I have been neglecting my blog recently.

Why?  I have been busy with this and that, mainly the Facebook shop.  I have to say it has been a success so far; BUT you never know how long that success will last, or when your next order will come in.

I booked a craft show at a parent and teachers evening in October.  It cost me $30 for the table........oh and you have to bring your own table....LOL  I figured $30 wasn't a lot of outlay and I am quite confident I will sell $30 worth of stuff to cover the cost.  However, who knows?  

If anyone has done craft shows, any do's and don't would be greatly appreciated.

I actually got a little bit of sewing done for me this week.  I made our grandson a bunny when he was born.  Then made two more ..............who can forget scary bunny!!  He has chewed that one to death, as it's a favourite!!  I made him another, along with one for the chiropodist's newborn and one for the grands cousin.  I am thinking about adding them to the shop?

I then made a couple of passport holders out of cork for dh and I.  I will be making more for the shop and selling those at $15 each.

Just finished another custom order today for an I-Pad/Tablet holder.  Lots of pockets in it and very sturdy.

Taking a class tomorrow on hand stitching quilts, which I have NO interest in, but I want to pick up some tips and tricks about the hand stitching, so I can incorporate that into my work I do in the shop.  Will be back with show and tell after the class!!  Have a good one........

Mother's Day 2019

I was a lucky girl and my children and "R" gave me this for Mother's Day:

Not sure what I am going to make with this yet. 

I did Facetime with the two girls, and I popped round to son's house a couple of times, once to bring coffee in the morning (son and dh opening pool) and then later in the afternoon to see daughter-in-law (her first mother's day) and to see grandson.

When I went home I prepared supper and it was one of my favourite suppers.  Broccoli quiche, garden salad, quinoa salad and hard boiled eggs.  With strawberry and rhubarb crumble pie and cream.

The good thing about making all that food, is that I don't have to cook tonight.  I am out all day on Monday doing a Jelly Roll Rug class.  Here is a video on what I will be making, or something similar.

Latest bag I made..........

I finished a bag making class last week and am very pleased with the results.

It's called a Sublime Bag by Sew Sweetness.  If you click on the link you will see how other people have made theirs.  However when looking at theirs it's slightly different with the long handle option and the zipper ends sewn in?

 I made mine with the blue cork from MM Supply in BC and the William Morris fabric from Moda.

 The inside features a fully lined zippered pocket. You can also see my Vera Bradley wallet (purse) in the bag, I am a HUGE fan of Vera Bradley.

 There is an acordian style pocket also; which if I make another bag like this I will change up.

 I made the handles myself out of the cork.  One of the things I had a lot of trouble with was making the fabric zipper tabs/end.  I made these ones out of scrap cork and they work well.  

There is a lot of work in making a bag; more than what meets the eye, but I must admit I had fun making it.  When making something like this, make sure you use quality materials as they make all the difference.

My new Fable Bag

This is my own pattern and design and I have named it The Fable Bag.  I decided to make a new handbag to go away with and I had just enough of the blue cork to make one with.

The patterned fabric is from Free Spirit and the Fibs and Fable Line (you can read more about this line of fabric here).
The lining is Essex Linen.
Blue Cork from M M Cork Supply.

 Bag is approximately 11 inches high by 14 inches wide

 Made a zippered pocket to keep our passports safe.  Along with a sewn in fob to keep keys on.

 Three deep pockets to stash all your bits and bobs in.

 The usual ties at the side, I love those....

 Fell in love with this right away.

I am lusting after this green cork to make another bag with!!  However I know this purple cork would also work........decisions, decisions........

All done, and I am super pleased.......

As I told you the other day I was making myself a bag.  I am a HUGE fan of Vera Bradley bags, so this is my take on that type of bag.  I used this pattern for the basic shape and altered it to suit me.

I started with this:

 and I ended up with this:

I added a tie detail on the sides, as I have that on one of my other bags and it is an easy detail to add in.

There are six pockets inside, all five inches wide; but two depths, 4 inches and 6 inches.  The pockets are stiffened to make them more substantial and are lined.

I made larger more substantial handles out of cork.  They are around 22 inches in length and are just over 1 inch wide.  I used a button as a closure, but may experiment with other closures on other bags.  The bottom of the bag, is also cork.

Too pad the bag, I used this product.  It's hard to see but it's more like foam, with the some sort of glue on the back (right of photo) that when ironed melts and sticks to the fabric.  This product is ideal for bags, but I can't remember what it is called.  I would use it again and will get the name of it when I am in the store again next month.

Overall for my first attempt I am very happy.

A little peek at what I am up too.

I am making this bag for myself:

 Love this fabric, Full Bloom from Northcott.  I bought it here, a lovely little store that ships as well.  Every Wednesday they have an online sale of 20% off specific items. Excellent customer service, and very helpful.  Loving the red cork I chose to go with it, can't wait to see it all done.

I finished my afghan squares and have decided to do the same again in a teal green colour, so the finished afghan will be a lot bigger.  I adore this mock cable pattern.
Heading to a sewing class on how to sew in different types of zippers.  Zippers are a weak point in my sewing, so every little bit helps!

A quick gift.

Made another cosmetic/toiletries bag for someone.  Love this colour combination with the blue cork and the fabric is Flying Colours in the sand colourway by Moda.

Bright pink pop of colour with the waterproof fabric. 

Tried putting in the zipper differently.

Next on my sewing list, is a baby quilt, a purse/tote for me with some gorgeous cork I was recently given and some barbie clothes.

Also Dinkydoo Fabrics is having a great sale, so may need to check them out to see if I "need" anything!!  Oh I must show you photos of my new sewing machine.

Show and Tell........

Got my first project sewn with my new cork fabric.  A cosmetic pouch/clutch for a friend.  Love both the cork fabric, very easy to use and the Tula Pink fabric, only have a tiny bit of that left.......

 It is far from being perfect, but overall I am pleased with it, for my first try.

 One of the issues is that I put one set of pockets in upside down😳 I didn't realize until I had inserted the zip and top stitched it.  It's still functional with only the one set of pockets.

I used this tutorial and found it pretty easy to follow.

I am also doing the Square a month knit along afghan from the Holiday 2017 Edition of the Knit Simple Magazine.  This is January's square:

It's a Bales Pattern.  I am just using Patons Canadiana for the yarn, which is not what the original pattern calls for.  I am doing this more to practice different stitches and patterns.

So there you go my show and tell for this past week.  I did also make an Easter bib for a little baby girl.

As gorgeous in real life..........

My cork fabric came in the mail and it is gorgeous.  The natural (far left) is perfect and will go with everything.  The next one is grey and if anything a bit dark, but still nice.  The rainbow one is stunning and the blue/teal one is just perfect.

Now to play!!

The link to the company is here.