Simplicity 8564, Dress and Catfish Purse

You know how it goes, right?

A quick trip to Hobby Lobby for "just a couple of things" turns into buying patterns and fabric for more projects??

I was skimming through patterns, since they were $0.99 and looking for a swim suit pattern for mini and came across Simplicity 8564 - love at first sight for Mini.

 And then when we found the unicorns and rainbows fabric - it was all over.

And now, the little stinker won't model the dress for me.  Although its not like its warm enough to wear it!  More snow and ice here today!

The dress is really just a big tent, with bias straps and a ribbon in the back. 

There is, of course the flutter sleeve option.  If I make this again, I will choose something more drapey - and probably skip the back tie.

The real winner from this pattern in Mini's view, is the catfish purse.

She was totally willing to model that, as long as I didn't "fix" her hair. 

The pattern calls for felt/fleece for the eyes/nose.  I just went ahead and embroidered them on, along with the mouth and whiskers.  Found the perfect "scale" fabric in my stash from *this quilt for my niece*

Not sure what's going on here.... a wink, maybe?  The purse is pretty big. 

 I braided a few lenghts of multicolored yarn to make the strap.  Had to knot it at the top so it didn't drag on the ground.

 The catfish took way more time than the dress.  And if you decide to make it, you should know that the opening is just the head.  The body is closed.

Zippered Tote Bags

A while back (waaaaayyy back) E asked me to make her a tote bag with anchors on it.  We picked out some fabric and it sat in the bottom of my ToDo box for a while.  I think a year, maybe.  So last month I finally got motivated to get them out and done.  

I've never made a zippered tote before and I didn't follow any instructions, so there was a fair amount of finagling to get these right.  I re-did the bottoms a couple of times because the dimensions made them look weird.

I made two because I wanted to use up all the fabric.  E kept the smaller one and bestowed the larger one to me.  No complaints here.  I can always use a bag.

They have a layer of fusible fleece inside for a small amount of stability.  E's actually has a pocket inside.

The smaller measures: 20"x16"
larger: 20"x19"

Blue And White Quilted Bag

Catchy title, eh?

 I've decided my current favorite way to use up small pieces of patchwork is to make bags!  I made these blue pieces into a small rectangle ? years ago.  I can tell you where (up north) but I don't really remember when.  The patchwork rectangle has been floating around since then, with me having no idea what to do with it.

 After last week's patchwork bag success, I decided to follow up with this one.

 Again, two layers of batting.  I did a three step zig zag for the quilting stitch.  I actually don't love it.  I feel that I probably should have done something more curvy, but done is done.

 I just love the lining fabric.  So soft and pretty.  And I even went ahead and put in a pocket.  I did not do a ring tab this time, though.

 The handles are quite wide, which works, I think.  It's a fun little bag.

 I didn't do a separate piece for the bottom, just boxed the corners.

Details:
Fabric: Who knows?  It was a scrap bag I bought for $1.25 a few years ago up north.
Batting: Pellon cotton, two layers
Thread: Coats & Clark White cotton quilting thread
Dimensions: 10" x 3" x 12"  Handles: 21" x 2"

Grab 'N Go Tote Finish

 I made the Grab 'N Go Tote out of Gudrun Erla's book Fast & Furious Family.  I had bought the book specifically for this project.  It is a great big bag!

 Good for carrying around babies.

 I am pretty pleased with the results, although about half way through I informed Mr. Riley that "I will finish this one, but I don't think I'll ever make a second."  Now that I'm done and had some time to think about it, all my frustration was with the interfacing.  The pattern calls for Craf-Tex Lite.  I went and bought Pel-Tex because I didn't have a local source for Craf-Tex.  The Pel-Tex was not as wide as needed for the bag, so I had to piece it.  Then the instructions tell you to spray baste it to the lining.  It just didn't want to stick, so things kept getting shifted around a bit as I 'quilted'.  IF there is a next time, I will buy a fusible interfacing.

 This is a shot of how the bag looks before assembly.  It is essentially 'quilt as you go', so after the seams are sewn all you have to do is put a binding on the edge.

 The bottom is laminated, which I did myself with some iron on vinyl.  The squares were batik charms from Connecting Threads, the blue is probably a Hoffman Batik.  The only thing I had to purchase to make this was the interfacing.

 Those opposing teeth just kill me.

 Linking with Crazy Mom Quilts

Gifty Goodness

 Look what I got for my Birthday!  Such a cute bag.  I love the colors!

 My wonderful Step-mother made it for me. There are pockets up there under the triangles.

 Inside pocket with designer triangle.

 Inside zip pocket.

Even a spot to clip my keys!  She made the whole thing without a pattern!  It is just the perfect size.  Roughly 14" tall and about 16" wide.  And she told me something she had heard, which I thought was brilliant. If you line a purse/bag with a lighter color its easier to find what you're looking for.  Brilliant!

Thank You!