The 12 Bags of Christmas

This year for Christmas, as I was humming along making bags willy nilly out of patterns and fabrics I loved, I felt compelled to give away all the bags that I made to people I would normally not give a Christmas present to.

And as the months wore on, I knew that it was time to stop and pray about who would get these bags.

I had so many women on my heart, women whose lives touched mine in different ways. Some were ladies I hadn’t seen in a while. Others worked at stores I frequented. I would come up with a list and then something would happen and someone else would touch my heart.

I just started to give them out.

In the last 10 days, I spontaneously sent and gave them to completely random people – many who had not originally been in my “plan” so to speak.

It was the most amazing thing. I’d love to do it again sometime.

 

The First Row

After reading both The Friday Night Knitting Club and the sequel Knit Two by Kate Jacobs, and reading blogs of a few sewers/knitters, I thought I might try a little knitting. Why? Well, sometimes at night I like to watch a little TV, and knitting seemed to be the perfect companion activity for such a thing. After all, I can’t just do nothing.

I already have a collection of yarns I’ve used in craft projects over the past few years, and even if I never make anything spectacular, at least I could use up my yarn in a constructive way.

So, I got some books from the library and bought some needles.

Last night I sat down and tried to “cast on” – the process of creating the initial stitches along one needle to knit your rows onto. I just didn’t get it. But after googling “casting on”, I came upon some knitting videos. I watched and learned. Before I went to bed, I was one casting on fool, but I still didn’t get the actual knitting process – even after more video viewing.

Tonight I took up round 2, and to my surprise, mostly “got it” , well, except for the first and last stitch on every row. I’m going to read more in my books to see if there is a trouble shooting section. I knit 5 rows and left it at that. Next up is another stitch, the purl.

I’ve officially joined the knitting crowd I guess. I might only ever make scarves, but darn it, I tried it!

 

When All Else Fails, Post Some Pics

I have about 8 half-written posts in my drafts. I hate that. I get going, and I never seem to go where I want to go. So I abandon the idea and it just fades away.

I thought I’d post a few of the bags I finished up this summer.

I made this one for my Grandma:

It’s a bag pattern that I’ve done a few times before, except this time I used more than one fabric on the exterior. Inside the lining is tan and the pockets are made of the flower material. I also added a zip pocket with the flowered material peeking out. Grandma loves it.

And then, I finally broke down and bought my all time dream Amy Butler fabric and made this bag.

I used the pattern Noveau Hobo Bag by Indigo Junction (Actually, Amy Brinkman of IJ also designed the pattern for the first bag, too) with some modifications. The pattern called for a buttoned strap, which I didn’t want to mess with. The pockets were also my own creation. I’ve been a zip pocket fool these days.

I’ve also made the larger version of this bag, which I don’t like as well as this smaller size. But no pics yet. I’ve got 3 bags waiting for a chance for a photo shoot.

I do love the AB fabric from the lotus collection. I’ve even got a small piece left that I may make a smaller bag out of, maybe for me – since this one is already out the door!

Be blessed!

 

Kudos to the Teachers

Bump finished out his Mother’s Morning Out program a few weeks ago. I made these bags for the wonderful ladies who taught him so many things this year, and took care of him.

The fabric is Moda’s Daydreams. The design is based on the pattern Jelly Bags by Bunny Hill design. I created the pockets from leftover pieces of the main bag and a matching charm pack that I had. They were a lot of fun to make – and even more fun to give away.

 

A Bag for Me

I’ve been waiting for 2 months to make a bag out of some Michael Miller fabric I bought during my annual pilgrimage to the only quilt shop in the area. I finally found a pattern I really wanted for me – the Mail Sack from Pink Chalk Studio. I’m totally into the sling it over the head bag, and this one is almost perfect…

I turned it inside out to show the interior pockets:

I finished the bag on Friday night – except for topstitching. I tried it out over the weekend and then finally got to do the final details tonight. I don’t really have a lot of junk in my bag. The zip pocket is nice for stashing band aids, lip balm, coupons, stickers, etc. I only have a few things stuffed in the big pockets – and my wallet and keys in the actual bag. But so often in the summer, I find myself wanting to load up with some things for outings. This bag will definitely handle it.

If you love sewing bags, this is a super duper pattern to try.

