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?

Amy Butler camera case

A couple weeks late for the Amy Butler-themed Sew and Tell...but here she is!

There are about a million things that I need to be doing before leaving on our trip, but this is something that I just wanted to do. So to heck with pre-cooked meals for the kids or laundry! I had 2 requirements for this camera case:

1. cute (check!)
2. PADDED (also check!)

A couple weeks ago I dropped our camera onto the cement driveway. Did not bode well. When I tried to turn it on it actually sounded like it was screaming in pain. So, new camera for me! But I had to promise the hubby that I would be MORE CAREFUL. Since I rarely use our existing case (not cute enough), I thought the solution was clear- I needed to make a case that I was excited to use, and had lots of padding!

I really love how this turned out. I didn't use any pattern- actually, I started this at 10 p.m., with a head cold, half asleep, and didn't even sketch out a plan or measure stuff first. Crazy, I know! I am usually a planner, but not this time- I literally just cut one piece at a time, added it to the bag, then cut another to fit in. Not a method I plan to use again, as I spent some quality time with my seam ripper, but somehow I got it done and looking pretty decent. I kept it compact (I want to be able to throw it in my purse), and made it 3 dimensional to add width to accommodate the camera. I used a zippered closure to ensure that the camera would stay securely inside. A swivel hook was added to the wrist band, so that it can be hooked onto a backpack if need be. My favorite is the front pocket for the charger. I ran an elastic along the top to help prevent the charger from falling out. This made gathers, so I did some gathers/pleats across the top flap as well. I love the texture this added.
A general rule in my life is: if you can add a button, DO! Love 'em. I was excited to find the perfect home for this cute vintage button I found thrifting this spring. The loop tab is another "error"- I realized I forgot to add one in the flap seam, then layered the grey and dot squares on the flap to attach it. In the end this is one of my favorite details! The lining....well, it got pretty messed up, but who sees it anyway?? I was also excited to pull out these lovely Amy Butler Lotus fabrics that I have been sitting on forever (I think these were my FIRST fabric purchase, actually!). I love to buy fabrics, but have a hard time cutting into them. This was so worth it.

Can't wait to strut this bag around Italy next week!

I will be sharing with some of the great blogs on my side bar :-)

Necklace-obsessed

My fabric necklaces needed a buddy.
When I saw this linked up at Quilt Story a couple weeks ago, I knew I had to have one. The tutorial is at Flamingo Toes. She had a great theme week where she made necklaces inspired by those for sale at Anthropologie. This little number retails for about US$ 140. Including the cost of the silver chain, I made it for under $20. Not bad, eh? I used some kind of charcoal fabric...it shimmers a bit (I suck at fabric names beyond "quilting cotton", remember?) and paired it with some pretty little purple/pink beads to add a subtle splash of color.

I love the little detail of the baby flower at the clasp. So pretty when you have your hair up.

Thanks, Bev, for a great tutorial!

Fabric Necklace Tutorial

I love a quick project. There is something to be said for instant gratification. This fabric choker is just the ticket! All you need is 20 minutes (!!!), and you have a snazzy little accessory to wear out on the town. You don't even have to heat up your iron for this one!

You will need: -2 strips of cotton fabric, measuring 2.25 inches wide, length the width of fabric yardage (42")
-5 beads, 1" (25 mm) in diameter (I used Elmer's wood ball knob beads, from the kids craft section of Walmart. Under $4 for 15 beads).
-coordinating thread
-a safety pin

Pick your fabric and let's go!

I was feeling a little Dolce...and a bit Lotus :-) 1. Align your fabric strips, right sides facing, and sew down the length to make a long tube using a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving the 2 ends open.
2. Invert the tube by attaching the safety pin to one end and insert pin in open tube.
Feed the pin down the length of the tube, pushing fabric as you go, until the pin emerges out the opposite side. 3. Find the center of the tube. Tie a knot just off center. Drop a bead in the tube (on the slightly longer side). Push bead down until it reaches the know, and place a second knot on the other side of the bead to "trap" it.
4. Add 2 more beads on either side of the center one, placing a knot after each bead is added.
5. Tuck in your open ends, sew to close.
6. Place around your neck and tie it up at the back. Admire.

You did it! I told you it was easy! Now go gloat in front of a mirror for awhile :-)
I hope you enjoyed the fabric choker tutorial. As always, I would love to see a picture of your creation in my Flickr pool! Please use this tutorial for personal use only. Enjoy!

Fabric Flower tutorial

These fabric flowers are a great addition to your Twirly Girl skirt, a handbag, or place some felt and a pin on the back to add a little something-something to a shirt or coat!

To make a fabric flower:

Cut a long strip of fabric that is 2 inches wide. The length can vary depending on how big of a flower you want; the one shown in the photo measured about 2 feet long. I joined 2 shorter pieces together to get this length, so feel free to use scraps or even a bunch of different fabrics. This part is more art than science, so be creative and have fun!

Take your piece of flower fabric and fold length wise. Press.

Sew a straight stitch starting at the edge on one side; slowly start wandering towards the middle (as shown below) so that one end becomes narrower than the other. Leave both ends open. Trim excess.

Using a safety pin, pin one edge of the narrow end, then insert the pin into the hole and use your fingers to work it down the length of this “tube” you have created until it emerges on the other side. Pull to make fabric right side out again. You will have a long tube with one end narrower than the other. Press. Invert raw end pieces ¼ inch inside, then sew ends closed.
Start with narrow end of strip to form centre of flower. Wrap fabric around itself, gathering at bottom (seam side) with your fingers to form a flower. Use a needle and thread to secure together by sewing in base of flower. If desired, insert button at centre. Again, this is the creative part- there is no right or wrong, so play with it and have fun to make your own one-of-a-kind flower! When you are happy, hand sew onto skirt or other item.
Congratulations! You did it! If you missed my Twirly Girl ruffle skirt tutorial, you can find it here. I hope you enjoy your Fabric Flower, but please remember that this tutorial is intended for home enjoyment only and not for commercial use. Feel free to blog about your creations; a link back to this page would be appreciated. I would love to see your finished skirts, so please shoot me an e-mail with your pictures or blog links to me so I can admire them! I also have a Flickr group and would love to see your photos there. Have fun!