The Uptown Girl Bag

The third bag I made this month is a design by Christine at ChrisW Designs that I had the pleasure of testing. Ever since I've been making bags I've always wanted a leather bag. Don't get me wrong I love fabric bags but I just wanted a leather one for a change. Although my Pfaff has always served me well it didn't like faux leather much and I always had problems sewing it so I didn't bother. Then last year I got my industrial sewing machine and it loves faux leather and real leather so as soon as I saw this pattern I knew it was for me.

It has two slip pockets on the outside ideal for keys and phone. Inside there's 4 slip pockets,  2 pen pockets and an interior zippered divider pocket.

If you can't find cable ties or regular boning for the zippered divider pocket then try this. It's used for packing fridges, tv's etc. Really strong and rigid it worked perfectly. I got mine for free from a local electric appliance dealer who was happy to hand it over.

When making the outside body of the bag I learned that the faux leather could be stuck down with a leather glue onto the foam I was using.

But I think I didn't apply enough because after applying it in the evening I left it overnight to dry and in the morning found it was all bubbly. This technique is used by bag makers here and makes the bag nice and rigid. I guess I need a bit more practice but the fumes from the glue were pretty overpowering. Not wanting to cut out another outer bag I decided to stitch over the front and was happy with the result.

Christine used ready made handles and grommets on her bag. I couldn't find the grommets so I made these tabs and handles. They were only an inch wide which made it really difficult to turn the tabs inside out but with a bit of pulling and tugging and a lot of sweat I managed to do it.

I decided to sew the bag bottom to the foam I used to make sure it wasn't going to slip around as I wasn't using bag feet like in the pattern.

Finally the bag was finished with a recessed zipper to keep everything safe. Again I made a slight modification. I made both zipper ends longer as opposed to one long and one flush against the recessed zipper tab and I used these nickel zipper tabs rather than make my own.

I've been using my bag for the last few days and love it. Loads of room for the essentials and still room to hide a little bit of fabric LOLL. Make sure you check out the other testers bags HERE, they did an amazing job and as you will see this bag will look beautiful made in pleather or fabric.

If you'd like a copy of the pattern then go HERE to get yours straight away and if you sign up for Christine's newsletter you get 20% discount. This bag really is excellent value with or without the discount.

I also made a makeup bag in faux leather to go with my new Uptown Girl bag but I'll show you that in a few days time, this post has been pretty photo heavy.

Thanks for stopping by

~ Maria ~

The Sling Bag

It's been a busy month and I still have loads to do. So far this month I've tested three bags, this is the second one and it's by Samantha from At Home with Mrs H.
This is an easy bag that is ideal for a beginner to start with. I decided to make mine in pleather and being as I didn't have a piece large enough to make the bag I made it like a patchwork.

I left the back plain so that it could be turned around for a different look.

The inside has a couple of slip pockets and a zipper pocket. The instructions for the strap are for an adjustable strap or plain.
This bag is a perfect design to do as you please with. You can choose to make it in pleather like me or any other fabric. Marisa another of the testers made hers by using an old pair of jeans and Liz made hers out of Vinyl, how versatile is that and it's also easy to alter the size so if you want it bigger there's no problem enlarging the pattern. Make sure you check out the other testers bags over at Samantha's blog HERE. Oh and guess what, this pattern is FREE for everyone. Just go over to Samantha's Craftsy store HERE to download your copy or you can find the link at the bottom of Samantha's blog.

Thanks for letting me test your lovely bag Samantha.

~ Maria ~

The Pleasure of Giving

Those of you who follow my blog will remember about the post I made here in December about being in the November Issue of the Australian Homespun Magazine.

It was Christine's Sugar & Spice bag that I tested, you can see it at the top of my blog header. Christine very kindly posted a copy of the magazine to me and I kept my fingers crossed it would arrive. I have very little faith in the postal service and three weeks later it did and on Christmas Day.

As a way of saying thank you I wanted to make something for Christine and once again test the postal service. LOLLL

I made a Dresden Plate table topper and two matching mug rugs.

It's always difficult to make something for someone else especially when you've never met them so I decided to make them in my favorite colours.

I was surprised at how fiddly these little Dresden's are. It took longer to make these than the larger one.

I have to say that of all the Dresden's I've ever made this is my favourite one.

I normally do the echo stitching in the same colour as the fabric but this time decided to use a slightly darker thread.

I came across a tutorial here for making these tags so I made one in the fabric used for the Dresden Plate topper.

