I am really not prepared for it to be already September, there's SO MUCH I should have finished already and I haven't even gotten started...my goal of doing 2 blankets a week has definitely not been met...I don't think I even did 2 blankets every month. At this rate I'll never use up my collection, especially since I can't stop buying more when I see a really cute one!
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| Perfect Fall blankets, really need to stitch up the ones I have left! |
With record high temps, I'm DEFINITELY ready for cooler weather! Or even a day under 100...not that I go outside much but I'd like to have the option. Good news is that rainy weather is on the way, but I'm sure it will be hot again soon!
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| Coffee makes me smile! New patch |
My Strike for the Spooky round from KNITorious Fabrics was this fun Ghoulfriends Bagmaking panel! I didn't get a picture of it before I cut it up, but the fabric came with 2 sides of a tombstone and the coordinating damask attached. I could have just cut it up and made a very simple tote bag with the provided fabric, and it would have been HUGE but skinny. Instead I decided to do some creative cutting and add in a top zipper panel plus use some of my fabric stash for the lining.
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| The handles are just webbing, so hard to make them stand up long enough to step away and take the pic! |
When companies first started offering vinyl versions of the custom fabric, I was hesitant to try working with it, mainly because I worried my machine wasn't sturdy enough to do it justice. It was a valid concern; you can't hide when you have to rip out stitches in most vinyl since it leaves little holes, and I do that often. I've used it a lot for accents, but an entire bag intimidated me! Fortunately the Roma from Teresa Lucio Designs was a great test bag, so cute and little, and I was able to make the entire outside out of the Backstitch VHS vinyl.
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| This is my childhood...in vinyl |
Summer is speeding by, and I realized that I only have a few months until the craft show season is in full swing! I'm debating trying to do a show in a nearby town, usually I avoid out of town shows because it means even longer days and a LOT of extra work since most of my helpers aren't really willing to drive extra and I don't have extra room to bring them with me since my SUV is usually packed to the brim. BUT...the chance to clear out a bunch more stuff is really tempting!
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| Some previous lanterns for inspiration! |
Summer is in full swing with HOT weather, random storms, and wildfires! The fires are one of the things I don't enjoy about Colorado, but the rest of the time it's pretty great...last week was very smoky and orange as the fire got close to our town, and we seem to be safe for now, but not the towns to the west of us. I just hope that the orders I'm sending out don't have a lingering wildfire smell!
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| One of the smaller blankets, but super cute! |
Not every purse I make is done with characters or inspired fabric, some are just pretty! This is one of my favorite pretty custom fabrics from Blended Threads, and the Harriet from Swoon was so perfect to show off the bold design! I modified the bag by leaving off the little flap closure and using rivet magnetic snaps -- I didn't want to hide any of the gorgeous print!
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| That's a real backdrop, not AI! |
I miss being in school sometimes, when reaching the last day meant that there were so many possibilities of everything I could do now that I was free! Mostly my summers involved reading many, MANY books, watching my brothers, cleaning (mainly if I mentioned I was 'bored'), and sometimes a trip to visit family. Having those months off was so amazing, and I miss that. For some reason my day job doesn't give me a 3 month break in the middle of the year... I could really use a few months off to do dedicated organizing and sewing, but I'll make do with my weekends and evenings, for now.
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| I'm only slightly obsessed with DCC, and there are some awesome things I can make for it! This is up on Etsy! |
The best thing about custom fabric is the unique styles that come out of the fan art! This Mid Century Modern style fabric from KNITorious Fabrics is so fun and pretty! I used it to make the large Book Sleeve from Sewn Ideas.
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| Even has a Grogu zipper pull! |
May is always a fast month, but it seemed to fly even more this year! Between a surprise graduation (a year early and decided the week before graduation to actually graduate instead of staying in and doing college classes), pattern testing, strike fabric, etsy orders, helping my oldest car shop, getting busy with the day job, and all the other day to day fires, I don't really know where it went! I do need to start focusing on getting stuff ready for shows soon, and the organizing and destashing I've been planning to do for the last few... years...Maybe June will be a good month?
