I made a bag.

I made a few bags similar to this. Ikea fabric, with great things in it. I think I need more cloth bags in my life. In fact I will go as far as saying that I need more purpose-sewn cloth bags in my life. Obviously that's why I sewed them for others for Christmas, because they are necessary and wonderful! Expect to see more purpose-sewn cloth bags from me in 2012. Amongst other things of course! (Goal setting happening here people!)

You know the dream where you're running....

.... you're running and running and no matter how fast you run the thing you are chasing gets further and further away? That dream? That was my week. It took me all week to do precisely nothing. Hence the no blogging this week. I did manage to go to the patchwork apple's sit n sew on Friday afternoon. I started putting together the log cabin quilt from July? Or August? I think I see a pattern developing here. Run fast, never catch up! Saturday morning was my civil war group at the patchwork apple. (Have I mentioned that I like the patchwork apple?) "Civil war group". That makes us sound like we should be on the History Channel! Does that channel ever show any program not about some war or other? It sounds like we sit around a large table and plan our offensives. Not so. We are making a quilt using civil war fabrics. We meet once a month and have a little bit of homework to do. It is a very fun group with some of my very best people being in the group. This is what we learnt this month. A little needle turn applique. And then we had lunch together. A lovely group!

Every day this week I have woken up sure that I would finish the table runner from the last post. And every day I didn't. Friday morning I thought enough was enough and I actually finished the back of the runner. I ran out of time and didn't get any more done. Today I thought I would finish it. I just thought I would do one thing before I began.....

Sew up a few honey bun strips and make a little bag or two. (Ten strips makes a bag) Great idea! Then I would do the runner. Seventy strips later (Who even knew I had that many honey bun strips?) I layed out the runner and the batting. Guess what? The batting wasn't big enough! So funny! I have been avoiding this all week and it turns out I couldn't have done it even if I tried! Oh well.

These are the strips I sewed today. There is Moda's Spring Fresh, Patisserie, Rounneries and Legacy in this shot. They look much more colourful in real life than this photo. Legacy has a pretty blue colour that is completely washed out in this shot. I took the photo outside in the shade. Thought it would work. You need shade today because Adelaide has finally hit the 30's this spring (That's the 90's for you Farenheiters!) and everything is all glarey outside. Of course, they don't actually look like bags yet cause I didn't get any finished. Maybe next week!

Yes! It's January 2010!

I did plan this post for January first, but I just didn't get that far. Yes! It's January! 2010! Last year I didn't really get around to making any goals for 2009. I was determined to set some for 2010 because I think I really would have done more in 2009 if I had set goals. I think I was a little scared to set some of the goals I had in my head. Sometimes being scared really holds you back! One of the goals I have set myself is to get my blog tidied up a little and get some of my goals established in the sidebar of my blog.
Remember this bag? (See post here) I made it to keep my Pies and Tarts BOM in. Well, I have been working on the pies and tarts over the Christmas break and needed some more storage space, so made some drawstrings bags.


The larger one for the pies, and the smaller one for the tarts. The original bag is a brilliant work bag. (I love it!) So portable! And now I have somewhere to put the pies and tarts when I am not working on them.


The pies in progress. I have almost finished the first month's worth. (Not that impressive since I already have the third month at my house!) I am enjoying creating these pies and am getting better at them. I'll be an expert by the time I finish this quilt.


This is what I'm up to with the tarts. Not much! I have them tacked to the paper pieces, but that's as far as I got. I will wait a while before putting these together. I would like to mix the fabrics up a little. That's the pies and tarts progress update! Check back soon for more 2010 updates!

Paperbag Swap.

This is the bag I made and sent to Leah for Missymack's paper bag swap. Leah loves owls so I decided to applique and embroider one on the front of the bag. The bag is lined and has a zippered pocket inside. I am pleased with the owl. I think he's very cute!

Usually when I make something I just make it up as I go, but don't tend to keep a record of what I have done. Mrs 24 (picklesticks) has been encouraging me to keep a record of what I have done so that I can write up a pattern to put in my etsy shop. I was planning to have the pattern for this bag in my etsy shop next week, but our pending move has put me a little behind. The pattern should be finished next week, so look out for it if you would like to make a cute bag!!!

