My grandma is one of the few people in my life that truly appreciates a handmade gift! So I never miss an opportunity to make something special for her. For Christmas this year, I decided to make her the Mama clutch, the tutorial is from Growing Home. I used fabric scraps I had on hand and I was able to put this together in one evening. It has a zipper closure and two small pockets on the inside. I like it so much, I think I might make one for myself. Because I need another bag, right?
Pumpkins shelved in front of the grocery store. Even they look quaint when transformed in Instagram.
I saw this cool, vintage Volvo a few weeks ago. Forgot that I even took a picture of it. If only I had the wherewithal to own and maintain a vintage car... Perhaps I'm just not that cool. Or have a garage. And care too much for my own safety.
Fall has hit us hard here in Maryland. I do love the fall, the crisp weather, apples, boots, sweaters, the changing leaves... But a 30 degree temperature drop from one day to the next seems a little extreme. (The high was 85 on Friday and 55 on Saturday.) Then again, it seems that all weather we experience around here is dramatic, let's not forget the relatively recent earthquake, hurricane, tropical storm trifecta. So this is to be expected.
I seem to have lost my camera cord, (I know...no one is more annoyed with my irresponsibility than I) so these pictures were taken in the harsh fluorescent lights of my work space. Please ignore the giant piles of paper in the background. 
The tutorial that inspired this project, was found on Under the Sycamore, a DIY project called The Doily Canvas Bag. I've had this tutorial in the back of my mind for a while. Wanted to give it a shot, but I kept forgetting to purchase a plain canvas bag. And to be honest, was afraid that I couldn't make mine as crisp and clean as on the original tutorial. Last summer, I had picked up this very plain straw tote at Joann's. I believe is was something like 70% off. It's been hanging on a doorknob in my living room since August. Over the holidays, I had purchased some doilies at the dollar store that I cut up to make gift tags. The other evening, I was itching to make something, saw the straw tote hanging there, remembered the doilies and put the two of them together. So this is my version of the Doily Bag. The doily print isn't perfectly clear printed on the straw, but I'm happy with the end result. Sort of an impressionist doily. It will be perfect for the beach this summer.
I haven't blogged for a while. Not that I'm not working on stuff, just that I've been working on a few presents, so I can't post those...don't want to ruin the surprise! I came across this bag that I made LONG before I had a blog, but it was such a good tutorial, I wanted to share it. It would make a great gift bag...imagine it filled with a bottle of wine, some cheese and a baguette. I also think that it would make a good little lunch bag. So, introduce you to sewtakeahike's Lucille Bag. Now go directly to your sewing machine and make some for Christmas!
I bought Amy Butler's Stash and Dash pattern a while ago, rediscovered it the other day and decided to give it a try. I made the medium size, the Makeup Bag, but added a nylon webbing strap so that I could use it as a wristlet. It's made out of a regular old inexpensive, medium weight, black canvas and a fun map print (poly, I'm sure), that I bought for a steal ($2.25 for at least a yard, it wasn't marked) at the Knittn' Kitten in Portland, OR last summer. If you ever find yourself in Portland (I happened to be there on a business trip), I highly recommend that you bring extra luggage and visit Knittn' Kitten. It's a craft thrift store, a concept that I have not heard of or seen since! It's a pretty small place, but packed to the gills with fabric, yarn, beads, sequins, notions, you name it! I ended up with just the yard or so of fabric, I was overwhelmed and didn't have much luggage with me. It also happens to be conveniently located on the way to downtown Portland from the airport. An interesting business concept, no? While I don't see myself opening my own thrift store, have been considering ways of getting rid of excess craft items. Perhaps a swap meet? But I digress...
For some reason, have not been doing much crafting as of late. A summer hiatus, perhaps? At any rate, was inspired when I saw these .79 cent mini tote bags at Michael's over the weekend. In about a month, I'll be heading to St Louis to visit my sister and her family, for my nephew's 4th birthday. While I already have a gift planned for the birthday boy, can't show up empty handed for his little twin sisters, who are about 20 months old. They are already girls who enjoy being girls, so I appliqued their initials on each bag. Instant "purses"! My applique work is less than perfect (maybe I can pass it off as being "decorative"). In fact, if I were the QA auditing my work, probably would reject it. All of those curves were hard! But these are for children, so I decided that it wasn't so important. Will pick up a few other thing to fill them with before I go. I returned to Michael's (twice in one weekend) to pick up more of these little bags. They're less expensive than paper gift bags and can be reused....
My friend, Heather and I had a little girl's morning out yesterday. (Who incidentially is about 12 months pregnant and was not the least bit phased by all the walking...I'm so excited about the new baby, whose arrival is imminent!!) We spent much of the morning at the annual Putty Hill Park Flea Market. Such fun! Came home with a small, but good haul-a small yellow basket (which I had plans for the minute I saw it, look for it to be appearing in a craft soon), an antique looking tea canister and a silver cuff. Not bad for $14. Afterwards, we headed to Ikea for lunch and additional shopping. Where I finally decided to buy these. Crazy colored crochet doilies. (I forgot to take a picture of them in the package. If you happen to be looking for them at your local Ikea, they can be found near the fabric.) I had been eyeing them for months and finally decided to pick them up, only $3.99. Once home and after a nap, decided to make a tote and use them for embellishment. Rummaged through my stash and decided on the zebra print. The result is perhaps a little busy, but I love it! Could not find a new spring bag at the Rack this afternoon, so I'll be sporting this until I find something better...
My friend, S, (who I will leave a little anonymous since I didn't ask if I could write about her) was super enthusiastic about my first multi-tasker tote. She really loved it and told me that it would be perfect for travel. Now, she has recently become quite the road warrior, given that she's moved clear across the country to California, and can now share in my obsession of the search for the perfect bag. So I made a deal with her. If she bought the fabric, I'd make the bag. (Which was MUCH easier the second time.) It's surprisingly exciting to receive a big package of designer fabric that you didn't have to pay for. Even if you ultimately don't get to keep it. I've been frantically sewing over the past few days to finish said bag because I'm traveling to California on Thursday for a visit!! So the bag is finally finished, even with a few days to spare. I can't wait to deliver it in person. (If you happened to miss my post about my first multi-tasker tote, it's an Anna Maria Horner design.) I think I like it even more than the one that I made for myself, the fabrics go so well together. Hope she likes it!
