Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
I made another scissor cozy the other day to give as a hostess gift. As I said when I made Maria’s and Gerre‘s, I like making these. I don’t know if they are useful, but they are kind of a unique gift and something not everyone makes.
For once I remembered to quilt the piece before cutting it out. It was quite a bit of quilting, but I think it looks nice.
I can’t quite decide how long to make the leash, so this one is pretty long.
I used some fabric I have had for ages, which turned out well.
Back in January I made a scissor cozy for Maria. I decided, at the same time, to make one for Gerre for her birthday.
I really like this project. It is pretty quick, has room for customizations (see leash) and can be made, mostly, with supplies on hand.
As with Maria’s I upsized this one. I don’t know what size scissors Gerre has, but I am sure she will find a use for this.
A few months ago I made some bowl cozies for my boss. The other day she sent me a picture of them in action. She has told me several times that she and her husband both use them and like them. I am always so amazed that other people don’t have houses filled with useful items (potholders, napkins, bowl cozies, tea towels, TP totes, etc.) made from quiltmaking fabric!
It is a big shock that not everyone sews.
I finished another Flapper apron over the weekend. I call this the Duck Bones apron because one side has rubber duckies and the other bones. This will be for the YM’s partner. She is on a pathology course and really liked it when I included the bones fabric in a bag I made for her for Christmas.
The bone fabric is a favorite of various recipients. I have an alert on a shop site so whenever it comes in I buy 3 yards and decide what to make. I have enough left to make more pillowcases, which is probably a good idea for my SIL. Who uses only two pillowcases?
I have made several of these over the past few years and still like the way they turn out. The last one I made was for my mom, I think.
I made two of these at a time. The second one is still in progress. No, it isn’t Christmas or a birthday, but I had them on my mind, so I decided to make them.
I have been adjusting the neck hole a little, but left it the original size this time. I don’t remember why I adjusted it originally. I think the fabric looks really nice in apron form.
Yes, I used some of my precious Philip Jacobs fabric, but why not? It isn’t like there is a shortage at my house.
This is the pattern you can use with a yard of fabric. The pattern is called Flapper Apron from the Decades of Style pattern company. I bought it in 2018 when I was out shopping with Amanda. The clever part of this pattern is that you cut the pattern out on the bias. The biggest attraction is that you only *need* one yard of fabric to make it. I usually make the apron reversible, which takes 2 yards. As mentioned before, I like to give myself a little breathing room with 1.25 yards on each side. Still, the pattern is designed for one yard of fabric.
I got a bug in my ear to make some scissor cozies over the weekend. I’m not sure why, but I just went with it and made two. I didn’t like the way the tips came out, but I am pleased with the overall effect.
I made a scissor cozy for Julie and one for my Mom some time ago, so I had the directions, which I tried to use. There was some confusion, so went and looked up the pattern on Sotak Handmade’s IG feed. It turns out she has a YouTube tutorial now, so I watched that. She has tightened up the pattern and made a few changes, which worked well for me.
I used flannel for the inside instead of batting. I am not sure it made the corners much thinner. I might keep the batting away from the corners in a future version.
This one was for Maria just because. No particular reason. Making two was just as easy as making one. I added the leash.
I forgot to take pictures of Carrie’s pouch, but she kindly took some and sent them to me. You’ll get a different view from the ones I usually provide. Perhaps it will shake up my photographing a little bit.
In the pouch I put one of the color wheel pins I bought for gifts. I also put in one of the small Altoid tin sewing kits I made for the officers earlier this year. (see above)
I tried something different with these based on my desire to cover the ends of the zipper tape on the Inside Outside pouch. This is, however, a different bag and I ended up ripping out a lot of work when I realized it wouldn’t work. My idea of zipper tabs will work on the Inside Outside pouch, if I make it again.
Carrie was really happy with it and sent me a lovely thank you note. Don’t you love a good thank you note? I can’t wait to see how she uses it.
I finished another Boxy Clear Pouch right before Christmas. This one is for Tim and I gave it to him when we had an after Christmas Sew Day. It is the same pattern as the ones I made for my students. The difference is that I used fabric that will coordinate with the Sew Together Bag I made him last year.
Inside I put a point turner from Modern American Vintage. Remember I talked about them in a recent Various & Sundry post? (Ignore the pink pocket in the photo; that is from an unrelated project.) The company have some beautiful tools. They make wooden point turners, seam rippers and Hera markers. Often wooden tools are over the top, but these are simple, gorgeous and amazingly functional. Tim is a great friend and my bagmaking buddy, though he makes fun of me for the complicated bags that I make. Every bagmaker needs a good point turner. I have several different ones and this is the best. I know Tim would like it as well.
