Fat Quarter Round Pouch

I decided not to make french seams this time. I wanted a flatter edge finish on the interior. This is closer to a flat fell seam, but I did not have to fold the edge over since I kept the selvedge in place. This turned out pretty neat. You can’t really even see the edge of the selvedge as it blends in with the strips nicely.

Side & Bottom Seams

Round Base

For the drawstring, I thought I would put my lucet to use again. I really like the stretch of the cord that comes off of the lucet. This is a wool yarn and it worked out better than the last cotton cord I made with the lucet. I really like the color as it goes well with the bag.

Lucet Cord

Now I need to finish plying some yarn off my wheel. My next post will be all squishy wonderful yarn!

Mosaic Crochet Purse

One of the straps on an old woven purse began to tear recently, so it is time to replace it. So one of the new projects I devoted myself to this week was the design of a crochet purse. I would also like use up some partial balls of yarn in my stash. I’ve been spending lots of thought on mosaic crochet, and decided I would make a mosaic crochet bag. I used the I Drop stitch which is the same stitch I used to make several handbags as Christmas gifts in December. I wanted this to be a bit different pattern than I used on the cluthes. I started out with a vague idea and eagerly snatched up my hook. I ended up frogging it over and over again. In the end, I pulled out a graph paper pad and drew the design. No more frogging. I finally managed to create the bag I was envisioning. Taking a moment to plan a project on paper can save loads of time.

Mosaic Crochet Pattern

Once I finished the edge of the bag, I wasn’t at all certain what to do for the strap. As I looked at the bag, I realized I could have just continued the edge and made a handle. Since I hadn’t cut the yarn ends yet, I started out with a long chain and made the strap just as I did the edge. It works well as a strap. It is soft and comfortable to have over my shoulder and it doesn’t stretch too much. I’ve already carried it out with me a few times even though I have not added a liner.

Crochet Edging & Strap

Material for Purse Liner

Shawl to finish

Beginning of the Edge

So far my resolutions for the year and most especially my plan for a crafty January have come true. I’ve been able to work on one craft or another each day this year. I’ve also pulled out some old projects that are just about complete now.

I’ve decided to craft each day through January. I thought if I got a running start in the year that I would still be hitting it hard all year long. But my husband is off work this week. I crafted so much New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day that I told him I would spend more time with him  today, the second day of the year. My idea was to offer him control on a video game we are taking turns playing while I spin! I can chat with him and watch his progress.

Now you might think that is not very generous since guys are the video gamers of the world, but that is not true. I love Skyrim! I love that game. Being eaten by dragons on mountain tops is very thrilling. And I love spinning and can sit comfortably on the couch chatting and watching the game.

But I was really wanting to make another square bottomed drawstring bag like I made on New Year’s Eve. I made the sides of the bag with french seams but not the base. How to get to the sewing machine without leaving him alone again today? Well my husband said he wanted to go pick up Thai food and stop at the grocery store for beer. What do I do as soon as the door closes? I see my chance! I ran to my fat quarters!

Unfortunately I spent half the time he was gone troubleshooting a problem with my sewing machine. Apparently when I cleaned it out last night after making the bed for my parrot, I put the bobbin case in just a little lopsided. I didn’t even know you could do that and still get the case closed. Took me too long to work out the problem and I only had the sides of the bag sewn up before he came home.

I figured it would not take long to sew up the bottom. I told him to start the game without me, and here is my wonderful new bag. I like the base of this bag a little better, but now I think I wish it was round. The square bottom made the french seams very difficult to maneuver, especially since I didn’t want to take the time to pin it before sewing. Hmmm do I see round bags in my future?

With a new drawstring pouch, I needed another cord. I thought it would be nice to make a spiral cord. I had to pull out a sewing bird to hold the yarn so I could tat with a large ball of yarn.

Tatted with 2nd half of Tatting Knot

I like the way the cord looks, but it is a little too textured to slip easily in the drawstring slot. Once the bag is cinched up, it is locked and difficult to open again. I’ll have to make another cord that has spiral ends, but a non-textured center that can slip through the drawstring slot with ease.

Since I was tatting, I made a small flower. I’ll have to make a few more and sew them onto some linen to make a tatted garden.

Tatted Flower

Crafting for pets satisfies the soul. While creating something for a pet, I imagine how cute they’ll look when I’m done. Of course it is also nice knowing how warm and snuggly they will feel in a new bed or with a new toy. But when crafting for pets, you have to let go of your love for the item. As soon as your pet gets their paw, mouth, beak, claw into it, that item might not last very long.

My crazy conure, Jazz, destroyed her last sleep hut when she laid a clutch of eggs. It wasn’t completely destroyed, but it was in pretty bad shape. She needed a new one, but I’ve been putting it off while trying to decide how to keep her from eating a new one. I already picked out the perfect print for her and I hated thinking it would be destroyed in minutes. To be destroyed or not, she needed a new bed. Why put it off when the first day of the year seemed as good as any to finish jobs that really need to be done.

