Tag: Pouch

Pink & Green Cotton Candy Pouch

Pink & Green Cotton Candy Pouch
Pink & Green Cotton Candy Pouch

I finished the latest Cotton Candy Pouch over the weekend. This is the one that Friend Julie cut out using her Cricut Maker. You last saw it as a bunch of pieces. I am always interested to see how strangely shaped pieces turn into something 3D. It was awesome to not have to cut anything but to have it all ready to go.

Zipper Beginning
Zipper Beginning

One reason I keep making this pouch over and over is to perfect some of my skills, especially Veering the Zipper, which went much better this time. I was also able to get the beginning of the zipper even with each other. So progress.

Yes, I could have gotten the head closer, but that is a challenge for another day.

I also like the shape of this pouch a lot. I am going to try the sidewinder next. Bronwyn, one of the moderators of the Sew Sweetness FB group, had so much trouble with the Sidewinder that she threw out her first attempt. This scares me!

I forgot to use a deeper seam allowance for the lining :(, but c’est la vie. It is fine for this time. Another part to work on.

The Sidewinder is another part of Minikins Season 1. I have two dozen or so patterns from Minikins Season 1 & 2 to try, so I need to get busy! I am constantly wondering if Sara will come out with a Minikins Season 3? Yikes! I need to get busy.

Mini Pink Pouch

After making the Mondo Bag last year, I had a few squares leftover. I sewed them together into panels of 6 charm squares, found a pink zipper and decided to make a quick pouch. Several months later, I finally got busy.

Pink Pouch fabrics
Pink Pouch fabrics

I cut some lining fabrics and found a random tutorial just so I wouldn’t mess up the steps.

I was pretty pleased with how it was shaping up, then I decided that I needed to include a leash. I love adding tabs with a lobster clip on the end, as I have mentioned numerous times, so I can clip my pouches to other bags. This step slowed me down a little as I had to find fabric that would look good (scrap diving!) and dig out a lobster clip, but I ended up being ready to sew the leash before I had to stop. Next time I’ll be able to show the item as done as I think I only need a half and hour or so to finish.

 

 

SVG Cotton Candy Pouch

As I mentioned, Friend Julie cut some Cotton Candy Pouch pieces out for me with her Cricut. I pulled them out over the weekend with the intention of starting to sew them together. I have to wait to finish until my zipper order arrives, but I thought I could, at least make a start.

Cotton Candy Pouch cut from SVG files
Cotton Candy Pouch cut from SVG files

I was super pleased when I delved into the bag to find ALL the pieces required – Soft & Stable, SF101, everything! She is a rockstar and this work was super appreciated, because cutting is not a favorite task for me.

These were cut  before her recent adventures. She is back to sewing now, which is great. I may want her to cut more pieces for me, if I like these. Alternatively, though space is an issue, I may just buy a Cricut of my own. 😉

I sewed the Cotton Candy sides and main panels together and came up with the same problem I had when I cut out the pieces. The main panels did not line up with the sides. I feel better now about my cutting. There is no problem as I can trim the pieces after they are sewn together. I can see why this slight extra might be a feature as it gives the maker a little wiggle room.

SVG Files & Cotton Candy

Friend Julie and I have been talking about her relatively new Cricut. We are doing a sort of test of her Cricut for fabric cutting. She has been playing around with cards, but this started when I asked her if she had cut out fabric from SVG files. When she said no, I sent her an SVG file for the Cotton Candy pouch and said that if she cut one out, I would sew it for her. I kind of wanted to see how the SVG files would work.

Cotton Candy Pouch cut from SVG files
Cotton Candy Pouch cut from SVG files

Recently she sent me some pieces of a Cotton Candy pouch she had cut out for me. I am curious to see how these pieces fit together versus the ones I cut.

Now I have to sew them.

Tulip Cotton Candy Pouch

Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch
Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch

I have talked about the two other pouches, Green and PJ Ivy, I made last weekend. This, however, is the main one. I decided to make this one, then added the others on to the project.