I love this floral fabric because it had a hint of glitter in it which you can't see very well in the photo.

I couldn't post about this until today when Christine emailed me to let me know she had received it. She said she loved it and thought it was too nice to use LOLLLLL

As for me I'm really pleased she received it, A BIG THANK YOU TO THE POSTAL SERVICE.
It's always nice to receive gifts but it doesn't compare to the joy of giving.

Speaking of gifts Christine is doing a giveaway of her newest bag pattern and a hardware kit. All you have to do is choose a name for the bag and leave a comment for Christine on the relevant post here. Hurry over because the competition finishes on the 22nd January. Sorry I posted late about it but Bloglovin is giving me some grief on occasion and I don't see my posts until it's too late.

~ Maria ~

Grow Your Blog

Want to grow your blog readership then quickly go over to 2 Bags Full. This is the last day to sign up so hurry. I just found out myself.

                                                           2 Bags Full

~ Maria ~

My First Sew Along Completed

On the 1st January I joined The 2014 It's A New Year Sew Along here. All we had to do was make log cabins at the measurements specified. We could make as many or as few as we wanted and then make them into something before the 29th Jan. So I got to work straight away and loved making these little log cabins. You can see the first 35 blocks I made here and the second 35 here.

With the second set I made this small table runner measuring 31" x 24".

I love the backing fabric. I had a piece left over from another runner I'd made some time ago and it was perfect for this one. The colours matched the front so I used it for the binding also.

I now have a custom order for another table runner which I need to make super quick while I wait on the next test bag from Christine to come. After that I'll be making another runner with the first set of 35 log cabin blocks. Hopefully it will be finished before the 29th Jan deadline.

~ Maria ~

Valentine Table Treat

It's hard to believe that Christmas has only just passed and we're well on our way to approaching Valentines Day. So while I have the time I thought I'd make this Valentine Table Treat by Karen at "...laugh yourself into Stitches".

This table treat measures 10" x 10" and is perfect for putting a small dish of sweets on. Unfortunately sweets and chocolates don't last two minutes in our house with me around so I'm going to hag mine up in my sewing room.

My pinwheels are by no means perfect as you will see in the photos below. I used fabrics that weren't quilting cottons so they came out uneven and a bit mismatched but I still love it and hope to make a better one next time.

The Pillow Kisses measures 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" and I attached some matching ribbon so I can use it as a hanging pincushion.

Despite my terrible attempt at half square triangles I love this table treat. If you'd like to make one in time for Valentines you can go to Karens Craftsy Store where you can buy the pattern. Also in Karens Craftsy Store are other beautiful patterns and some of them are free so check those out.

Karen also has many wonderful tutorials on her blog so make sure you stop over there for a look.

Yesterday I completed a test bag that I'll be sharing with you after the 20th when all the testers have finished their bags, so keep an eye out for that one, it's a really nice and easy pattern.

~ Maria ~

La Luna Bag Pattern

The La Luna Bag is the first bag I've made this year and if you're wondering what La Luna stands for it means The Moon Bag in Spanish. Appropriate being as it's from Patchouli Moon Studio.

I bought these handles in Spain while on holiday visiting my family just over 2 years ago and still hadn't made anything with them.

Then as luck would have it Daryl from Patchouli Moon Studio made one with wooden handles and posted it on her blog. After leaving a comment for her she wrote to ask if I would like to test it for her and I said yes straight away and here it is. Make sure you check out Daryl's, she's now posted two on her blog and they're gorgeous

This bag comes together in super quick time and is really easy to make. I made the bag and flower in an evening at a leisurely pace.

You may be able to just make out from the photo above that I've quilted it with a zig zag pattern.

Last year I collected loads of zipper cut offs in the hope that I would make some zipper flowers and never got round to it so now I can cross that off the list of things to do this year.

These zipper flowers too are so easy and quick to make.

Inside the bag there are two slip pockets and a pen pocket in the middle. I had originally wanted to use this as a craft bag so made it deeper than the pattern but now it's finished I just want to take it out shopping.

Here are photos taken indoors. I'd be interested to know from you which ones you prefer. Outdoor photos or indoor.

There are endless possibilities to how you can make this bag. You can make it larger or smaller, add outside pockets, zipper pockets and embellish it any how you want. This pattern leaves loads of room for you to use your imagination. The pattern is clearly written with photos as a guide to sewing it and should you have any difficulties Daryl is only too happy to help you out.
If you'd like to make one too you can purchase the pattern over at Craftsy and also check out the pattern details.