Drawstring Bags

I read a comment from Pip today that started me worrying. She said she was looking forward to seeing what I make over the easter break. Then she said, "No pressure". (Something we basketball Mums say when we really mean PRESSURE!!!) I started thinking about the fact that I haven't done anything yet! I am still tidying and sorting my sewing space. Then I realised that whilst tidying today I made 5 drawstring bags. One from some fat quarters that I received for my birthday in Maree's fat quarter birthday swap and the other four from leftovers from some bags I had made. I think that's why tidying takes me so long. I kind of have to do sewing as well to keep my interest! Lol! I am hopeless! These drawstring bags will be filled with projects so that I can be a little more organised. (I hope) I have uncovered all sorts of half finished things that I am excited to work on. I also have a head full of ideas for things I want to try, to make and to learn. I think I'd be dangerous if I ever got organised! Anyway, I'm having fun and really enjoying easter!

Shopping bag

The South Australian government have banned plastic shopping bags from May this year. I have started to make some cloth bags to take to the supermarket. I sewed them, but don't think of it as sewing I guess. Then I saw this lovely post on Lera's blog. My bags are quite different. My Bradley was unimpressed with them. They were not enough like the "green" bags you can buy at the shop I guess. I have arthritis (yes, at 45!) and find holding bags difficult, so I made mine with long handles which will suit me much better. (Over the shoulder). The fabric is furnishing fabric from Ikea (New Year's sale, $3 a metre) and I will be able to throw them in the washing machine. I think the bag ban is a good idea because there are those of us slackers who would go on using plastic bags just because it is easier. Sad to admit I'm a slacker, but there it is!

Secret Sewing

All of my sewing over the last couple of weeks has been secret sewing. I have made some bags as gifts. They are all pretty similar. I had a wonderful time choosing the fabrics and making them! Such fun!

I really love making bags. I have some more to make. Some quilts to finish. Some clothes to make for Miss 11. Some clothes to make for me. So, it looks like I will be spending a lot more time in my sewing room. (Ahhh, as it should be!) Life is good, isn't it?

I sewed last week, a little.

I sewed some more makeup bags which I am hoping to sell at the Fullarton plant and craft market next Saturday. (If you are in Adelaide come see us!)

And I did the binding on the "Daisy Blue" doll quilt. This was fun. I used cotton batting in this little quilt and fell in love with it. So nice to work with!

Not sure what I am going to sew this week. Bunting has been on my mind (strange statement! I love bunting and I do spend time thinking about it, strange to say.). I have my SSCS (secret santa christmas swap) to finish off and send. (BIG SECRET!) I am desperate to show you some bits, but this must remain secret until after December 25th! (And I can't be trusted! I'm not good at sneak peaks!) I also could sew for the market on Saturday. So I have lots to sew. It's not so much if, as what I will end up sewing. I also have a million emails to catch up with and a trillion posts on bloglines that are screaming at me. And my blog needs updating. I have discovered heaps of really exciting blogs lately that I read all the time, but haven't put in my blogroll yet! I need to share them with you! Hope your week is as wonderful as mine appears right now! A week of sewing and internetting! (Who could ask for anything more?)

Mushroom bag

No it's not a blurry photo (in case you were wondering). The photo below is a blurry photo! Hmm..... took more than a dozen photos and not one decent one in the bunch! I gave up and thought you would like to see this bag even if it was blurry! (Hope you do!!!)

This bag is similar to one I made for the stitching angel swap. I changed it somewhat because I wasn't very happy with it's shape. I am much happier now and will be taking this lone bag to the craft market tomorrow! (See picklesticks for more market info)

It Came! It Came! (my bag swap bag!)

The postie brought my bag swap bag today. It came in a box from Arizona and was most exciting. I think the excitement was added to because my swap partner got her bag yesterday too and I had been reading about that on her blog. (More about that later) It's beautiful, isn't it?

This is what I saw when Bradley opened the box. (He was the only one in range with a pocket knife.) A pretty package and a card. A hand made card! From Jo-Anne.

I took off the ribbon and this was the resulting bundle. I liked the colours of my new bag straight away. When I picked up the bag I realised that there were other goodies inside.