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| I am all caught up on DCC, but I should go back and re-read at some point because I finished the first 7 books in a week... |
It wouldn't be May with out a fun new Star Wars inspired round at KNITorious Fabrics, and this is one of the new designs for this year! The Minni Mini Backpack from DiedleBug designs worked great to show off the cute Tano Cats fabric! It's not my favorite pattern due to calling for a drop in lining, but I was able to modify it and make it work.
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| She really works as a cat |
The newest pattern from ChrisW Designs is the ADORABLE Vale Crossbody Bag! It comes in 3 sizes, and I chose the middle size - Petite. It's so cute and barely uses any supplies! I made mine with vinyl exterior, and since it's May, it had to be Star Wars inspired!
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| I think this is one of the cutest purses I've made so far! |
I feel like May should be ALL Star Wars, so I have plans to make some fun stuff using my stash! First up was a pattern test using pretty Chewie and embossed vinyl. I also have more inspired strike fabric for a promo backpack, and I have 2 moondance notebook covers set aside to sew up, both using Star Wars vinyl! What else should I add in? More keyfobs, finger puppets, bookmarks, blankets....?
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| Pre-sewn pic of the strike project, it's done now! |
It's time for another fast and fun pattern from The Styled Magnolia! The Traverse Pouch is a long and skinny travel organizer style bag, perfect for holding flat irons, all your hair and makeup, and whatever else you need to carry!
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| It's almost the length of a couch arm! |
This year I had to dig into the backlog of posts to find a good May the Fourth (be with you) post, and somehow I STILL missed getting it up in time! This was a project I did a few years ago and it turned out pretty fun! The pattern is a free one I found at Sew4Home, and I modified it a little to be a turned bag and left off the piping.
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| The light grey background has stars in it! |
One of the good things about the orders slowing down is that I theoretically have time to do fun sewing and organizing...theoretically. In reality, my days fly by just as fast, and I feel like I'm not as productive as I was even 2 years ago...but I'm becoming ok with that. On the one hand, I'm not burning through my supplies so things are lasting longer, but on the other hand, I'm not burning through my supplies so there's no more room for new stuff! I WILL destash in May!
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| Finally tried out a dog walker bag, just need to make about 50 more for the boutique! |
Time for more fun fabric! This time it's the Everything is Grey round from KNITorious fabric. I received a half yard of this fun Totoro/Ghibli inspired fabric in nylon repel, which was just barely enough to make the larger version of the Bodacious Bowler from ChrisW Designs.
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| The iridescent tags from Laser Llama were a fun way to add my brand to the bag |
The weather around here is giving me whiplash, we hit 80 one day and had snow the very next day! Now it's back to record highs followed by chilly days, but who knows when the next snowstorm will hit! This is doing a number on my sinuses and allergies -- even my dogs are having allergies. On top of that, there's been an increase in everyday chaos, so I lost the month of March! At this rate, it's going to be November in no time, so probably should get started on some inventory and new things.
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| Sneak peek of some new fabric coming soon! |
The newest pre-order round from Knitorious fabric is "What's on the Telly" and it has some gorgeous options! I think this one is probably the prettiest Supernatural inspired fabric I've ever seen!
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| Driver picks the music, ALWAYS! |
When I got the half yard of fabric for the 'What's on the Telly' round Knitorious to use for my strike, I was worried I wouldn't have enough to make 2 projects. I used less than half of that for the Aurora Sling, and then I needed to find something that would really show off the awesome design of the print, so I decided to make a simple tote bag. At the same time, a new test for a Zipper and Phone Slip Pocket from ChrisW came along and needed testing, and it was PERFECT to spice up the simple tote!
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| I think this is the front. It's the fanciest side at least |
