Some finishes

So the last 2 weeks seemed to have flown by and I don't seem to have much to show for it. My father is out of hospital and seems to be recuperating well. He can't drive yet so I have their car and am going over once a week to take them shopping which isn't such a big deal as I do my shopping at the same time and their supermarket is way better than our local one. 

I have managed to get some sewing in now and then. The above bag is for a friends daughter to use as a peg bag. Her previous peg bag was well and truly worn out so I hope she gets as much use out of this new one. The strap is long enough to sling across your body making it hands free plus as requested I have put one pocket on the front to hold her cellphone. Her washing line is up a hill and must be some distance from her house hence the need for a cellphone. I decided to quilt it with a layer of thin batting in between the layers to make it more sturdy and durable. 

I do hope she likes the fabrics and the bright and cheery colours I've used. Hopefully they will brighten up her washing days.

And this pretty purple pouch is for another daughter of a lady from church. Her only instructions were to use the colour purple so I do hope she likes this mix of purple fabrics I have used . The fabrics are an assortment of batiks, florals with one or two vintage fabrics thrown in for good measure.

Now that these two bags are finished I am free to sew some things for my shop and I have no idea what yet which will not doubt mean I will have to have a play with some fabrics until inspiration strikes. Nice to have a clean slate but somehow daunting as well :-) 

Vintage floral boho bags

I've been meaning to do a post about 2 boho bags that I made back in January but kept forgetting to which may have been due to the nice weather we have been having which makes me just want to be outside. For the first time in 2 months it rained here for over 3 hours. It's been so long since we had rain that it seemed quite strange but I'm sure the farmers are pleased with any rain they get and for me it means not having to remember to water the veggie garden. Anyway back to the boho bags! The above one is all for me, that is just me and not for my daughter to "borrow" and not relinquish back :-)

One of my favourite colours is green so this bag goes with a lot of clothes. The main fabric is an old curtain remnant that my seamstress neighbour gave to me so it's the perfect weight for a bag but not too stiff for this type of bag. I used a print by Sandy Henderson for the button and pockets. 

Then for the inside I used a vintage print that I've had for ages (years!) that was passed onto me by an Auntie (another clever seamstress). This print is lovely and soft so perfect for a lining plus I love the contrast between the brown print and green prints. Yep this bag is being well used :-) 

This second bag was made for a friends sister as her birthday present. Once again I used an old curtain remnant from my neighbours stash and contrasted it with 2 different red and white polka dot prints from my stash.

I really like the slightly botanical look to the main fabric on this bag and I think the polka dot prints add a bit of a retro look to it.

The print inside has a slightly raised effect to the simple pattern on it and then the print in the pocket has a slightly botanical look too. Love how prints come together so nicely in a project like this cause sometimes it takes me ages to choose the 'right' combination of fabrics. Sometimes I just wish I was a little more decisive in making my fabric choices :-)

New Boho Bags .....

  

Here's the latest versions of my Boho bag which I first made here and here. I finished them just a few days before Christmas. I just love working with these vibrant and colourful batiks, most of which come from Bali. Not quite sure which one I like best but apart from the pretty and colourful assortment of batiks used I love this style of bag and it's handy features. It sits nicely on the hip and is a great size to hold everything that a girl needs but not too big to feel cumbersome when it's full.

Inside is a zipped pocket to store things that you want to keep safe and secure and a handy lanyard with a hook for keeping your keys not only safe but easy to access when you need them. There is nothing more annoying than fishing around the bottom of your bag for your keys when you need them quickly don't you think :-)

The two straps tie together at the top therefore making it adjustable to your preferred length and also alowing it to be worn across the body or on one shoulder.

On the outside there is a pocket on each side which are perfect for holding sunglasses or a cellphone etc... 

For the enclosure on these bags I chose a simple loop and a large handmade button. These bags are now available for sale here in my etsy shop along with the navy version here.

And of course these cute little zippered pouches coordinate perfectly and can be hooked on to the hook/lanyard inside each bag.

Okay since it's once again unbearably hot outside here today we're off to the beach for a cooling dip and maybe a little snooze while I work on my tan :-) 

Library book bags....

 A few weeks before Christmas I was asked by a friend if I could make up a couple of library book bags for her niece and nephew so I put Pinterest to good use and found this tutorial. I am so pleased with how these bags turned out as was my friend thank goodness :-) The tutorial was really easy to follow and I managed to make both bags in 1 day which was a bonus considering I left them till the last week before Christmas to make them.