Aneela Hoey’s patterns are pretty well written. The thing I don’t like about this pattern is the binding on the ends. It looks great in the end, but is a hassle to hand sew down at the end of the project.
I think this is a useful bag, because you can see what’s in it.
In the past, I made a list of gifts I had made for Friend Julie. I am doing it again because I want to see all the items together. I still feel like I have made more for her, but I’ll have to update it as I come across items.
I used some really good fabrics for her gifts.
I forgot I made her the Halloween blocks, which I hope she will use to finish her Halloween quilt at some point.
This is a gift I made for Sue, one of my students. I put a small Altoids tin handwork case and a pin inside.
I used the Boxy Clear Pouch pattern from Aneela Hoey. It is related to the Inside Outside Pouch I made for myself. The difference is fewer zippers. I think I like the Inside Outside pouch better, though this is in no way a terrible pouch. It would be great for a small knitting project.
I am pleased with the fabric I used. It is Carrie Bloomston fabric. I am constantly referring to the color wheel when we are in class. Sue will have a color wheel with her if she keeps this pouch around.
Since I have been revisiting gifts I have made, I thought I would do the same for gifts I have made for my sister.
I am not sure if this list shows everything I have made for her, but it is a good start. The Inside Outside pouch is the one I made her for Christmas.
Since taking a look at gifts I made for Gerre a week or so ago, I decided to look at gifts I have made for Mom and Julie. Here are the various gifts I have made for my mom. Many have the different artist fabrics I have collected.
Cutting out pieces for bags is the hardest part. It is also, for me, the worst part. I often make two of a pouch or bag at the same time. Cutting out two of each piece at one time doesn’t seem to be that much harder than cutting out one. That is how I made this pouch. I decided on the spur of the moment to make the same pouch for Lil Sissy for Christmas that I was making for myself. I didn’t think really hard about the fabric. I grabbed this Alison Glass fabric, which is super cheerful, IMO, and for which I hadn’t yet found a use.
I am on the fence about whether I should have used a different fabric for the zipper plackets. I have trouble figuring out where pieces are going to go and most independent pattern makers don’t really tell you beyond naming the piece. I think using the same fabric on this pouch looks fine. If I used fabric like the Dripping Rose again, I would probably use different fabric. The motifs get broken up too much.
I picked a specific inside for this pouch, because it is for my sister. She is an artist, thus the splatter print. She seems to like the bags I make for her, though I have always used Paris related prints for her. This fabric is a departure.
I put a gift certificate inside.
I finished the Percheron Pouch over the Thanksgiving Weekend, which was a great relief. I couldn’t show it because it was a gift for my mom and she reads this blog.
I gave it to her on Christmas and she really liked it. She filled it up with all of the other gifts she received.
I really liked the look of this bag, which is why I decided to make it for my mom. I like making her bags I think are interesting. She always seems to appreciate them.
I really struggled with this bag. As I said before, I cut this bag out in June. Then it languished for all the same reasons that other projects languished: workroom upgrade and work.
I worked on it a little, but was frustrated with all of the sewing and ripping that I had to do. I don’t know what the issue was with this bag, but I struggled with the pattern and the video.
Finally, over Thanksgiving, I decided to work on it in earnest. Yes, I still ripped and sewed and ripped some more, but I was able to finish it.
I thought it looked good enough to give away even if it isn’t perfect.
I gave Julie this Large Retreat Pouch for her birthday the other day. This is the bag I made over Halloween weekend, but couldn’t show you since she reads this blog.
The Retreat Bag is a free pattern from Emmaline Bags. It requires a frame and the frame is not free, but also not very expensive. The frame allows it to open all the way, providing easy access to the contents.
I realized around that time that I needed to get busy and start making any gifts that I wanted to make for the holidays. That weekend, this was one of two Large Retreat Pouches that I made. As I mentioned then, it was the first time I had made the large version of this pouch. I added a leash to this one, because I thought it would make the bag more useful.
This is a pretty large bag. It would be great for a few balls of yarn and knitting needles as well as some EPP. I think it could also be used for a sponge bag or makeup kit.
The lining actually fits pretty snugly though it looks baggy in the photo.
I used some of my favorite purple fabrics since this was going to one of my favorite people.