give-away lunch bags

 

 

I’ve been sewing lunch bags. I used Ayumi’s free pattern available on her blog. She kindly put up a tutorial for everyone to use, but asks that the finished goods not be sold. So since I felt like sewing a whole bunch because they are fun to make, I thought I’d give some as gifts and put up 2 (two) TWO for a giveaway.

This folklore-feeling one I have already given as a gift. I love the fabric, it’s Handmade by Bonnie and Camille. So it’s not part of the giveaway, but isn’t it lovely?

Luckily I kept on sewing.

And sewing.

And sewing.

I’m using the blue one with roses for myself, so it’s not part of the giveaway, either. But isn’t it pretty?

Everything else is up for grabs.

Like this beauty. The fabric is also Handmade by Bonnie and Camille. I love this fabric line.

And this fun cowboy themed lunch bag could be yours. Leave a comment, maybe it will happen.

Or maybe you need to carry your bento box to work? I have the perfect lunch bag for that, too….

Or come Christmas time, this one will be so perfect. (I forgot to sew the drawstring closure on this one, but it will be completed if you win it!)

I love romantic roses (I’m sure you do, too), and these are a lovely fabric designed by Tanya Whelan. I love all her fabric.

 

Okay, so the rules are easy. Just leave a comment in THIS blog post, and May28th at 8PM Eastern time I will put all the commenter’s names into a lunch bag (instead of a hat!) and pick two winners. Let me know which one you’d like to win. My giveaway is available to US addresses only, because shipping to foreign countries is crazy expensive. I’m sorry about that. Please make sure I have a way to contact you if you DO win.  🙂

Giveaway is now closed!

The winners are Sandy and Beverly. Thank you all for leaving a comment!  🙂

 

 

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sneak peek

I’ve been doing some sewing. Here’s a peek, but check back at the end of the week because there will be a giveaway….

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making something pretty today: knitting

I always have a million projects up in the air, but the good thing is that I actually finish them, right? So I don’t feel bad starting a new one. I’ve known lots of people who start things but never finish, then move on to something else. What’s the point of starting in the first place, if there’s no end result? Anyway. Lots of projects up in the air.

I picked up this yarn at Hobby Lobby. I wanted to make a shawl–within certain parameters. 1. Must be warm. 2. The yarn shouldn’t pill. 3. And absolutely not collect static electricity.  So that meant a natural fiber. Hobby Lobby had one in my price range, a cotton mixed with acrylic

If I would have done the test swatch (I never do the test swatch) I would have realized I should use needles a couple sizes larger than the ones I used. Larger needles would have compensated for the bulk of the yarn (it’s a dk weight) and made the drape of the shawl more fluid. So lesson learned. You’d think I would just keep notes on all my projects, but somehow I think I will remember all these details. Which of course goes right down the memory hole.

I made an error in just one of my rows, but wow does it show up. Luckily when used as a shawl or scarf, you’ll never see it.

The overall size will be 60″x18″. I wanted to be able to wrap it around my arms well, instead of wearing a sweater. I pictured this for winter use, so warm and thick.

I used this free pattern at knitty.com.

So it should be just about finished come next winter. Despite being an easy repeat pattern, it’s still slow going because of it’s size. I really should have used the larger needles.

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more sewing, banners and books

 

I forgot to put a pen in the pocket, but you can see there’s a spot for one there on the spine edge. I only have a few of those doilies to use, I wish I could find more because this is such a pretty use.

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a little sewing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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flea market find

We went to a flea market/craft show. I thought it was a craft show, but really it was a flea market. In the bigger picture I’m happy with either, I was just expecting crafts. So I didn’t go with enough cash in my pocket to buy everything I wanted–because you never do, do you? I would have left with a lot more. We bought a plate of divinity (don’t you love divinity?), a gently used stuffed horse, and a pair of embroidered pillowcases.

My indoor lighting makes them look dingy, but really the cloth is fresh white.

The lady who did the embroidery must have been 90. She explained, “There’s a lot of work that goes into these,” and I said, “Yes, I know, that’s why I’m happy to buy it from you instead of doing it myself.”  Because I know there’s 20 hours in these pillowcases. You can’t pay for that, that’s a labor of love. And of course she wasn’t charging as though she’d put 20 hours into them, which always hurts my heart a little bit. I don’t want to take advantage of anyone.

She had a second pair, but I didn’t have enough cash to buy both, darn it. This pair had a crochet edge, and since I don’t know crochet I opted to buy these. She chose different colors than I would have chosen, so that’s part of the fun buying the work of someone else.

It makes me wish there were more flea markets to visit. I asked, and it is held only every 4 months. Next time I’ll have to make sure to be prepared!

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making something pretty: knit shawl

I decided it was time to make something again, that wasn’t a painting. Oh sure, I have a quilt top that’s been languishing for about 3 months, and I’m just not inspired to complete it. From what I read on other’s quilting blogs, this is not an uncommon occurrence. We get caught up in the beautiful fabric, in the what could this be? imagining, then buy the fabric and get it mostly put together and then decide it’s not quite all what we had imagined in our head. So we set it aside and let it rest until somehow, magically, our imagining expands to include the reality — and we are finally ready to accept what is and finish the project.

My quilt hasn’t hit that stage yet, though.

So I thought I would turn to knitting. And make a shawl. Because I used to visit this wonderful little knit shop in Saratoga, it was barely two rooms, with walls of cubbyholes filled with wonderful yarns of breathtaking colors and textures. In the window were always shawls displaying kits you could buy–wonderful artistic shawls made up of varying weight yarns and colors (combined together despite the seeming incongruity of the weights and colors) to create a work of art.

That kind of knit shop. A this ain’t your grandmother’s knitting knit shop. And keep in mind this was ten or twelve years ago.

So with this in mind, I went online to find out what kind of yarn shop I could find locally now. And I did find one. But the website was difficult for me to navigate, and I was going to town anyway, so I went to the shop and asked the person, “Where are your kits?”

And she asked right back, “Why do you want a kit?”

Which made my heart sink a little bit, because I knew the conversation was not going to end well.

Well, I explained, I want a kit because I know what it will look like at the end and I won’t have to figure out how much yarn to buy or what kind is the right weight and really it’s all put together ready for me to just buy the components and go home and make it. –I didn’t phrase it quite that well, because I was so startled she asked. Because um–artistic kits using variable weights and colors? Maybe some fringe on the ends?

She showed me displays on the wall, but nothing like what I had in mind. Not even close. Not even close to close. Because, shh, this was your grandmother’s knit shop. Sigh.

So she showed me one display that was sort of all right, because in my mind I still wanted to knit something. She asked what color I had in mind. I thought about what I would wear that particular shawl with, and came up with the astonishingly ordinary answer of, “How about something neutral?” even though this was the complete opposite of why I had visited the store in the first place.

There were three brands of yarn that would make the pattern I picked, so I went with the one easy to care for. Because at this point I didn’t feel so invested in the project, it was nothing what I had been hoping to find.

I picked out the color and she agreed, “That’s the most neutral one we have.” She did not say this sounding like I had made the right choice.

Pictured is the top of the shawl, and after this point I will have to change needles and start knitting lace. When the colors changes appear, the shawl will be pretty.

Oh, and I bought sparkly beads. And a crochet hook to insert them. I’ve never added beads to knitting, but it’s high time I did, right?

Now all I need are a bunch of movies to cozy up with and evenings to do so.

Yeah, I’m dreaming big.

 

 

 

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