 My friends niece likes 'owls' so I appliqued an owl to the front pocket and found an owl print to use as the library card pocket that is on the front of the strap. The main striped fabric is a cotton twill that was a leftover remnant in my stash from a skirt I made Caitlin when she was about 5 I think.

For the boy's version I found some striped canvas by "Prints Charming" at Spotlight and added some whale fabric from my stash which helped me come up with the whale appliqué on the front pocket. These bags are really roomy and strong with a 3 inch wide strap that is made with a creamy coloured canvas and they are fully lined with "french seams" no less :-) Makes me wish my girls were younger so I could make them one each although I think I might use this pattern to make my eldest daughter a laptop bag with a few measurement alterations of course and at 15 years I don't think she will want any appliqué on the front either.

Enjoying the process.....

Oops didn't mean to have yet another mini break in posting here but I have been busy in my sewing attic creating accessories to go with the 'Boho bag' I created a couple of weeks ago. Making that bag seemed to really reignite the creative processes in my head and also reignite my love of batik fabrics. These fabrics are so colourful and vibrant that you can't not feel happy working with them.

Each one is embellished with some coordinating ribbon which I have been collecting (hoarding perhaps) for a while now, waiting for that perfect project, as you do :-) Inside each one is a little pocket for cards or perhaps a make-up mirror.

 For the lining in the purple/turquoise one and the blue/white one I used some African "Shwe shwe" fabric which I also used inside the 'Boho bag'

I tied some ribbon to the zipper pull to make it easier to close and the bottoms are 'boxed' so the sit on there own.

Plus each one has a wrist strap making it easier to carry if using on its own.

I cannot decide which one I like more. They are such a cute size too at 6" across the widest part and just 5" tall. What do you think??
 You can find them for purchase here in my Etsy shop and also in my Felt shop  :-)

The "Boho" bag

So this is the second bag I made with the same pattern I drafted for the bag in the previous post. I have a lovely collection of batik fabrics that I purchased a few years back on a holiday in Bali and because I don't go to Bali as often as I would like these fabrics are in the "precious category" of my stash but I thought they would be perfectly suited to this type of bag. I wanted a sort of bohemian look so pieced some small pieces of batik scraps together onto some light interfacing then embellished each seam with a variety of machine embroidery stitches. I added a flap to the top with a magnetic enclosure simply because I didn't have a zip in the correct colour or length.

A simply made soft 'button' was added to the flap front on top of the magnetic stud which I think goes nicely with these ethnic looking fabrics.

This is the back of the bag and also one of the side pockets which I made slightly bigger than the original pattern, added an inverted pleat to the bottom and elastic to the top which makes the pocket more secure and perfect for holding things like sunglasses or a cellphone.

The straps are done the same way although pieced together from 3 different prints.

The fabric used on the inside of the bag is an African fabric called "shwe shwe" and I think it coordinates nicely with the batiks. I did the same zippered inner pocket but also added a hooked clasp on some woven ribbon to one of the inside side seams for holding/securing keys.

And here is my beautiful model once again in our garden doing a great job of modelling this bag.

The boho bag is now available to purchase here in my Etsy shop.

A new bag for spring/summer

 I made this shoulder/ messenger bag about 3 weeks ago now but couldn't find time to blog about it so yeah 3 weeks later here it is. Its a type of bag that I've been wanting to make for a while now. The pretty floral fabric I used has been in my stash for a few years, actually I bought it before I had kids as I can remember the dress I made it up in. I don't have the dress any more but thankfully had quite a bit of the fabric leftover patiently waiting for the perfect project.

It is a lovely roomy bag with 2 outside pockets and 1 zippered inner pocket. The straps are generously lengthy and tie at the top so you can adjust their length to where you want the bag to sit. I like to have it strung across my body with it sitting nicely on my hip and leaving my hands free.

I originally strung some beads onto the zip but then found this little dragonfly charm that I had forgotten I had bought some time ago. I think it fits in perfectly with the floral almost botanical look of this print.

And here is my beautiful 15 year old modelling the bag for me in out garden last Sunday which was a warm but breezy spring day here.  Notice the tail of my ever present photography assistant.
I have since made another one of these bags with a few extra features but that is a whole other post :-)

Something pleasant to come back to....

When I arrived home from camp I had a lovely parcel from Heather Bailey's shop waiting for me which softened the prospect of the 3 loads of washing that was also awaiting my attention not to mention that the housework fairy hadn't been around while I was away. 

Anyway a week or so beforehand I had ordered some laminated cotton to make a new swim bag for Catilin to take to school. I let her choose the fabric design and then thought I should make the most of the postage cost and order some more Nicey Jane prints to add to my collection that will be put to good use in my Farmers Wife sampler quilt.