I tried to think of how a non-sewing person would use this pouch (or any pouch??) and could only come up with a makeup bag or a cord carrier.  I hope the recipient will find some good uses for it. It is a large pouch so it might be good for a project. I know she started an embroidery or cross stitch project recently.

Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch- inside
Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch- inside

I made the inside light, as I try to do, so she could find whatever she puts in the bag. It is a kind of fun newspaper print that I haven’t used before, though I have used fabric like it. I still like the text fabrics.

I used some of the Michael Miller French Journal Collection from London Portfolio for this pouch. It has good areas to fussy cut. I bought a lot of it several years ago and keep cutting bits off for this and that. It is fun fabric.

I don’t know what the recipient likes, so I made some thing that I liked. Also, this pattern lends itself to fussy cutting and I was able to cut this fabric in such a way as to highlight the featured flowers.

Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch- back
Tulip Dot Cotton Candy Pouch- back

This is kind of busy fabric, so I used the black and white dot fabric to keep the French Journal Collection under control.

Swap Pouch

A few months ago, Angela organized a swap for the guild. The rules were that we were to use a pattern that we had been wanting to try. As mentioned in the post about what I made, I used one of the Minikins patterns.

Cheryl's Swap Pouch - front
Cheryl’s Swap Pouch – front

Since our guild meetings are on Zoom now, we all took turns opening them on ‘camera’ one at a time. Cheryl was selected to make me something and she made me a POUCH! I told you it was pouch week here at AQ!

Cheryl's Swap Pouch - open
Cheryl’s Swap Pouch – open

Yes, a pouch and it matches the pouch that Angela made for me several months ago, which I use for work.

How do you like that bird (cardinal??) on the front? I love it! He looks sassy. I don’t know why I think of it as a ‘he’.

Cheryl's Swap Pouch - back
Cheryl’s Swap Pouch – back

This is a really nice wide mouth pouch. It will be really good for a small knitting project or some EPP  or something that needs some space, but not a lot of tools. There aren’t any internal pockets, but I think that is ok.

One really nice thing is that there is some corduroy fabric included in the piecing. It is so soft! I want to stroke the corduroy parts of the pouch.

Perhaps I will use it for my bias tape makers? It’s a little big, but I have it available.

PJ Ivy Cotton Candy Pouch

PJ Pink Cotton Candy Pouch
PJ Pink Cotton Candy Pouch

This is the second of the three pouches I made over the weekend. I used the Philip Jacobs Variegated Ivy fabric in pink for the ends and the lining. In order to tone down the large and exciting flowers, I used the black and white for the main panel.

This is the medium sized Cotton Candy Pouch from Sara Lawson’s Minikins Season 1 pattern set (no affiliation).

PJ Pink Cotton Candy Pouch lining
PJ Pink Cotton Candy Pouch lining

It is actually not for one of my co-workers. I made this for my co-worker’s daughter. They are having an especially tough time at their house. Another zipper, some time and fabric were not that big of a deal.

I sent this one off with my co-worker’s yesterday.

Green Cotton Candy Pouch

Green Cotton Candy Pouch
Green Cotton Candy Pouch

In some ways this will be pouch Week. I didn’t intend it to be, but I have a lot of pouches to show.

I made three Cotton Candy pouches over the weekend. As mentioned before These are to be gifts for co-workers who have helped me.

Green Cotton Candy Pouch-open
Green Cotton Candy Pouch-open

I really want to get good at this pattern, so I keep making it even though I have many patterns from the Minikins to try. There are a couple things I need to work on. One is veering the zipper. I didn’t get both sides of the end even this time. Next time, I think I will mark where I want to veer the zipper off the fabric and see if that works. I ripped it out a couple of times, but couldn’t do better, so I’ll try to do better next time.

More Cotton Candy Pouches

I am making 3 more Cotton Candy pouches as gifts for people at work. I am also trying to perfect my efforts at sewing this pattern.

