Vintage Coin Clasp Purse

Happy Weekend all, 

I thought I’d drop by and share my little Clasp Coin Purses today. I found a little pattern and tutorial on the Tried & True Creative blog and decided to try them, and they are so easy to make. I hope you’ll try it. There’s minimal machine sewing, and really the only hand sewing is attaching the clasp to the purse. I did make myself a pattern for the bit of batting I used, but that’s easy enough to do.

 

Why is it that when you take a photo, all the loose threads show up? lol…

I hope you have a wonderful weekend,

Blessings.

Carmen

The Best Sofa Station

Hello,

Whenever I’m sewing I usually have other people in mind, but my last project was all about me. 

Since I’ve been making the Peek-a-Boo Dolls, I’ve found myself doing a lot of the hand stitching in my comfy chair. As a result my little side table would get clogged up with pins, embroidery thread, felt pieces, scissors, etc., leaving barely enough room for my coffee or tea. This wasn’t working for me, so I found a lovely pattern from ArabesqueScissors for a Sofa Station. 

This is not a beginners pattern in my view, and although it isn’t difficult, in hind-sight, I found it difficult because of the variety of options in the pattern itself, making for a lot of little pieces to navigate. It comes with differing pockets and flaps, and it’s your choice as to which to make. 

Ultimately, considering that, I believe it was well written and I’m not sure there was an easier way to present it. In addition she provided videos on how to do each part, including making your own bias tape and clarity on how to use the magnets. I found these to be extremely helpful. 

This is mine:

The unique thing about the Sofa Station is that it fits over the arm of your chair. So I’ve shown you each side separately to start with.

This side has a place for scissors, pens, seam rippers, stitch markers, clips, rulers or whatever. 

 The other side has a large open pocket for patterns or pattern pieces, and a second pocket for my crochet hooks. I do enjoy crocheting now and then, so I decided this could come in handy for me. 

One of the very unique features of this pattern is that both the basket and the needle minder are magnetic. There are also options to make a magnetic pin cushion or thread catcher. I opted for the basket and the needle minder, but they’re all interchangeable, so you can make them all. 

I haven’t made a video in a long time and I just used my iPad, but wanted to show you the magnetic needle minder. I love this feature as I’m often putting my needle down and then losing it. Maybe it’s just me this happens to, idk, but I love this. 

In addition, there’s a little needle keeper made of wool felt,

I’ve draped it over my kitchen chair to give you an idea of how it will look on a sofa.

Overall, I’m happy with it. The next one will be easier. These will make great gifts as well, if you’re wondering what to get someone who loves to cross stitch, hand sew, knit or crochet. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Carmen

Little Projects for Kids

Hello friends,

September is here and I’m starting to feel like sewing again. I know I’ve been quilting all year in the midst of card making, but I love me some small projects. Especially cute little things for kids. I love making these super cute felt dolls.

What I find so adorable about these little dolls is the removeable hats. 

Absolutely darling!

You can find these at Gingermelon on Etsy.

Another project I made was this little tiger pouch. 

This is another project I love too. I’ve made this one before, then altered it to make 

a unicorn pouch and a lamb pouch. I haven’t made the lamb pouch yet. Maybe soon. 

This one is from Stubbornly Crafty on Etsy. 

You never know what I’ll do next!

Hope you all have a wonderful week! 

Blessings,

Carmen

A Little Stitching

Good morning,

What a wonderful day it’s been here in Kamloops, BC. Sunny skies, warm temperatures and a backyard full of concrete blocks. There’s music playing as ‘Bear’ is working hard putting up our new retaining walls. My husband finished off faceting his gemstone before heading out to help in the back. There’s a large box full of upholstery samples staring at me from my craft studio and my sewing machine is humming as I run through some fabric. It’s a busy day. 

The samples were a trade from my friend Tina, who needed a larger piece of upholstery fabric to do a couple of her chairs. We both paid very little for what we had and so it was more than a fair trade for me. I decided to make expandable utility bags. These are used as travel shoe bags, or can be used for knitting needles, to gift wine, or whatever really. I made them in a few different sizes. 

Now that I’m using more fabric in my artwork, I’m thinking of making more pouches as well. I really do go in cycles with my arts & crafts. Anyway, before I get too behind, I thought I’d post a few pictures of what I’ve done so far. 

Here are a couple of pouches.

This is a canvas bag with fabric backgrounds stitched on. Free motion quilting was used for the dandelions and the wording. I added some decorative machine stitching, a piece of lace and a little bit of hand stitching for interest. This bag was inspired by Stitches by Julia, but I made up my own pattern. 

This is another canvas pouch. I used applique and free motion stitching on this one. I made my own pattern. 