So earlier this week I whipped up Caitlin's new swim bag fairly quickly except I got stuck a little with the buttonholes for the drawstring to go through. I've done heaps of buttonholes before of course but not since I've had my new machine. I read and re-read the instructions and was still stumped until I finally figured out the 'buttonhole lever' that they were referring to was on the machine not the buttonhole foot! Duh!

 I lined the bag with some pale blue toweling that I had leftover from a previous project, to soak up the moisture from a wet towel and swimsuit and to make it a bit more sturdier. The recipient is pleased with it but I don't think she will get much more use out of it until next summer as it certainly feels like autumn has arrived this week.

And I have also finally gotten around to printing out some templates for the first 10 blocks of the Farmers wife sampler quilt. I am feeling quite eager to start this quilt and use some of those pretty Nicey Jane fabrics. This Saturday promises to be wet, windy and wild so the perfect day for hunkering down in my Sewing Attic and working on these blocks. I love a good storm, don't you? :-)

For my inspiration mosaic this week I've put together a few of my favorite FWS blocks from the flickr group here.

1. Farmer's Wife , 2. 02.26.12 135, 3. Farmer's Wife Quilt, 4. Farmer's Puzzle, 5. Farmer's Wife Quilt - finished, 6. Farmer's wife quilt sampler, 7. so far, 8. blocks, 9. Weekend blocks (33), 10. Farmers Wife Quilt-a-long, 11. Farmer's Wife Quilt Top Complete, 12. Corn and Beans

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

Goodies in the mail.....

 Before Christmas I was lucky to win a giveaway through the SewMamaSew giveaway day on Tanya's blog Second Chance. I haven't won a giveaway in such a long time so it came as a lovely surprise to have my name drawn. I always participate myself in these giveaways as it's such great way to find new to me blogs to follow which does usually mean I don't have time to enter many myself. So last Wednesday I recieved a lovely parcel all the way from the UK. It's always so exciting to get mail from halfway around the world isn't it! 

Tanya had wrapped it up so prettily with ribbon and that little wooden heart tag plus had taken the time to write a lovely long letter outlining what she had included and a little about herself . It was so nice to get a hand-written letter and also to get to know her a little more.

Inside was this pretty tote that Tanya had made using up fabrics from her 2 daughters grown out of clothes. I  love how she has re-used these fabrics giving them a second life and making this bag so much more special.

Inside was a wee treasure trove of goodies including a cute little christmas stocking that her daughter "Hope" had made at pre-school and gifted to my girls from Hope, 3 fabric pieces (my favourite being the one in the middle of this photo with the animals on it) , a little red brooch ( love wearing brooches!) some thrifted reels of cotton, lace and ....

.....a yummy selection of vintage buttons!! Love me some old buttons!! Thanks so very much Tanya for such a lovely bunch of beautiful gifts which I hope to include in some projects throughout this coming year.

Tanya is a busy Mum of 2 wee girls, recently taken up sewing and blogging and just might be hosting yet another giveaway on her blog sometime soon :-) 

Gifts for ladies...

When my Mother saw my blossom bag that I made a couple of months ago now she liked it so much she asked me to make her one for Christmas. She chose 3 lovely Denyse Schmidt prints available at Spotlight stores here, all of which I love myself and have happily got quite a bit of each one left over to use on another project.

The second time making this bag was a wee bit smoother than the first time. I made sure that the magnetic enclosure was a little higher than on my bag which is sometimes difficult to close as it's a tad too low. Also I had to again cut nearly an inch off the ends of the base pieces so I can only put that down to the measurements being out a little in the instructions. I was so busy in the weeks leading up to Christmas that I ran out of  time to make it so she received it just over a week later. Thankfully I also gave her a knitting roll (the one with the birds on it) that was one of 3 I made to sell in my Etsy shop, so she had something to open on the day. When I made the knitting rolls she couldn't choose which one she liked so we decided that whichever one didn't sell would be hers. It turned out the bird one was the one she really wanted.

And after making this little bird for my giveaway I decided to secretly make one each for the girls to go in their stockings. I used some leftover Bliss fabrics and the red and white dot print from Camille & Bonnie's latest collection "Ruby".  They were suitably surprised and pleased when they were unwrapped.

Now I think I need one myself! They remind of the friendly little fantails that tease our cats in our garden.

I have one more gift to show here but I keep forgetting to either take my camera or forgetting to take a photo when I do remember my camera.