Crochet Hook Clutch

A few months ago I made a couple of bags for my friend who crochets. She was in need of something to hold her projects, big and small.  A few weeks ago she mentioned that she could use something to carry her crochet hooks in as well.

So I googled around for tutorials and found one at Little Birdie Secrets that fit the bill.  While I've crocheted before, I am far from experienced and I liked that this pattern had a place for everything AND provided me with measurements for each hook pocket.

 

I am kind of geeked out over the fact that I was able to match my patterns pretty stinking well between the yellow and blue fabric. The inside pockets have room for pretty much every crochet hook imaginable.

It closes with an elastic loop over a vintage navy blue button. I think it's subtle and sweet on this somewhat busy Anna Maria Horner fabric.

There is even a little pocket on the flap for yarn needles. I never would have thought of that. But being a sucker for pockets, it thrilled me that this clutch seemed to have one for pretty much everything.

So there you have it. A crochet hook case for a crafty friend I admire greatly.

It's quite lovely and goes nicely with her other bags.  It was a fun, quick sew that didn't take much fabric so it would make a great gift.  

~Lindsay

KCWC Days 1 - 3 (and a couple of bags)

I imagine I had very typical "first time participant" expectations for this Kids Clothing Week Challenge.  An "eyes bigger than stomach" kind of deal.  

Although I still think my list was fairly realistic (we're talking an hour a day, so seven hours of work here!).

I wanted to finish lengthening a pair of too short jeans (by adding ruffles per this tutorial), make a cowl neck dress and start an Oliver + S pattern (maybe the school days jacket) and then maybe some simple leggings--but only if there was time.

Monday I got a half hour of sewing in. In two 15 minute increments. Yikes. Not what I was expecting. And they were frustrating 15 min. increments because something just wasn't quite right with the ruffle hem jeans. Maybe it's just not my thing? I'm not in love with them. I can't even bring myself to take a picture.

Tuesday I knew I'd have more time because the Bug would be at dance class with her BFF.  But instead of hitting up my list, I worked on some alterations for a friend.  I did manage to get the cowl neck dress cut out but the sewing would have to wait.

So last night. . . finally I got to start sewing the cowl neck dress. It's such a simple sew I'd really planned to be done with it by now. But I'm not.

So here's my 11 pm, thank God it's almost done, Instagram photo of the thing (and my awful, disorganized fabric storage as well).  My dress turned out looking more turtle neck than cowl neck but we'll see how it looks on.  I still need to hem it. Bottom hem and sleeve hems.  It's knit so I could get away with not hemming but that's not really the look I'm going for.  I also am trying to think of something to do with those ties. They are too thick for my liking. I think I may have her tie them in back, not front. Maybe that will help.  I do love the fabric. It's this amazing color (that just doesn't come through on a cell phone photo in the dark of night, imagine that!), a grey-ish purple heather knit. I love it. And I had JUST enough to cut this dress out. There are no scraps left.

Hooray for the Vogue remnant section!

So that's been my Kids Clothing Week thus far. Highs and lows.

I did finally get a chance to take photos of a bag I made for a friend! It's been done for  week (maybe two?) and just waiting to be photographed.  What is my problem?

Anyway, it's the same pattern as my own purse--you know, the Granny Bag?--with just a few changes.

But first, lets all take a moment to appreciate this gorgeous fabric. 

AMH, you are a genius.

The bag is from a pattern in the book, Carry Me.  It's the cover pattern actually.

This time, I made it with a bit stiffer interfacing and way more pockets inside.

She's planning to use this to carry her crochet projects so I made skinny little pockets all down both side for her hooks.

And there is a big zipper pocket too.

I think the bag will be great for carrying some yarn, some hooks and whatever she's working on at the moment.

I also made her a smaller project bag that she can either carry on it's own or put in the big bag as further help organizing everything.  This pattern as well is in the Carry Me book although it's simple enough I think I could have made it without a pattern. 

I did make the bag a bit bigger than the pattern at my friend's request.

Added bonus, this one is reversible.

Cool.

Totally unintentional. It was a fun little discovery.

(Love that Amy Butler fabric too! Thank you FQS 50% off sale!)

So there you have it. More KCWC info to come I hope! (I hope, I hope, I hope!) 

It can only go up from here, right?

~Lindsay

AMH Artist Tote

I suppose you are wondering where we've been?

Making Christmas gifts, of course!

It's ironic, isn't it, that the two most productive sewing weeks of the year are the least productive blogging weeks?  But secrets must be kept.

Thank goodness for family Christmas gatherings the week before Christmas! I can spill the beans on this gift now and not have to worry about spoiling the surprise!