This is the sweet card that Jo-Anne included. I loved the card because it told me a little more about her. Despite the fact that Jo-Anne comes from Tuscon Arizona she has an Australian connection because of her Australian mother. (Like me. I have an Australian mother too!) She is also a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! (Like me!)

This is all the goodies from the parcel. So many beautiful hand made things and a book to write in! I think I will write lists in the book. One of my favourite things to do is write lists! Miss 11 asked if all the bag swap bags had to have suffolk puffs on them, because I put them on the bag I made too! Miss 22 loved all the bugs on the bag (charms) and that's kind of crazy because I am in the middle of embroidering bugs too!

And, shockingly, it was a bit like a "two for one" because this cute bag was in there too! I am going to put sewing projects in my new bags and then hang them on the wall. (Hope you're reading this Brad, because I need some hooks put up!) I can't wait to use them. I checked out Jo-Anne's blog and when she received her bag she said she would use it to take projects to her daughter's volleyball games. Well Jo-Anne, my new bags will be going to lots of basketball games with me. And basketball training! Thank you Linda for organising this swap! It has been so much fun!!!

Happy 200th Post and a Giveaway!!! (Well, actually 213th, but you get my drift!)

Yes, this is finally the Giveaway post! I have decided to give away my herb garden stitchery drawstring bag. So, if you would like to have this bag at your house please leave a comment and I will draw someone's name next Sunday. It is lined with the green and white spot and the back of the bag is pieced with little squares just like the top of the front. The stitchery is a Bronwyn Hayes design. Making this bag was very fun. Especially because I was busy avoiding the bag swap bag. That's right! Didn't have time on the weekend to finish that one, but managed to make this entire bag instead.

I have really enjoyed this blog of mine. Over the past 212 posts I have meet so many wonderful people and seen so many great ideas. Even after all this time I am still finding 'new' blogs and 'meeting' new people. When I started blogging I had no idea how to do it (thank you Mrs 24 who taught me everything I know), and was definitely in the creating doldrums. Having this blog (and reading other blogs) has inspired me to create so many more things than I would have otherwise. It has broadened my horizons. I started it in an effort to find my happy place and this little corner of the internet is it! I plan to keep blogging forever (or as long as it is fun!) and you should all stick around for another 87 posts to enter my 300th post giveaway! Good luck!

Monday's Stitching

This is what I have been working on today. Inbetween coughing and napping. These flowers and leaves are destined for the bag I am making. I have the design for the bag floating around in my head. I haven't put it down on paper, so I'm kind of making it up as I go along. I love doing that! It's so much fun letting the design flow, letting the fabric dictate where it wants to go. Hopefully it will be beautiful!

More scraps

There were more flannelette squares left so I made a second quilt and a drawstring bag today. I have been thinking about bags lately because I have joined Linda's bag/bucket swap. I'm not sure whether I was motivated by the packages I see on other blogs, or whether I am looking for a creative challenge with a deadline.

I also joined Helen's swap. I am now a stitcher's angel. (You may have noticed the button on the side.) It's going to be an exciting swap whether you join in or not, because Helen is going to have free patterns available on the sticher's angel website from a range of designers. These patterns will be available to everyone (swapping or not!). To check it out click on my stitcher's angel button and have a look.

An air of creativity!

There must be an air of creativity wafting through our home at the moment. I LOVE it! It's exciting and inspiring! I can't wait for the week ahead. We are going to make ALL sorts of things.


Miss 10 made a bag. Miss 15 started the creativity today. She spent time making softies and then started a quilt. It's her first "grown up" attempt at a quilt. She has made some quilts before when younger. They were not very successful because she didn't want me to look at them in order to help her. Today, however, she asked for advice and how I would do it. Just mechanically, she made all of her colour choices herself and all her placement choices too.

I have been knitting today. I forgot to take photos of my knitting! Rest assured, there's plenty of time to see it! I am knitting a jumper. I am notoriously slow at knitting anything that requires more than one piece knitted!!! And this jumper requires 4 pieces. I am nearly finished the back.

This is what I have been doing whilst knitting. Yes! Watching "White Christmas". I am an old-movie-aholic and my favourite kind of old movie is the musical. So I was incredibly surprised to find that I hadn't seen this movie before. I watched it today with and without the commentary. I love commentaries! Do you like them? I love all the stuff you find out!