The hut is made of: 100% cotton print exterior, anti-pill fleece interior, cotton batting liner, and a rectangular cut of plastic needlepoint canvas in the bottom for extra support. I had to quilt it very well so she can’t chew her way under any of the layers. I think the wavy quilt lines on the sides make it look nice.

Wavy Quilted Lines

The bottom had to be hand quilted since I didn’t want to put the plastic canvas through my sewing machine.

Bottom of the bag was harder to quilt with the plastic mesh

Seeing her take the first test nibble on the side made me cringe, but it is her bed and I can’t stop the inevitable.

Crochet Bag with Linen Drawstring Liner

What better way to end the year than by crafting? A couple of days ago I received a new set of Tulip Etimo crochet hooks. In order to give them a try, I crocheted the base of this bag. I used scraps of yarn and when I saw I was running out of several of the colors I selected, I decided it was time to stop crocheting and start adding the liner.

I wasn’t certain what type of liner to use. I thought linen would be nice. I didn’t want a thick double layer inside the bag, but I also didn’t want to have fraying seams showing. I found a nice fat quarter in my stash and made a mock up bag with french seams to see if  I could pull it off. Working the top where the drawstring cord goes proved a little fiddly, but I managed to pull it off.

French Seams worked out fine

Since the french seam worked so well on the cotton drawstring bag, I moved on to the linen. Hand sewing the linen liner into the crochet base took the longest.

I now have two new project bags for my efforts. And I was able to finally make use of a cord that came off of my lucet. Look at the cord on the crochet and linen bag to see the lucet made cord. The cotton yarn I used seemed to untwist a bit as I looped it around the lucet. There are a few bumps in the cord that I attribute to the untwisting. It slides in the bag nicely though, so I’ll keep it.

Double Crochet & Tunisian Crochet

I love tunisian crochet and I’ve wanted to learn tunisian crochet in the round, but I never sat down to puzzle it out. I almost bought some wooden double ended crochet hooks, but several reviews of them stated they broke when doing anything larger than a scarf. I really don’t want to deal with new tools breaking so I put off my purchase. Then my Winter 2010 Interweave Crochet magazine showed up very late. It showed up two days before the Spring 2011 copy. And what did I find in the Winter 2010 edition? A sweater that incorporated some tunisian in the round. What luck! There is a page in the magazine that explains how it is done.

I have my Denise Interchangeable crochet hooks, but I never bought extra hooks so I could have the same size on both ends. But all of a sudden that didn’t seem to matter. I couldn’t wait to give it a try. I figured if I just made a small bag then having two sizes of hook wouldn’t matter. After all, I wouldn’t really have a gauge to follow.

I dug through my stash and found some fun cotton/silk skeins. I bought these skeins in a sale bin when I went exploring some yarn stores with my mother and sister. I purchased them with the intention of having fun and playing. I love trying new things with crochet, and I haven’t done that in so long. So with the perfect blue and yellow skeins, I sat down and worked out tunisian in the round.

Tunisian Plate

I started out believing I would make a drawstring bag. I made a double crochet circular base and planned to make the side of the bag in the new tunisian technique with my lopsided double ended crochet hooks. I’m still not sure what happened. Once I finished the base circle, I began the tunisian stitch and I did not do any increases, but somehow the sides of the bag were not forming. What I ended up with was a very large tunisian plate! It looked like it would make an interesting placemat, but I decided to frog it and start again.

Tunisian in the Round Bag

My second attempt, I thought I should just stick to the new technique and add a base at a later time. This worked out. Now I was making a proper “tube,” which would be the sides of my bag. I toyed with the idea of a circular base and a drawstring for the top, but in the end, I decided to make the bag a little flatter.

Tunisian Simple Stitch Base

The base is an odd rectangle that I somehow managed to make using tunisian simple stitch. I’m not sure I could duplicate the way I did that, and I’m not sure I would care too. I stitched it to the base rather than sewing it on afterward, and that proved a little cumbersome. I almost feel like frogging the base and just stitching the bottom closed. The top is just a standard flap. I bound off half the stitches and then switched to standard flat tunisian simple stitch to form the flap. The half of the stitches I bound off seem to curl a bit. I should probably go back and add a crab stitch along those stitches to tame the curl a bit.

Bag Inside Out

I was going to line the bag, but I haven’t yet because I discovered I really like the bag inside out. I will most likely end up adding a lining and having the “front” be the outer part of the bag, but for now I’m still enjoying the idea of using the bag inside out. I might also add a handle and button closure later.

What do you think? Inside out or not?

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Circles

I wanted to buy a couple of feet for my sewing machine: braiding foot and cording foot. I discovered that both of these feet come with the circular attachment for my sewing machine. I’m not sure how often I’ll sew circles, but it seemed like the best way to get the feet that I wanted.

