Embroidering the Bag

Step one:  Find this great design from Urban Threads Embroidery.  Try to figure out what to do with it.  Find out that a friend is having surgery and that you have been meaning to make something and then be reminded of this.  The ah-ha moment hits and it's time to get busy!  (Don't tell anyone that it is about two weeks late.  That isn't really important.)

Pull a plain canvas remnant out of the stash.  Decide that just embroidery on canvas isn't good enough.  You need at least one pocket.  This means you need another great embroidery design.

Is there an easier tote pattern than the one from The Green Bag Lady?  I don't think so.  I did do some modifications.  This bag is bigger and made from cotton canvas instead of quilting cotton but the basic shape is the same.

I also used the purple fabric to make the handles a little fancier.

The back of the bag sports this great big pocket with tentacles.

The front has this fun embroidery design to let everyone know a little about the fantastic lady holding the bag.

Finally, the inside is big enough to hold a crib quilt that needs binding.  I think this bag is a huge win.

Have you added embroidery, machine or hand, to your projects?

I'm linking up with the Sew My Stash 2015 Bag Challenge.

Charity Quilting

Last week I got the most thoughtful package.  A friend was going through and doing some spring cleaning.  She knew that I could put some of this fabric to use so she boxed it up and forwarded it along.

I've had this quilt top around here forever.  The care package included the perfect backing fabric for this quilt.  Now, it is finished and ready to go to Quilts for Kids.

I also used some of that fabric to make up some preemie quilt kits.  These are great little projects to hand over to new quilters.  I have been making these with 16-patch centers.  You can find the 9-patch version here.  I found a copy of the pattern through AZ Blankets for Kids.  You should totally check out their wealth of resources.  

Sunday Swap Share and Show

Way back in January I learned about a swap on Instagram called the Sweet & Salty Easter Swap.  It was hosted by the amazing Angelina!  You can find out a little more about the swap on the blog post from January.  This was my first swap of the year and a pretty amazing one.  The goal was to make an Open Wide zippered pouch using Noodle-Head's free tutorial and then fill the bag with a few goodies.  Sweet goodies or salty goodies or a combination of both.  I went for the salty, because while I like sweet I absolutely love lightly sweet and savory so much more.

I was a little sad when my package arrived and it looked like this.  The post office was kind enough to put a cute little note on it that says they received the package like this.  I don't know who they think they're fooling with that bullshit.

I set aside my annoyance with the postal service, stopped hopping up and down, and un-boxed all the goodies that were cowering inside.  Look at this bag!  We all know that red is my favorite color and this fabric is just awesome!

Look at all these goodies!  I was so spoiled.  I should stop doing swaps right now!  I still need to break into that giant chocolate bar.  The Peeps are long gone.  And that charm pack?  I think it might end up being used to make another rainbow mini quilt.  I'm not going to give a packing list, just know that I'm really happy with each little thing.  It was so much fun opening all the little things to find the next tiny secret.

If you're wondering where the salty is in this package, it is hiding in the bag.  I love this detail.  I need to load my next knitting project into this bag and take it to the next guild meeting.  Then I can be salty like a sailor and show off my sweet bag.

My partner Robin went above and beyond with this package.  She really made my day and my swap with this package.  Thank you so much!

In the Mail Monday - Knit Picks!

I saw this amazing sweater on the internet and mentioned it to a friend.  She kindly let me borrow her book so I could look through it and decide I need this sweater.  You can find out more about knit, Swirl! over on Amazon.

If you just want to learn more about the method and see many more styles, you should definitely stop by the knit, Swirl! site.  There you can learn all about the different sweaters and get some great tips on picking your favorite from the book and how to best match up your yarn for a project.  There are also some tutorials.

I decided to take advantage of a sale Knit Picks was having on their Wool of Andes Superwash.

I could not decide on a color and this sweater wants to be colorful so I ended up with a great selection of yarn.  I hope I bought enough.  If I didn't, at least I know where to find more!