Wordless Wednesday

Beware the Rancor...more from my oldest's art playtime

New Twist on My Twist Tote

I made this bag last week, waited for a good day for taking pics, but found none. So I just took them by the sewing machine with all the lights on. I made a few of these tote before & I just love their size & the way they sit across my body. The straps come off the "fronts", not the sides, so it lays pretty flat on my hip. My mom has one that she brought on vacation last year & just loved it. It held their towels, sun block, water bottles & books with ease. And I make them with home deco canvas or outdoor canvas so they hold up well to tough use.

The only tweak I wanted to try was a closure. Neither my mom or I have had anything fall out of the bag yet, even when leaning forward & it hangs away from our body. But I wanted to give it a shot. So this bag has a long strip of fabric that goes through a tab on the opposite side. I added some stitching so it did not look so plain.


I initially tried it where it goes through & then folds back over itself, it worked well. And the strip is long enough that even overstuffed, it can still hold. It does remind me of a men's tie though. But when inside out (yes, it can be reversible...except for the tag part) it doesn't stand out so much.

I'll make sure that the next one I try this way is made with the print fabric, not the solid since that is technically the exterior.

Wow! Another Treasury

My new little blue monster keychain made its way into a treasury yesterday! Woo hoo! Go blue dude! And big thanks to Gentle Adornments :)

And now for something pretty from her shop...

Treasury Goodness

I found my wristlet in a treasury today! Woo Hoo!!! Curated by another awesome Etsyblogger, Storybeader...thanks a bunch!!


And now for something from her shop....She has a bunch of fab journals and exquisite jewelry...today this piece really stood out for me...

Giraffe Shoulder Bag

I think the bag may be a bit big for a 4 year old...but he seems to like it :) Well, enough to bear wearing it for photos.

I finished the giraffe bag I showed you the other day & managed to snap some pics to show it off. It is made from a thick textured cotton fabric, kind of like barkcloth, but thicker...less so than burlap. It has a nice heft to it.

The underside of the straps are a solid brown canvas cotton. I thought it would be nice to have a smooth surface contacting your shirt fabric. Wouldn't want the textured fabric to snag at shirts.

The inside of this rather voluminous bag is a cotton floral print. I thought it would be fun. Is it?

The bottom is a faux leather. This way, no worries about the bottom getting trashed every time you set it down. I don't usually carry a bag quite so large, but it seems like it could be a problem. I used a pattern for this bag, McCalls 5719, which is not my norm. I had a sketch of a bag I wanted to make & when I was at JoAnns browsing through the pattern catalogs looking for a dress, I ran across this pattern which was like 90% my sketch. I figured it'd be easiest to just get the pattern & adjust it to my sketch. Heck, that's how I learned to make bags in the 1st place :)

Wordless Wednesday

Hair Stuff

I have finally finished a batch of headbands that have been on hold for quite some time. I wish I had a fake head to model them on. My son's teddy bear just didn't cut it :P You can get the idea though. I have been wearing one around the house & am happy with the fit. The undersides are a velvety ribbon which kind of "sticks" to the hair, causing less slippage. That is usually the biggest problem for me & headbands. High forehead, thin (but lots of) hair plus not a tiny head equals headband sliding to the back of my head not long after putting it on. These lasted all day!




Then there is my barrette. I had just finished making a backpack & had some strips of fabric sitting off to the side. So I sewed them together, cut out some circles & sewed it all down with a couple buttons. Not the most attractive, but cute...plus, it's just to try the process. I was giving it a second look & decided it looks like a face almost. SO I may try to alter it to look monster/alienish. Teeth maybe? Or a tongue? Not sure yet. Any ideas?



This is the other strip I randomly sewed together for a barrette. I tentatively pinned it into a shape I like. Still not quite sure if I want to add anything or not. Well see.

Treasury & WIPS

I woke up and found myself in a treasury!! Well, my backpack...Thanks Batty!!

And of course, a little something from her shop...soaps!!!! I just ordered some stuff from her the other week - I'll show off what I got later. Doesn't this apple cinnamon crisp sugar & oatmeal body polish just look luxe! And what a fun photo :)

Now for the WIP....I am making a large bag from a pattern, not my own design...well, I made some changes, but it's mostly a purchased pattern. I am using a textured cotton home deco fabric, kind of like a thick barkcloth, almost burlapy.

New Fabric Yumminess

Oh the possibilities.....

Anna Griffin's Darcey collection: Blue squares with circles, blue dots stripe,
printed floral blue/black, red dots stripe from Fabric.com


Michael Miller's Plain Jane and Monaluna's Mingle from Sew Deerly Loved

Studio e's Urban Angel collection from Uberstitch

more from Uberstitch: Essential III Skull Heads Black,Rocket Scientist Words Blue, Deer Valley Meadow Lace, Garden Friends Love Birds, Rocket Scientist Rings Blue, Jason Yenter Floragraphix III 1FGC1

Zip Pouch-A-Palooza

Feels like a Palooza anyway. They may not be the most fun to make, but they are whipoutable. I am not thrilled with the seams on the teeny ones, but they look no different than those I have seen in stores. Well, not all of them. I know I could do the seam hidden & just turn them right side out, but they are too tiny for me to do so comfortably. They'll be bonus pieces for the backpacks.


The fold over pouches, well, the black one will stay with me. The corners got all wingy...and I did not have black elastic at the time for the loopy part. But it's still workable :)

Next up on the to-do: large giraffe print bag and pillows or coasters...can't decide which.

Wordless Wednesday

Sun Equals Sale

At least in my world it does. We have had sun all week! I am even seeing grass outside. Plus, it will top 40 degrees today - Woo Hoo! All of which are signs that I need to have a sale. So I took a peek around the shop & decided that my handbags are the Springiest items, so they are the lucky winners! Actually, whoever buys them will be :) I marked down all the Janet and Venus handbags to $20!!! So hop on over to either my Etsy or Artfire shop & take a peek - one of them could be calling your name. I even made new banners & avatars to enjoy :)

Wordless Wednesday

...requested by my oldest to be "turned into" a quilt....

Last of the Backpacks

I am happy to say that the last backpack is done! And I am not sure if I should admit this or not...but I miscounted. I had 11. For some reason I thought I had 9. One bag had a semi-good explanation - it was cut before the holidays and set aside while I worked on custom orders. Number 11...still not sure how I missed it when counting.

I will have matching zip pouches for most of the bags also. There were a few fabrics that ran out when making the backpacks, so no matching accessories. I have a few that are teeny - like change purse size with a 3 inch zipper. They are so cute...but more difficult to sew than I expected.

I spent the morning taking photos of everything!!! Even my mini monster keychains I made ages ago but never pic'd and a few stuffies and table runners. I hope to be an editing machine & have them ready to start listing tomorrow. Is that too ambitious? Maybe, but I'll try.