This ah-mazing bag was my gift to my sister. The pattern is the Art Student Tote from Anna Maria Horner.

When I pinned it on my "Project Inspiration" board she commented that she loved it and I knew this is what I wanted to make for her. She and her husband travel a fair amount and I thought it might make a nice, roomy carry on bag.

The fabric is from the Modern Meadow collection from Joel Dewberry. I knew the color combination was perfect for Michelle. And how gorgeous is that Dogwood print? I just love it.

While the front of the bag has two zippered pockets, the back is fairly simple and shows off the fabric quite nicely I think.

It was also a great spot for one of our 402 tags. Man I love those.

I need to get in the habit of using them. . . most of the time I forget. But it adds such a nice touch I think.

It was hard to get a picture, but this beast of a ginormous bag has an extension panel inside that can be pulled out in case you need to carry more "stuff".  It is amazingly roomy. Almost over the top roomy.

I am so happy with the finished result.

The process? Well, that was a little rough.  I found the pattern slightly difficult to follow. It was more like a traditional paper pattern than the very detailed, photo heavy PDF patterns that are so prevalent and I have been accustomed to.

And for some reason, I just had a lot of construction "issues".  I realized late in the game that I had two different colors of D-rings. I decided to just go with it, not knowing when I'd get up to JoAnn's to get more but then I hated it. So I made a special trip up to JoAnn's. As I was replacing the mismatched rings I stuck myself HARD with a straight pin that I had some how sewn in between the outside fabric and the lining. Ugh. So I opened up the lining seam and fished around until I found it and could pull it out.

Geesh!

But it was worth the drama to see the end result and the look on my sister's face when she opened it.

~Lindsay

Quilts in Progress (Spoiler Alert to my sisters!!)

Warning!

If you are my sister Michelle or my sister in law Heidi and you do not want to see your quilt, close your eyes! Shut down your browser! Stop scrolling! Do not read any farther!

Are they gone??

Whew!

So I promised my Sister in Law a lap quilt about a year ago.

The top has been done for months but I've been waging an internal debate over how to quilt it.

There is no denying my fierce love of hand quilting.

I love doing it.

I love the way it looks.

But I have a love/hate relationship with the time it takes. I don't mind taking the time to do it but I feel a little bad making people wait for their quilt. I'm not a fast quilter. I go in spurts. I inevitably miss gifting deadlines because of it.

But my Sister in law is gracious and told me to take my time.

So, hand quilting won out once again.

After I found this AMH tutorial I knew that was it. It seemed like a happy medium of sorts, quilting with embroidery floss and bigger stitches felt like it wouldn't take nearly as much time as the more traditional needle and thread. 

I really, really love the look of it.

I'm just simply stitching around each square with a sort of random color pattern.

Browns and greens and yellows just like this Dewberry Deer Valley fabric.

And here's how those squares are looking on the back.

Super cool.

I can't wait to see how it looks once it's finished and I can wash it.

This may be my new go-to quilting method.

I really, really love making quilts. Oh to have unlimited time and resources. . .

I also promised a housewarming throw to my sister and her husband. I finally got started piecing that one last week.

My first stack of blocks turned out really well I think.

I'm using the OhFransson tutorial for the crazy nine patch.

Elizabeth Hartman rocks my world. If you are a fan of modern quilting her blog is a must read and her book was one of my favorite Christmas gifts this year. Love.It.

The fabric I used for these is the High Society line by Khristin Howell and it is perfecto for the Waggoner orange and grey living room.

I did have to sneak in a print from my stash (the orange base with the white, yellow and grey leaves) because I only had eight from High Society and I needed nine unique fabrics for these blocks. I couldn't believe how well it fit and the colors matched though.

I'm really not sure how I'm going to assemble this one. I don't love the lattice design that Hartman uses for her Crazy Nine Patch quilt but all these crazy squares side by side are a bit too busy even for me. So we'll wait and see. For now, I am loving making these random wonky blocks. So fun. And such a great result. I'm excited to see where it leads!

~Lindsay

The Sophie Skirt

This sweet little number has the distinction of being our first official offering on the Etsy store.

I've dubbed it the Sophie Skirt because it reminds me of a sweet little girl I know. Isn't this fabric adorable? It's called Chocolate Lollipop and it's from fabric designer Anna Maria Horner (love her). It's so sweet and girly without being overly sugary.

And then there's this little gingham flower pin and ribbon hem, adding just a bit of detail and interest. It's sweet, isn't it? Just like a chocolate lollipop should be.

~Lindsay