 

Practise What You Preach

I gave a link to Martha Stewart’s Pillowcase bag the other day. Here’s my first attempt:

I made this bag for one of my great nieces who just turned 6. I plan to make it a beach bag of sorts, filling it with fun things for the shore from the dollar store.

I did end up buying a twin sheet set to get the pillow case since I couldn’t easily find print pillowcases locally, but since I’m running such a shortage on pink in my stash, I think that I’ll easily gobble up the rest of the fabric. Technically, you could make a fabric tube from the sheet material and make another pillow case bag. Which I might do as well.

I carried the bag around for a few minutes with some stuff in it. Not bad. I wouldn’t use it every day, but it would be nice to pack extras in when you’re going out and about.

Total project time – 40 minutes.

 

A Little Project

While my mind has been elsewhere these last few months, I didn’t quite foresake my sewing habit altogether. Here and there I got the energy to complete a few projects. This bag was for my step daughter’s 16th birthday.

The bag is from this pattern by Bunny Hill Designs, and is made from 2.5 inch strips sewn together. The lining is a single piece of fabric and the top has binding like a quilt. I’m not sure if I like the style of sewing on the straps and then tying the ends. I may fiddle with that on a later model of this one.

The bag is a pretty good size once finished. I’m actually thinking of halfing in the size of this bag, just for something different. Of course, I do think of a lot of sewing projects throughout my day, but hardly have time to get to them.

That cute little hand belongs to Mr. Grabby – my baby boy who likes to touch EVERYTHING.

 

Four

I love to make handbags. Love. Love. Love. It’s fun. It’s functional. Usually, it’s a short and fast project. People love them. I love them. (In case you didn’t get that the first time.) But, I usually get to #3 of a particular style, and then I’m done for a while. Probably a good long while.

Remember these beauties?

Yeah, I was so done with that one. Then Allie says, “Can you make me one like that?” Okay. So we bought the fabric right around the time I had cut out the pattern for number 3. I think that was in October. I used the fabric to make her a pillow for Christmas. I cut out the bag pattern. I looked at the cut pieces. I lost the handle piece I cut out – I never did find it. I lost the pockets, and then found them.

Merry Christmas.

Then, after Gil went back to work following his Christmas break, I became motivated….

TA DA!

It didn’t photo well. It turned out better than I expected. The tie die fabric is horrendous to work with – way too thin. When I sewed the two pieces of the handle together, it puckered. Thank goodness for topstitchhing. It worked though. Only took me about 2 months!

 

A Few More Homemade Gifts

Here are a couple more things to round out the Christmas Gift Round-Up at Shelly’s House -

Christmas Coasters

I made a tree skirt for my tree – reversible. These were the two fabrics. I used the leftovers to make 8 sets of coasters (only 6 pictured). That way, I not only got to bless a few other folks with some homemade goodies, but I also got rid of some fabric that was sure to linger in stash limbo for years to come!

More Gum Drop Pillows

I had never yet made anything for my three step kids – Mark, Kevin and Allie. So I took the plunge and made pillows. They were a big hit!

Doll Quilt/Pillow and Bolster Pillow

We did a gift exchange among the little cousins on Gil’s side – there are 11 locally under 5 (including my two). We had two sisters – 5 and 1. The 5 year old got the doll quilt and pillow along with one of the skirts previously modeled by Bump. The one year old got some babylegs and the bolster pillow. Kids sure do love pillows. Zach and Bump were riding this one like a pony. I even made an extra one for around here – and will probably make at least one more.

I think that’s all of my handmade Christmas goodies. I didn’t do much this year. My sewing time has been so squeezed. I haven’t done a thing this week!

 

Having Fun with Christmas Gifts

I had a pile of quilt squares hanging around from when I tried Amy’s Scrap X Quilt. Of course, I missed the point. Somehow I thought that trying to be symmetrical was not necessary with this quilt.

Then I got on a handbag run, and never looked back – until Christmas rolled around. I thought, “Wow, this would be a great size for a doll quilt.” One of my nieces (and her mommy)
love dolls. And since she has a quilt with a lot of these fabrics in, I thought it would be a fun match.

I used this great Batik I had in my stash for the backing and added a small pillow for dolly to lay her head on.

I liked this idea so much, I thought I’d try one again for another niece, although I’ll pass on the Xs this time.

Stay tunes for pictures…