Make It, Take It blog tour!

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!


Welcome, friends of Make It, Take It by Krista Hennebury, the fabulous crafty book about retreat-worthy projects! This is one of the last stops on the blog tour train, and so happy to be part of it and this book.  As with the other contributors, I will be giving away a digital copy of the book today, so for your chance to win, please leave a comment below about your favourite retreat experience.  Winner will be drawn on Thursday April 16!

My contribution to this book was the Knitwit Needle Clutch, hanging out on page 40.  This project is the perfect combination of both of my stitchy loves, sewing and knitting.

*image from Make It, Take It by Krista Hennebury, Martingale, 2015; used by permission. 

Photo by Brent Kane.  All Rights Reserved.

This clutch stays in my current knitting project bag and I have taken it with me pretty much everywhere over the past 2 years since I first designed it.  It really is handy!  Here is my own personal Knitwit Needle Clutch in Echino :) And my current sweater project that I hope to finish soon to enjoy for spring!

The inspiration for this design came from need.  (ha ha!  "Need" in the loosest sense....) I have one of those fabulous sets of interchangeable needles, and wanted to organize them in something a bit more stylish than the package they came with.  Thus, the Knitwit Needle Clutch was born! Using some fun knit-themed linen I had been hoarding for who knows how long, I made a fun organizational pouch with clear vinyl pockets to allow you to place labels to customize to your personal needle and cable collection.

There is a flap to keep all of the needles from slipping out the side of then clutch when closed:

It all folds up into a fashionable, compact and functional carrying case, with room for needed notions and such as well in a zippered compartment on the back.

If you are of the "bi-craftual" orientation and happen to make a Knitwit Needle Clutch, be sure to email me with a photo or tag me on instagram, I would love to see it!

So many wonderful projects in this book.  I hope you do enjoy it.  Good luck in the giveaway!

Today on Moda Bakeshop....

....I am cooking up some sweet framed coin purses and clutches!

So, if you want to learn how to use a couple slices of layer cake to make one of these...


...or some charm squares to make a stack of these....



....then pop on over to Moda Bakeshop and I'll walk you through it. Be sure to say hello!

A clutch for a gardener

When Amy saw my Denyse Schmidt clutches and asked if I wanted to do a swap, I knew this was my chance for get an awesome goodie from her- as if I could refuse! She made me a gorgeous "kidlet" using her very own adorable printed fabric. In return, I wanted to make a clutch just right for her. And, if you follow her blog you will know she is also quite the gardener. What is better than a flower?

I modified the big bloom tutorial by Keyka Lou to size for this bag. I used some of my Rowan shot cotton in pink for the flower, and a mustard colored button from my stash for the center.

Amy loves linen, so I knew this would be a great base for the bag. Inside, I used a big floral print from the Dream On line....I love it :-)

As the clutch is compact of course, I thought to incorporate a little pocket for stashing cash and a couple slots for credit cards and license, to eliminate the need for a wallet. Still room for a lipstick and cell phone, too. But, no, NOT a diaper bag, ladies!

I also chose a frame with loops for attaching a chain so it can be worn over the arm or body when wanting to keep the hands free.

Interfacing is always the bane of my existence, and I had some struggles getting it just right here. I wanted the bag to have lots of body, so I used a fairly stiff interfacing paired with some quilt batting for softness. When inverting the bag and attaching the frame, I had troubles with it bunching and wrinkling....had to take it apart a bit and trim it back to get it right. Not perfect, but much better.

I have packed this clutch with a few little treats and it now on its merry way to its new owner. Hope you enjoy it, Amy!

p.s. And to all my Canadian friends out there....Happy Canada Day!! Grab some Labatt's and and head 'er out to the lake, eh?

Denyse Schmidt clutches

My quilting "to-do" list is looooong, but I just had to crack into some of that gorgeous new Denyse Schmidt fabric from JoAnn's. Couple that with my new obsession with framed purses, and here you have it:

I used the tutorial at U-handbag to make my own pattern, using these cute frames- love the aqua bobbles! In typical OCD style, I bought a mother-load of various frames on etsy here and here, so be prepared to be bombarded over the next weeks until I get this out of my system ;) Remember my embroidery hoops phase?? (here here here here here and here)

I simply love how these framed bags look, and the endless possibilities! These ones are 8 inches wide, the perfect clutch size, or can be thrown like a pouch into a bigger tote.


I lined each with coordinating fabrics from my stash, and included my new labels bought from Mommie Made It.


Not sure yet how I will slice the rest of these babies up, but Denyse did it again- these are truly pretty prints :-)

Lining up at Sew Modern Monday and Fabric Tuesday.