Paisley and Dots purse

Last night, I needed a little sewing therapy so I whipped up this cute purse. It starts as three fat quarters (which I have tons of now!), so I picked three browns. I love this paisley fabric, so I made it the main one for the bag.

You start by cutting strips of different widths then sewing them all together to make the front. The shape is accomplished by trimming a triangle off both sides then creating a box bottom at the end.

Here's the back. I like the shape enough that I think it's really cute even in a single fabric. Maybe a Swiss dot fabric with a funky ribbon sewn across as an accent? Or, ribbon and a bow to make it a really girlie look? Or denim with a wide pink ribbon and some rhinestones? I could think of a million variations!

Here's a detail of the front fabrics. I didn't look at the big circles before cutting or I would have left room above and below on the top piece. Live and learn, right? (This is a detail that probably no one would notice but me! Also, I would have centered the big dots on the skinny strip so they looked better. There was quite a bit of this fabric left over, which means I could have tailored it to be just right.)

Here's a shot of the interior. I added a pocket at the last minute (dummy!) and placed it too high. Next time, I'll plan ahead and sew in the pocket before I start assembling the purse. Also, I did a magnetic closure instead of the flap and button suggested in the pattern. (That's too much of a hassle when you need to dig around!) And, I made the straps longer - the suggested length was awkward.


BTW: These fabrics were cheapy fat quarters that I picked up at Hancock Fabrics. I bought the paisley and the big dots to make an eye pillow, which turned out so cute that I went back to buy more. I bought the small dots to make into a burp cloth - but then I decided it complemented these really well.

Mother-Daughter Hostess Apron Set

Today I was able to finish the mother-daughter hostess apron set I promised Mitchell's preschool for their silent auction (next week!).

I combined details and elements from several different apron patterns to make these. (I love that I'm confident enough with sewing now to buck the rules every now and then!)

I added two pleats to each apron for a little kick. The fabrics are the same but just opposite for the body and trim, just to make it fun.

What daughter wouldn't love to have an apron just for her that's so much like mommy's?

(As I always tell Paul: It's a good thing we don't have girls!!!)

Found!

What do these things all have in common?

I found them all in one of my chairs in the living room. My iPhone fell into the chair and I had to fish it out. As I was digging (site unseen), I kept feeling strange stuff. So, I shook the chair and found some interesting stuff:

• Number 1 and 9 puzzle pieces
• Hot Wheels truck and motorcycle
• Plastic dinosaur
• 3 Keep This Coupons
• a Stylus to an unknown device (maybe it belongs to Paul's dad?)
• a blue tape measure

We have another chair just like this one on the other side of the room. I wonder what treasures it hides?

Orange Purse

I sewed my first purse today. I'm quite proud, if I say so myself!

This month, Sew, Mama, Sew! is featuring fat quarter projects. This little cutie began life as two fat quarters. The exterior fabric is Petal Party Autumn from Sandi Henderson's Farmer's Market line. Side note: I won this fabric as part of an orange mix fat quarter pack on SMS!

You can get the instructions on the SMS blog.

The purse's lining is Lila Tueller's Soiree Sun Party Favors. I just got a huge stack of fat quarters from this line and am in love!!!

You all know that I love learning new things, and boy did I learn lots of new stuff with this project! I'm most proud that I did the flat bottom variation. I also modified the size of the project to be more my style. The leather button and faux tortoise shell handles came from Hancock Fabric.

Noah totally agreed that the bag is fab. He quickly snatched it up during my photo shoot, checked out the inside then took off running with it while shouting "Bye."

TNT: Day 1

Watch that first step, it’s a duhooooozy. - Stephen Tobolowsky as Ned Ryerson in "Groundhog Day"

Today is my first "official" training day for Team in Training. My little calendar said that I'm to run 1 mile today.

So, before the sun was even up this morning, I was awake, doing some warm-up and stretches.

I filled the water bottles on my fuel belt, grabbed my iPhone and headed upstairs to hit the elliptical.

I did my first mile and am so happy! I focused on keeping pace and being comfortable instead of seeing how fast I could go. It helped that I had some fun music on shuffle keeping me going:

• Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice - Even though it started with "Alright, stop," I kept going.
• Think It Over One Time by Robert Earl Keen - Was there a message there?
• Rebel Yell by Billy Idol - How could you not cry more, more, more???
• Baby Got Back by Sir Mixx A Lot - My theme song, you know
• Mickey by Tony Basil - The beat really keeps you moving

It felt good to accomplish my goal for the day so I gave myself a sticker on my training calendar. (Whatever keeps you going, right?!)

Now, we're headed to Target to pick up some socks (I haven't bought socks in longer than I can remember!) then down to Roger Solers to get some new running shoes (I won't even admit when I bought my current pair!).

BTW: Puxatawney Phil saw his shadow this morning. I guess that means six more weeks of fabulous weather!