Making 3 requires a lot of cutting time. It took me about two hours to cut out all the pieces, which didn’t include forgetting to cut out the lining side panels! Duh! I guess I have decided that cutting out all the pieces at once is the best way to work.

Cotton Candy Pouch side panels
Cotton Candy Pouch side panels

One of the things I found was that basting the side panels to a square and cutting the shape out later was really handy. Cutting out the side panel, which is tulip shaped, with the rotary template on the Soft & Stable is difficult. It is difficult, because the Soft & Stable is so thick. Cutting the shape out after basting it worked really well.

I also found that basting the pieces to the Soft & Stable in advance was really helpful. I know the pattern says to do it, but I hadn’t done it before.

I am still struggling with veering the zipper. Apparently, I need to make more of these to get that right. I made some annotations to the pattern so I remember what to do next time and where salient points are in the videos.

 

 

Chrysanthemum Cotton Candy Pouch

Chrysanthemum Cotton Candy Pouch
Chrysanthemum Cotton Candy Pouch

I finished another Cotton Candy Pouch over the weekend. As mentioned in a previous post, this pattern is from the Minikins Seasons 1 & 2 (no affiliation) by Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness.

Chrysanthemum Cotton Candy Pouch - inside
Chrysanthemum Cotton Candy Pouch – inside

I made an effort to fussy cut fabric this time so my pouch  highlighted some great fabric. Sara does this in her pouches and I really like the look. I cut the side panels out of the Philip Jacobs fabric, which was not correct – I keep thinking those side pieces are the main fabrics. I decided to use them on the inside, reversing the way I put in the fabric.

I had some trouble with the zippers, but in the end the video about veering the zipper off the project and the project video finally got the thole technique into my head. I want to cement it. I think I might make another pouch with some of the Echinacea fabric I got from the last Modern Quilter’s Box.

Inside Outside Pouch: Finished

Inside Outside Pouch finished
Inside Outside Pouch finished

I finished the Inside Outside Pouch at Craft Night on Monday. I only had the binding left and that was a good task to work on.

The pattern is pretty easy, especially after making the Boxy Clear pouch as many of the steps are the same.

Inside Outside Pouch inside detail
Inside Outside Pouch inside detail

One problem I had was with the zippers. This was not a problem with the pattern, but was a problem with how to measure zippers. I know now that you measure from puller to stopper, not from end to end. The zippers in this pouch are a little short, but it shouldn’t matter in the grand scheme.

I used some leftovers from projects for Mom, so she will probably end up with it. I am not sure how much I like this product. It is a good pattern and easy to follow, but the pouch is kind of large and I am not sure how I would use it. I’d like a smaller version for my binding makers. I may try making a smaller one.

Inside Outside Pouch

Inside Outside Pouch in process
Inside Outside Pouch in process

After making the Boxy Clear Pouch, I decided to try the Inside Outside Pouch. I was so pleased with how quickly the Boxy Clear Pouch went together that I thought 2 additional zippers wouldn’t be so bad. I am still working on small projects while I wait for my design wall materials to arrive.

I cut the pieces out during Virtual Craft Night on Monday and felt like it didn’t take much time at all. I think I felt like I was cutting out similar pieces to the ones I cut for the Boxy Clear Pouch.

On Tuesday night, I started sewing right after work and spent about an hour on the project. I really got a fair way into the process before I stopped because it was getting late.

There are many aspects of this project that are the same as the Boxy Clear pouch so it feels like I am reinforcing skills or pattern steps that I did the other day. also, I think I am used to working on the complicated (but fabulous!) ByAnnie patterns and this one is much easier, though just as effective.

I did not want to stop working on it. I was having such a good time and making such good progress that I wanted to keep the feeling going. I may be able to finish tonight. Then I may have to start working on a second version!!!

Boxy Clear Pouch pt.2

Boxy Clear Pouch
Boxy Clear Pouch

I talked about the Boxy Clear Pouch yesterday. I realized I had more to say about this project, which surprised me since it is a small project.