This is the back of the pouch. Some free motion stitching. I have someone in mind for this one. 

Now onto a more serious bag. These are made with upholstery samples. The first picture is of 15” medium size bags. I used #5 zippers on most so they’re very sturdy, and the fabric is sturdy as well.

The photo below is of 18” bags. They will fit pretty large shoes, and probably more, if need be. 

This next photo is to show you the 15” bag expanded. They’re about 3” on each side. It is not full by any means, but you get the idea. There’s a big box of upright thread in there.

So yes, I’ve been busy. I’m not sure what to charge for these, but they’d come in handy for several things. Plus they each have a sturdy handle made of webbing.

Well, that’s it for today. Hope you’re enjoying life a little more these days. There is always something to be thankful for, even when life seems difficult. Focus on the good things.

Thanks for stopping by,

Carmen

Unicorn Pouch with Zipper Pull

Hi there,

I’ve been wanting to create a Unicorn zipper pouch for my granddaughter who loves unicorns. There was nothing I could find that appealed to me. I had made a tiger zipper pouch (several, actually) and decided to use the basic outline as a springboard since I’m giving that one to her brother and I’d like them to be similar in shape and size. From there I made the rest of the pieces for the face, the ears and horn, etc. 

These are so fun to make because I’ve sewn professionally for a company where everything had to be perfect. It’s nice to just sew and enjoy. Although I am kind of picky with the end result anyway. I guess old habits die hard!

The muzzle and other details are made with 80% merino wool felt. The zipper pull is made of leather type felt and wool felt (the rainbow), and the horn is made with glitter felt. All of them sourced in Canada, which is nice! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Carmen

Two Button Pouch with Denim

Do you find that there are certain types of crafts you do at certain times of year? I know that sometimes we make things for people at any time, but generally speaking, do your creative exploits cycle? Just curious because I find myself enjoying the more woolly and fabric type crafts in the Fall and Winter. I tend to paint in the Spring/Summer and do a lot of paper crafts then as well. 

A couple of weeks ago I made some very simple little pouches that were quick and easy here. Recently I found a pouch on Pinterest that I love, but when I went to download the pattern from the blog it was featured on, much to my chagrin the download was no longer available. The blog is called Elisanna Sofie, and she is a Dutch Blogger. I just linked to the whole blog because you can't download the pattern anymore anyway, but it is a really cute blog and she has some great projects on there so check her out. Her original pouch is on my Pinterest Board here if you'd like to see it. It'll lead you to a tutorial found here. 

I wanted to make that pouch and so I had to make up a pattern for it myself. Which is what I did. But first here is one of the pouches I made. I took this photo outside on a cloudy day because it was too dark in the house even with lighting. I really need to get a light box.

I used some medium interfacing and some quilt batting on this pouch which gave it a nice sturdy yet soft feel. I love the denim. I also made the buttons like Elisanna did. It's a nice touch.

Here is the pattern I drew up. 

I cut it out of fabric and denim, then made up the piping cord and sewed the denim to the fabric with the piping cord in between. It's not a good picture, but if you look closely you can see the piping cord there.

This is the front piece completed with the buttons sewn on by hand. I used the purple fabric for lining, I just wanted to use up some fabric I had on hand, but it works okay.

I only used medium interfacing in this one, but I love the one with the batting more, so from now on that's what I'll do. This one is nice too but I like the thickness of the yellow one.

Still pretty cute, and not too terribly time consuming. Plus another gift done.

Even though it's cloudy here, the temps are supposed to get to 33C (91.4 F). Not too bad. I would love to see some sun though.

Happy Sunday,

Carmen

Easy Zipper Pouches

Hello,

Roaming Pinterest is fun but this time I was looking for something very specific. I wanted to make some easy pouches to donate that wouldn't be too time consuming but still look good. I found these little 15 minute zipper pouches by Melly Sews on my own "Bags, Pouches, Etc." board. 

Honestly, I should check out my own boards more often. There's some good stuff in there! LOL!

Melly's post not only shows you step by step how to make these pouches, she also provides a video. So click on the link provided above if you'd like to try to make your own. They're really very easy!

Here's a sampling of mine:

I spent about an hour cutting up all the pieces I needed to make seven pouches, and picked out zipper colors to go with them.

Each pouch has a colorful fabric for inside the pouch as well.

These are the first four pouches I completed. 

The inside of one.,,,this one will be a gift instead of a donation.

These other three with the fleece inside, I had to quilt.

Two of the three can hold heated items. 

These can be used for cosmetics, medicine, jewelry, and essential oil bottles. There's really tons of things you could use them for. 

