241 Bag - A Finish! (FAL #2)

It's done!  It's finished and I think I love it!  Here it is, my 241 Bag!

For the most part, my bag went together well.  The pattern, from Noodlehead, is well written and really easy to follow.  If such a thing as a "free weekend" existed in my life, I am pretty confident that I could make one of these in it!  As it was, the making of this bag stretched out over three fairly stressful weeks.  On more than one occasion, sitting down to sew on this purse was exactly what I needed. I discovered that it's really OK to just work for 15 or 20 minutes at a time, too.  It was actually very effective and helped me to get a finish in a week when I very possibly could not have had one!

This is such a cute purse, and such a practical design!  I love those deep side pockets, and that zip pocket in the front - Be still my heart!  It looks so stylish, it fits my phone perfectly, and it was SO. MUCH. FUN to put in.  Sure, it was a little intimidating at first, but I persevered, and it was really fun to see how to it came out.  Whoever thought of that method first was really smart!

I made just few simple modifications to make this purse even more practical for me.

 First, I added a front sleeve to the interior slip pocket.  I like to keep a bit of cash handy, and NOT in my wallet.  So, that front pocket will be used for that.  Also, I added a key hook, much to my youngest daughter's delight.  She panics every time I have to look for my keys for more than a minute.  Which is pretty much every time I look for my keys.  This should solve that problem.  Maybe.  My older daughter knows me well, and her comment was, "Great idea, as long as you remember to put your keys on it."  Yeah, there's that.

The last modification I made was to add a small pop of contrast to the navy strap.  I love that hashtag fabric, and I just wanted to use a bit more of it and add some interest.







There's not much I don't like about this project.  I did have a bit of a problem with the lining.  When I was finished, the lining was just a bit too bulky for the exterior.  I think I was just too small with the seam allowance.  So, after I and finished, I turned the whole thing wrong sides out again, and stitched around the three seams that comprise the lining.  that mostly solved the problem.  I might still hand tack the lining to the exterior in a few places, just to keep it flat and nice looking.  Although, now that's it's loaded with my  stuff, I really can't see enough of the lining to know that it's anything other than polka dotted and cute, so maybe the tacking won't happen.

I'm not sure I'll use fusible fleece for the lining of the next one.  It sewed really well, and it's what I'm used to, but I think it's a bit puffy for this design.  We'll see.  Maybe I'll be glad for the stability as I use it more.

It's going to be fun to use this purse.  It coordinates with my phone and my planner, so I feel all "pulled together" using it.  I have plans to use my scraps to make a wallet, a key fob and a tablet case to complete the set.  So fun.

With all the things I LOVE about this finish, I think perhaps the best thing was that I sewed along with a new friend while making it.  Bernie and I exchanged e-mails throughout the process.  It was so good to get her encouragement and to get to know her.  She blogs at Needle and Foot,  and you really should pop over and visit her.  You can see HER finished 241 bag, and scroll through her posts and get a peek at her incredible free motion quilting.  She's really an inspiration, and I'm pretty sure we're going to be on-line quilty friends for a very long time!

One last look.  And yes, I celebrated my finish with a Starbucks trip.  I wrote this post and enjoyed a White Chocolate Mocha while my daughter was at rehearsal.  It's all good!

And, now I have two of my Finish Along goals for quarter 2 done!

I am linking this FINISH to:

Finish it up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts
Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
Let's Bee Social aThe Sew Fresh Quilts

Rainbow Baby Quilt

Recently I stumbled across a Facebook post about a fundraiser for a local girl who has a very rare medical condition.  She is one of just a handful of people in the world, and only two in the US with this condition. She's just 5 years old.  The fundraiser was being held to help her family purchase a specialized wheelchair so that she can continue to go to school as long as she is able, and to help them with travel expenses, as she needs to be seen frequently at a clinic out of state. I was struck by the enormity of the challenges that this little one and her parents face every day.  As it turns out, we had some personal connections to this family, as well.  They had recently joined our 4-H Club, and I have some mutual friends with the mom.

I knew we wouldn't be able to attend the fundraiser, but I wanted to help.  I've planned more than a few fundraisers and have always felt blessed to receive auction and raffle items from crafters, especially those that came unexpectedly and with no strings attached.

 I  decided that this bright and cheery baby quilt that I made last summer would be my contribution to the auction.  I had made it with no particular purpose in mind, and it's just been sitting around the sewing room since then.  This seemed like a good use for it!

I don't remember where the idea for this quilt came from.  I think I was just inspired by the fun fabrics that had been accumulating in my stash.  I simply cut squares and rectangles and pieced them into strips, alternating the strips with white.  Simple and bright!

I backed it in a pretry green print and a rainbow stripe.  The rainbow bars were qiilted with a wavy stitch set  on maximum width and length, and the white areas were quilted with non marked "straight" lines.  Straight is being a bit generous, as the lines and spacing were very wonky. Very.  But, it gave a nice casual feel to the quilt, and a really great texture.

