My first tote

Here is the last of my creations for the week. I am headed to Mexico with drink in hand very soon. I made this tote to carry on the plane but turns out I do not need it. Ha! It is definitely not perfect like all the rest of everything I have made but it has taught me a few things. Make sure the inside is the right size or you will end up with pink ribbon embellish to cover a tiny error. Next, figure out the pocket situation thoroughly before you start sewing. Last, smile because it is done.

This is the last of this fabric so luckily I will be moving on...I liked it a lot but now I am sick of looking at it. :)

Goodbye...I am off to the beach!

An Apron

Here is what I made Anna for her birthday...although it was a few weeks ago, I am just now completing. Note to self....start projects 2 weeks before the intended start date because nothing will go smoothly. I was able to do most of this in one day with the help of Emily but when it came to sewing the bias, I was having major issues. After a serious breakdown with the machine, I read the manual (mom made me) and figured it out. How are mom's always right? Anyway, I found why I was skipping stitches (due to the needle) and I also completed the project quickly after figuring it out. Anyway, here it is...again, who knew I could do this?? Sewing is fun!

Who Knew?

So, yesterday I got my mom's sewing machine because mine is officially broken. I almost broke hers too but saved it. I was making a tote for my Mexico trip on Thursday and I messed up. I find that is pretty common in the sewing world and am trying to learn patience and to deal with it. So I took my mess up and made this drawstring bag. Way out of my knowledge of sewing but I tried it and it worked. Not perfect but good enough to use....for something. I think I also decided that I might never get my camera out to take pictures because it is more convenient on the phone. :)

I have a couple more things that should be done before I leave...stay tuned!!

A

Cute little bag...

Here is my latest creation. I worked with Emily (my brother's soon to be wife) and the first try was just that....trying. We finally got it done after dinner, ice cream and a few t.v. shows. So, I made this for my friend Kristyn for her birthday. When I gave her gift, she gave me one too!! A stack of vintage fabric for me to create with! YES! More projects for me. Since I learned to do a zipper as well, I am able to do a little more. Here is a picture....again, sorry for the phone shot but I keep forgetting to take it with my camera before I give stuff away...



Next up is an apron that Emily helped me with also. It is almost complete but of course, my machine is sick again. My mom is bringing me hers so I can get it finished. Stay tuned....

FINALLY

Okay, so I have not been slacking...I have been making a pillow for my friend Shawna. It was her 30th birthday and I wanted to make her something. But since I am new at the sewing thing...my options were limited. I saw this pillow online and thought it was very cute. Now, I definitely changed it up and it did not look exactly like this but I think that is the fun part about creating something original. Jake did bring it to my attention that a pillow is a random present and it will probably get little use...yes but oh well.

(I apologize for the photos...they were taken on my phone because I was so into the project I must have forgotten to get the actual camera out...so sorry)

Another things...I should start by saying that I got the information from Elizabeth Hartman with Sew, Mama Sew!

Here is what I did:

First I created these little flowers which apparently are called YoYo's...If you can learn to create these, you can use them for a lot of things.



I created 25 of these YoYos in 2 different fabrics. The dark fabric was thinker and harder to pull the thread through making the centers not as tight as the light colored Yoyo. So 25 I did...and then I hand sewed all of them together... (they are sitting on another pillow, the polka dots is not the background of the completed pillow)



After I completed this, my mom suggested adding buttons. I have a lot so I went through and found some cute buttons that would jazz up the YoYos. This my friends, was not an easy task. All buttons are not created equal and some are on there very tight and some are not. Adding the buttons definitely made this a non-functional pillow and now can sit on a chair in the back of the room. But it definitely gave it more depth and added interest to the pillow.



Next it was time to sew it all together. I knew that with the buttons and the backing fabric we were going to have to change the shape a little bit to make it a stronger pillow. I went to my sewing guru Anne and she hooked me up! Not only did I learn to do an envelope backing with a tie but I also learned to do ties and piping (a little). After a long night of sewing we completed the project and it turned out very cute. (again, sorry for the poor photos)



So, once completed, I sent off to the birthday girl. Yea!!

Stay tuned...today I am sewing a couple more presents for people so I will update you on Monday. Have a great weekend!

YEA!!!

I am celebrating two things in this post. First, that my lovely mother came over and fixed my sewing machine. It was pretty bad...but she came through and fixed it! She rocks!

Next, I completed my first stuffed animal. While he looks okay from afar he has a few issues that I learned from for the next one. First, I think he would be cute if I hand sew the whole thing but that would defeat my purpose of learning with the sewing machine. I will definitely be trying this again but with some modifications. I also learned that it is definitely helpful to sew all outside pieces first and then sew his body together. For some reason I sewed the eyes on but not the nose before sewing him all together. Who knows...probably my impatient nature getting the best of me.

When my mom can over she suggested doing more square items to practice and to start with as the circular bottom is harder to sew. Her suggestion was to change the owl into SpongeBob...no thanks. Anyway, I have been practicing my straight lines as well and hope to have a lot more projects with better seems in the near future.

Last night I was making the cutest (hopefully) owl and my sewing machine got a little sick. It is currently not working and I have called in back up for help. My mom is coming over tomorrow to hopefully fix whatever is wrong with it. Knowing me, it is probably something I did and is an easy fix. Cross your fingers!

Hopefully the next post will be a cute stuffed owl! :)