Next post will be some note cards for my fabric envelopes.

Thanks for popping by!

Blessings,

Carmen

Bicycle Pouch

Some time ago I told you about a pouch I was making. Several things (and posts) have happened since then, but today I finally finished it and am posting about it. 

This is a simple little pouch using canvas with heat n bond embellishments and some beading. Cute but effective. I had originally made up steps to make one, but forgot to photograph the last steps, so I'll show you what I do have. 

First the little pouch. 

The inside of the pouch. 

This is where she started out! I cut up some fabric, and fussy cut out a tree trunk and branches.

Then I ironed them onto some heat n bond and cut them out. 

I cut out some canvas and some quilt batting the same size, then using Staz On Ink, I stamped the bicycle onto the canvas. I used a permanent marker to outline the frame of the bike. Then ironed it.

Using the flowery material, I also stamped the bike onto that, cut out the wheels and sewed them on. I went over the tires with the permanent marker. Then ironed it again and sewed a silver bead in the center of each wheel.

I cut out a bunch of the flowers from the fabric and saved them to use on the tree.

Since they already had heat n bond on them, I ironed them in place, then put little beads in the center of each one.

That's where the process ended as far as photos are concerned. I sewed the lining and the outside of the pouch together, adding a zipper. Then I pressed it a bit more since the canvas doesn't lie very flat. That's it! 

And that's the end of my post! 

Blessings everyone! 

Carmen

Sew Together Bag, Fix Those Pocket Sides.

Hello there!

It is a warm day out here in the 'Loops! I went for a walk in the park and the flowers are starting to bloom, trees are pushing out some buds and will soon be pink and white with blossoms. The park is just beautiful this time of year.

I've been sewing, crocheting and making cards. I took pictures, but didn't get around to posting anything until today. The last thing I shared with you was my Fabric Post Card. It was kind of an aside project. I was actually making a Sew Together Bag out of that fabric. I'll probably put them together. So that is what I am sharing today.

 These bags are almost 10" long and have several pockets inside. Three are zippered, and four are open pockets.

I made a change to this bag that I haven't done to any of the others I have made. People noticed that sometimes things fell out of the outer open pockets. How annoying!

So, I corrected that in this bag by creating elasticized sides on those outer pockets. s

Well, that's my first post for today.

Enjoy the sun!
Carmen

Sewing is Therapeutic!

Welcome 2016!

I welcome 2016 because 2015 was a difficult year culminating in the death of my mother a few weeks before Christmas. As a result I haven't posted much in the last year. Unfortunately, I lost my mom little by little as dementia robbed her of her memory, her abilities and her understanding. It was hard for all of us, especially my dear Dad who was her sole care giver for at least the last 5 years. All of us live in different cities and towns, so the travel was just too much to do on a continual basis. She's good now, but we have to learn to navigate this world without her. She is missed! As you can imagine, December was pretty much a write off for us, but I did manage to get a few things done in between all the funeral arrangements. 

On a happier note, my son Mike and his wife had a baby girl on November 9th. That was also a very busy time, but in a good way. We are blessed! Her name is Addison and she's a sweetie. Also, my youngest son Tony is getting married this year to a wonderful girl who has been so easy for us all to fall in love with. I am looking forward to seeing what the future holds for these two. It's a match made in heaven! 

Anyway, I'll show you what I made in the last while. Sewing is therapeutic for me! I love it. I actually made 6 of these but forgot to take pictures of most of them. The pouches are made of canvas and a variety of cotton poly fabrics. The messy sewing is intentional on the applique. I love the look. The petals and flags are backed with interfacing. I also added quilt batting to the backs of each side for a fuller sturdier pouch. The pouches are lined with colorful fabric.

 

Completed pouch, front side. Note the cool zipper pull I made up.

Back side

This is the other one. I love birdhouses and apparently so does my sister. She also loves giraffes, so I added one to the zipper. Photos are of the front and back. Sorry it's a bit fuzzy.

With all that had to be done, I just bought gift cards for Christmas, but wanted something to put them into for the girls. I also gave a pouch to my sister and sister in law after Christmas. We don't exchange gifts, but it was just because I love them. These came together in a couple of hours and were fun to do. It kept my mind off of other things. 

Well, that's all I have for you. I hope I will feel like posting again soon. I'm making some clothes for Addison with free patterns I found online. I do love to sew, but I need to make some cards up again soon as there's 3 birthdays in January. We had 4 birthdays in December as well, but I bought cards for them as there wasn't time. 

Well, have a good week everyone, and thanks for listening to my sad tale. It's okay, Mom had a good life, but she'll be missed. We were very close and I know she's in a good place! 

Blessings,

Carmen