were used last year when I made a little present for the physio assistant who was wonderful and helped me through the pain of using gym equipment for the first time since my accident:


Zippy Wallet in Moda Glace

Pattern: Zippy Wallet by noodlehead


Zippy Wallet in Moda Glace

I've made this pattern twice before for my niece and my Sister In Law and still enjoyed making it.


Zippy Wallet in Moda Glace

It was very well received and apparently the pocket is perfect for a hotel key card.

I still have a few charms (5" squares) left mainly of Christmas fabrics but have no plans for them yet.

I'm still behind on revealing my sewn projects and also have a knitted project that will be finished soon.

Happy Birthday DH

My gorgeous husband is celebrating his birthday today. We've had the day off work, went out for lunch and he has a great new 'toy' to play with.

His mum got him a great card which I had to share:

For Airedale lovers the card can be bought from Marks & Spencers

Twisted pleated project bag

I'm trying to catch up with my sewing projects as I've made loads of things but forgot to blog about them. I made this bag in November for Jacky on the Crafty Threads 'n' Yarns Forum in a birthday swap.


Twisted Pleated drawstring bag

It was a bit intimidating making her something to be honest as Jacky is an experienced seamstress whereas I'm still a bit of a novice. I spent AGES considering different patterns until I came across this:



I added a special touch to cover up the drawstring knots:


Japanese Flower trim

The use of pleats meant that it took a lot of fabric and a lot of sewing. I've never sewn pleats before and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be:


Twisted pleats on drawstring bag

And another view:


bottom of Twisted Pleated drawstring bag

This bag was very well received and is now being used daily as Jackys' knitting project bag.

Headphones pouch

As I go to the gym regularly now in an attempt to get full use of my leg back I'm using my ipod a lot whilst I'm exercising. So in November I made something to keep them in:


Headphones purse

Pattern: Circle Zip Earbud Pouch tutorial by Dog Under my Desk.

The fabric came in a scrap bag from Quilters Cloth and I LOVE fabric scraps. The lining fabric is a solid hot pink that matches the main fabric perfectly. I chose to add a clip rather than a key ring, as suggested in the pattern, as I don't always want to take it out with me. I've found this little pouch really useful and the wires don't get as tangled.

Charms

A sneaky peek

At what I was doing yesterday.....

Something cheery in January

Both DH and I returned to work today after the Christmas break. I always find January a long dismal month after Christmas so decided yesterday to make us both something to brighten up the working day.

These are for DH:

The pirate fabric was a small scrap from Arianwen when I first started sewing. DH has a thing about pirates and always enjoys International Talk like a Pirate day in September so the fabric had to be his. He asked for two coasters, one for his coffee and the other for his glass of water.

I also made myself a new coaster as my last coaster is looking a bit tatty.

I must wash this one more frequently as I often drink iced water and leave the coaster wet.

There are other projects to reveal but I'm waiting for DH to sort out the photos (hence using my mobile) and also some knitting.....

A little notebook cover

I decided to make a present for an friend of mine. We go back a long way but as we don't live near each other any more I don't see her very often & haven't been to her new flat. So what to make for this woman who has everything without knowing what colours she surrounds herself in. She isn't into technology (my first thought was a fabric phone cover but she hates her phone) but seems to be open to handmade items.

I decided a notebook cover (with a little notebook) was the way to go.

First I rummaged through my bag of scraps. These little triangles were given to me by a friend as leftovers from a quilt she'd made:

Then I found another scrap & made it a bit bigger:

I backed it with interfacing for stability and then did a bit of fancy stitching to jazz it up a bit (the colours are a bit off here the other 2 are more representative).

Finally with a little bit of elastic to hold the notebook inside it was ready to wrap up and post:

Anyway she loved it and was amazed to hear that it took an afternoon to put together. It would have been quicker if I hadn't been making it up as I went along.


I'm using my phone for photos at the moment so they're not wonderful.