Boxy Clear Pouch - zipper end detail
Boxy Clear Pouch – zipper end detail

One of the things I liked was the finishing on the zipper.  On the stop end, the designer, Aneela Hoey, has the maker stop 5/8 inch from the end. I didn’t know why, but realized that it was to accommodate the zipper draping over the end of the pouch.

Boxy Clear Pouch - inside detail
Boxy Clear Pouch – inside detail

In general, I try to avoid zippers hanging over the end of a pouch, but this pattern’s design makes me realize what the designer is trying to do.  Utilizing a long zipper makes the pouch into one that opens wide. This means that things can’t get hidden inside. Somehow I didn’t realize it or realized it only briefly and then forgot.

Boxy Clear Pouch - zipper detail
Boxy Clear Pouch – zipper detail

I could have done a bit better job on the beginning of the zipper, but, again, Ms. Hoey does a great job with the design. The beginning of the zipper is far enough back so the binding doesn’t get in the way and there is no issue with sewing through a million thickness layers on the end.

My one criticism, which is the same criticism I had with another one of her patterns, Speedy Pouches, the binding ends. The designer doesn’t really say what she does to tuck in the ends. I cut them off and tucked them in as well as I could to make them even with the top edge of the pouch, then I handstitched them down. I’ll have to take a look at her website to see if she ever talks about it.

The one thing I did wrong, which ended up not mattering much, was switch the lining and the exterior fabric. The pieces were fairly uniform and the pouch ended up looking fine with the lining fabric on the outside.

I am pleased, as I said, with how this project turned. The pouch was larger than I expected even though I made the small size. I would have liked an even smaller version

Boxy Clear Pouch

Boxy Clear Pouch
Boxy Clear Pouch

I finally broke into my stash of Aneela Hoey patterns. I have one of her books, Stitched Sewing Organizers** and a couple of her patterns. I hadn’t made anything from any of them. Recently I started thinking about the various patterns I have that I have not made. I decided, while I am waiting for the parts for my design wall, to concentrate on some small projects. Since I had been talking about the Aneela Hoey patterns with Angela, I decided to make the Boxy Clear pouch.

This whole project took me about 4 hours of work. I didn’t rush because I didn’t expect to get this project done in one sewing session. However, I was able to finish it!

The directions are very clear and the drawings help a lot. I did have to read over the directions a few times as I made the pouch, but everything was pretty clear as long as I went slowly.

The pattern comes with two sizes and I made the small size as I thought I might want to use one for my bias tape makers. It turned out to be larger than I thought it would be, though I may still make one for the bias tape makers. I have to put them somewhere, after all!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Gift Post: Cotton Candy Pouch

I finally bought the Minikins Seasons 1 & 2 (no affiliation) a few weeks ago when I received a bonus from a vendor with whom I work on occasion. I talked about being obsessed with these patterns back in January since they came out. They are on sale when they first come out and then they went up in price. I plan to buy Season 3, if there ever is one, when it is on sale.

Cal themed Cotton Candy Pouch
Cal themed Cotton Candy Pouch

Anyway, I made my first project from the patterns, the Cotton Candy Pouch. I made this for my SIL for her birthday. Fortunately, she lives around the corner, so I just put the bag on her doorstep during my morning walk and then texted her to take a look. Not as good a party with cake, but something during this shelter-in-place situation.

There are a few things I had trouble with. I am pretty pleased with the evenness of the zipper, but the ends were a bit of a problem. Next time, I think I will use a coordinating or solid fabric for the side pieces. I think it will highlight the themed fabric better. I find that making a project the first time is always an adventure and a learning experience.

Cal themed Cotton Candy Pouch
Cal themed Cotton Candy Pouch

I also added a leash. I don’t know if she has a bag with a D-ring, but when she does, she will be able to attach it.

This pouch takes an 18″ zipper, which I thought was long. I don’t have many that size, so I’ll have to think about getting some.