Art at the Hart

This is us at "Art at the Hart" on Saturday December 1st. We discovered the details for this artist's market in the Advertiser some time ago. It is a 2 day market that runs in tandem with "Celtica", a Celtic music festival. We initially enquired whether we could just come for the Saturday because Sunday is our Sabbath and we don't engage in commercial transactions on the Sabbath. The organisers really wanted artists who could be there for the 2 days so we asked them to keep us in mind if they got anyone who wanted to be there just for the Sunday. A few weeks ago we got a call! Mrs 23 (Picklesticks) had her toys (and sold heaps), and Miss 17 had her photography (and sold none), I had some bags and postcards (and sold 1 postcard). Mrs 23 was very happy. Miss 17 and I had fun!


The day started out with quite a few of us there. We brought a tall boy to help us with our setting up, which meant we had to bring a small boy too, because you can't leave 7 year olds at home on their own!!! Miss 10 came too because she had her basketball game at 8:30am. Fortunately her game was at Port Adelaide and you can see the stadium from the Hart's Mill complex, so even Basketball SA was smiling on us that day! As the day wore on we dwindled in numbers because Bradley came to pick up any children who were bored.

This was the view from our stall. I'm refering to the water view here, not the guys!!! Hey! Miss 17 is a photographer, and we gave her the camera. She's 17, there were always going to be photos of guys! Don't you love the fly on the lens!!! There were so many flies in the morning. They thinned out as the day went on (perhaps they got bored too!)

It was an interesting day on the Port River. There were yachts racing and rescue craft and dolphins.

Now that it's Tuesday (ie a long time since Saturday) and the photos look so beautiful here on my blog I remember the day as a lovely day! On Saturday afternoon, however, it was HOT (38 degrees) and sunny and the flies were buggy and the music got louder and louder as the day went on and my head hurt! (In fact it hurt Saturday night and Sunday and Monday too!) All of us decided that we are not outdoor market kind of people. I remember a fervent discussion we had on the way to the car after packing up. We discussed the idea at length and came to the conclusion that we are etsy people. Cause you don't get sunburnt (aka skin damaged) from the light of your computer, and all the people you meet online are so nice, and we decide to open an etsy shop instead of doing another market! We just aren't outdoorsy people!

Of course, that's not to say that we didn't meet truely wonderful people at Art at the Hart, cause we did! It was a wonderful day and next year (Yes! It's on again next year!) I'm definitely going to go. As a customer only. There were so many beautiful handmade items there. It's a brilliant place to go Christmas shopping!

Something else I made.

It's a bag. I think I like making bags. I'm not sure if this is because I love bags so much or if I just appreciate the utillitarian aspects of bags. I have stuff, and I need something to carry it around in. There's also the decorative aspect of bags to be taken into consideration. If you have some really groovey fabric what better way to show it off than draping it over your shoulder?

This bag was made from some of a "jellyroll" I bought from the patchwork apple. (I love that shop!) I quite like jellyrolls because they have the entire range of fabric contained within them. I don't know what quilting shops are like where you live, but here in Adelaide you don't often get access to an entire range of fabric. Even if Jane (the patchapple lady) ordered an entire range she might not get it. Especially if it is popular in other states. We in Adelaide have to be happy with dregs or shop on-line. I have never done that, but it's something I'm now considering seriously! What's your best place to shop on-line for fabric?

Here fishy, fishy, fishy!

Picklestick and I have been having lots of fun this week! We are now felters. You're impressed, huh? Umm, I don't actually have any photographic evidence of this - but trust me! It's true. This is a fish pouch Picklestick and I made for one of Katie's friend's birthday this week. Don't you love the tail? That's just how the fabric was! I love fabric.
The zip opens to reveal some Ikea linen. I love fabric from Ikea! The fish is Picklestick's design and she's the one who insisted that if you open fish it has to be at the belly.(Her Bloke is a fisherman, so I guess she would know!) This is a softie picklestick made for the birthday present. We used the same fabric range for her clothes. We also made a bag out of this fabric range and linen, but there are no photos 'cause we're kind of last minuters!