As it turns out circular sewing is kind of fun. I used the cording foot and the braiding foot as well. I thought it would be a good idea to practice using everything. I really love how the braiding foot held down the ribbon beautifully. I think I’ll need to practice with the cording foot. Maybe it was the stitch I used when attaching the cords. I’ll give it another try tomorrow.

100 Spools of Embroidery Thread!

I ordered some Floriani Embroidery software. The deal was too good to pass up. The software was being sold with 100 spools of Floriani embroidery thread. I will post about the embroidery event I went to where I purchased this soon. But in the meantime, I could not wait to share some images of the thread! The box is so beautiful with all the wonderful shades of color.

Here is a photo that shows off more of the colors:

All the Beautiful Colors!

Frequently when I sew, I pull pins and just drop them because I don’t want to try to look around or reach for a pin cushion. I thought it would be nice to have a pin cushion to put on my wrist, but I never got around to making one. Then I realized, February was ending and I had not finished a project for February Craft Book Challenge yet. I pulled out my craft books and discovered my Zakka Sewing book has a wrist pin cushion! I decided this would have to be my February CBC item.

I made a few minor changes while making the pin cushion. I didn’t want all the layers to have frayed edges, so I turned a couple of the edges. One of my flowers is a little textured which I think gives it a nice touch. I did use linen but only for the strap. What do you think? I loved how the little bird turned out so well on the top of the pin cushion.

I was a little disappointed in the directions for sewing in the stuffing. I also didn’t like how the cushion part turned out. I think I’ll be undoing part of this sometime so that I can make the cushion a little nicer. I might also attach the cushion to the top of the strap rather than underneath the strap.

I found a compass which my husband used to use, but now it is only collecting dust. I’ve been using it to prepare things for sewing. I really like how easy it is to adjust the size on this one. A compass is turning out to be a really wonderful addition to my craft supplies. When I pull apart my pin cushion to remake the cushion part, I will post more photos of the steps I took to turn pieces and make the wrist pin cushion.

The past two weeks I’ve been to several embroidery events. I will have some posts coming up soon about who I saw and what I bought. I’ll also show off some embroidery designs I’ve done in both Masterworks II and the Floriani Embroidery Suite.

I checked out a book from the library called Omiyage. I was a little hesitant to try the patterns because I read some reviews which stated there were incorrect measurements given in some of the patterns. The patterns were cute enough though that I decided to give it a try and see what would happen. I selected Playtime as the first pattern I would attempt. Playtime is a pin cushion with little figures clinging to the side as if they are climbing on a ball. The material I used made me think more of children leaping into a pile of leaves rather than climbing on a ball.

I am happy to report that Playtime does not contain incorrect measurements. However, some of the diagrams led me to believe the head would be attached to the body in a slightly different manner. Once I had the arms and legs sewn up according to the directions, I realized that the result did not match all the diagrams. On closer inspection of the photos, I saw that the diagrams were a little misleading. The photos show the dolls to have turned out the way mine turned out, so except for a misleading diagram, the instructions worked fine.

I did not like all the suggestions the book offered, and so I did not follow all the instructions. That seems to be typical now anytime I pick up a pattern, I find something I would rather do a different way. The book suggests hand sewing for the best outcome. I would rather not hand sew if I can machine sew. And I did not want to use styrofoam inside my pin cushion. I managed to machine sew most of the dolls and the round base as well. I did have to hand sew to close the pin cushion, close the doll bellies, and then attach the figures to the pin cushion.

Rather than use styrofoam, I stuffed the pin cushion. I started out using some Bamboo fiberfill, but I didn’t like how that turned out. The more I stuffed the round pin cushion, the harder the bamboo became until it was difficult to push a pin into the cushion. I was out of polyester fiberfill and had to run to the store to buy some. I’m glad I did. The polyester really fluffed up the ball, and it is easy to put pins into the cushion.

I had lots of fun with the details on the dolls. I enjoyed drawing their faces on. I did consider embroidering faces, but I’m glad I went with fabric markers instead. Sewing the strands of hair on and then braiding was lots of fun. I gave them very long braids and found some pretty embroidery floss to wrap around the end of the braids.

It took a little longer to make than I expected, but I had lots of interruptions. I think I will probably try another pattern or two before the book is due back at the library.

This pretty fabric is Daisy Janie fabric. The Green Bag Lady had a giveaway a few weeks ago. My sister was lucky enough to win. She does not sew and so she gave the fabric to me, which makes me very lucky! I haven’t decided what I’ll make with the fabric yet, but I’m sure I’ll find something fun to do with it soon.

I’m off to start cutting up some old sheets to make a strip quilt. I purchased several sets of sheets a few years ago and they never really fit the mattress well. I finally gave in and bought some new sheets that fit well. There is still so much wear left in the old sheets, so I’m going to cut them up and make a very large quilt for my bed. I can’t wait until it is done. I hated just throwing them out, and I love that I found a wonderful use for them.