I still have another pair of handles that are slightly different so maybe I'll use those to make my craft bag.

Thanks for letting me test this lovely bag for you Daryl.

~ Maria ~

Star Light Star Bright Quilt-A-Long

I've committed to so much in January that I'm really spreading myself a bit thin but when I saw the quilt along by Melissa at Happy Quilting I just couldn't resist and signed up to take part.

Nine blocks, a block a week and a beautiful quilt by April. Isn't it gorgeous.

If you'd like to join in pop over to Melissa's blog to find out the schedule and details.

~ Maria ~

WIP Update

Yesterday I posted about my log cabin blocks that I'm making for the 'It's a New Year Sewalong' over at sewcanshe. I made 35 of them and wanted to make another 35 slightly different. I was also curious as to how long it would take me so I timed myself this time.

Six hours and 35 log cabin blocks later I had these.
The ones lined up at the bottom of the photo have been squared off.
I didn't sit for 6 hours straight to make these.
I cut out the strips the night before and that wasn't included in the time. The following morning I sat for a couple of hours, another 45 mins in the afternoon and the rest were finished after dinner in the evening.

I like these better than the ones I showed you yesterday. Now I just have to decide what to make with them.

Taking a break from log cabins and moving on to a test bag today. I bought some bag handles a couple of years ago when I went to visit my parents in Spain and still haven't done anything with them so today I'll be using those.

I'll give you more details once it's done.

~ Maria ~

WIP

Last year I spent a good part of my time looking at all the lovely things people were making and instead of buckling down and trying different things I just plodded along and wasted so much time.

This year is going to be different. I want to make all the things I should have done last year so I joined a few sewalongs to make sure I didn't stray.

Here's what I've been up to since the beginning of the year. After a couple of secret gifts were finished, which I'll show you when they've been received, I started The 2014 It's a New Year Sewalong. The sewalong started on the 1st Jan with the picking of fabrics and the deadline for showing finished projects will be 29th Jan.

After taking about three days to choose some fabrics I finally chose pinks and greys and started sewing them up. This is the first time I've done log cabin blocks and was surprised how quickly they came together. I've now finished 35 blocks measuring 4 1/2 inches square.

Not all the fabrics are quilting cottons, in fact most of them are polyester cotton which means care has to be taken when ironing them. I usually iron my fabrics before cutting them just to make sure they don't shrink or have any other reaction to the heat.

 All that's left to do now is square off the blocks. There's still loads of time to make some more before the deadline so I may just carry on with these blocks for a few more days. I still don't know what I'll be making with them. I guess that will depend on how many I have.

Next WIP is the Wishes Quilt Along. There are 12 sampler blocks to this quilt, one every month.

This is block one that I made this afternoon.

The third quilt along that I'm taking part in is being hosted by Moniquie Dillard of Open Gate Quilts and runs for 6 months. I haven't made a start on this one yet because as usual it takes me forever just to choose some fabric. Maybe I should just go out and buy some more fabric especially for this project. LOLLL

Happy sewing to all of you.

~ Maria ~

I've Been Featured.

What a wonderful way to start the New Year.
A feature of my Candy Makeup Bag over at Homework.

Make sure you pop over to see all the other beautiful creations that have been featured.
Homework offers so much inspiration and has beautiful crafts that are easy to make and look wonderful.

Now for news on what I've been up to in the new year.
Right from day one I've been busy sewing away and have completed a project or two but have to keep them secret until they have been sent and received which could be a long time as they are being sent to far away lands. As soon as I know they have been received I'll show you too.
I'm still undecided on fabrics for the sewalong I'm taking part in but hopefully next week when it starts I'll have chosen something.
I received the first of six bag patterns from Sara and am dying to make a start. There is the possibility of a couple of test bags too. I have a custom order for a patchwork bag and a patchwork table runner so January is full to the brim. Oh I nearly forgot I also joined a quiltalong. I think I'd best write everything down or else I'm going to take on more than I can handle.

What do you all have planned for January? Is anyone joining in a sewalong or quiltalong?

~ Maria ~

It's A New Year Sew ALong

It's the 1st of January and already have a few projects on the go.
One of the things that I regret about 2013 was not taking part in the many quilt alongs that were taking place. In 2014 I plan to solve that and am joining the 2014 Its a New Year Sewalong.

If you want to join in and find out what you have to do just click on the picture above to find out all the details.

Happy Sewing in 2014.

~ Maria ~