I love the way the polka dot binding turned out, and have been on the look out for dots I can use for binding ever since!

I actually entered this in our County Fair last summer.  My girls were entering for the first time (we just joined a club last year), and I was feeling nostalgic for all of the 4-H fair entries of my youth.  I knew this quilt wasn't perfect and probably wouldn't "fare" well, but it sure was fun to go and see it displayed!  It ended up earning a red ribbon.  No matter,  I loved participating in the Fair alongside my girls.

And now it has a new home with some (hopefully) generous person who, like me, wanted to do something to help little Maggie.  I hope it brings a smile no matter where it lands!

My quilt holder for these pictures needed to give it a hug good-bye

I'm linking up!!

Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story

Michelle's Let's Make Baby Quilts

Sew Cute Tuesday at Blossom Heart Quilts

Lets's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts

Visit these lovely ladies and enjoy all the great quilty projects!!

Two Months...What???

I honestly don't know how two months have gone by since I posted.  I was in the swing of things, enjoying summer, sewing daily and getting the hang of blogging, when...WHAMMO.  The end of August hit.  A quick and fun trip to Dubuque, back to school preparation, sending my oldest off to middle school, returning to school myself, karate, dance, dealing with garden goodies...and well, here we are.

I HAVE been getting in some sewing time.  It's an effort to carve out some time each week.  There NEVER seems to be as much time as I think there will be.  I start out almost every day thinking about when I will sew.  I plan to put in an hour right after school, or I think I will be able to get in a bit of time after all the activities are done for the evening.  But time slips away, someone needs help studying or dinner takes longer than it's supposed to or my husband gets stuck at work so I end up transporting BOTH children to their activities.  It's always something.

But anyway, I HAVE been getting in little bits and pieces of time to sew.

I finished the pink and brown chevron quilt that I posted about, oh, way back in August.  I don't have a good picture, nor have I decided what will become of it.  Taking care of both those issues is on the agenda for this month, though.

I sewed up a few zipper pouches. They were quick and fun and I learned a few new things.  They have all been given away to their intended recipients, and it made me happy to give them away.   I *think* I have a picture somewhere, but that will have to wait for a different post.

And, now for the stuff I can actually show you!  I'm starting with the (most) fun stuff in this post, and will do my best to post again before two more months go by!

I'm a bit late to the party, but I've been working on the Little Letters from Temecula Quilt Company.  I had been seeing them around the blogosphere for a few weeks and loved them.  I bookmarked the site thinking I'd make them "someday."  But, then, while folding and re-folding my growing collection of polka dot prints, I had a vision.  A vision of those adorable Little Letters, all done up in dots.  It took a week or so longer before I was organized and ready to start, but I did it!
I have finished the first 5 letters!  Twice!  Like many others participating in the Little Letters QAL, I am making them in two colorways.

Here are my dots.  I have not squared up my blocks or clipped threads.  I sew  and toss on a pile.  Well, actually, I love them so much that I  just might lay them out in order every time I pass the sewing room...

And here is my second set.  Blues, greens and teals, with gray back ground.  How perfect is this going to be with that navy/teal chevron flannel that I found in a clearance bin months ago as the back?   It's 3 yards and I paid $4.99.  LOVE it!

I am loving sewing up these little cuties.  They are fun and quick and I am really enjoying choosing the color for the next letter.  It feels so good to be able to finish two of these in about 15 minutes.  I have been trying to make a habit of cutting my strips in the evening, then, when I get back to the sewing machine, I have them all ready to go.

My blocks are certainly not perfect.  Somehow, I have managed to come up 1/4 inch or so off in one part of every block.  I am not sure if it's my measuring, my cutting or maybe my seam allowance.  It's probably some of each.  But, they are turning out so cute.  I will square them up and add sashing in the background color, and I think they'll be just fine.

When finished one of these  will be an auction item for a fundraising event my friend is planning for the spring.  The other one...we'll see, no plans as of now.  Given how much I LOVE my dots collection, it's hard to believe, but I do think I like the second set better.  There is something about those blues against that gray.  I just can't wait to see it when it's finished!

But, then, there is also something irresistible about those dots.  Especially that red "E".

 Mmmmm-mmmmm.  I could eat it with a spoon!  Just looking at it makes me want to go and buy a few yards of that fabric and make something wonderful.  Isn't it cute?

The QAL is up to "L" already, so I have some catching up to do.  But, I'm not really in a hurry.  I'm just enjoying the process.

I have missed blogging these last two months.  I really do like writing a bit about what I do on my "me" time.  Here's hoping I can make ti a more regular activity!

I'm going to link up to Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation.  Hopefully next week, I'll have some finished chevron quilt pictures to share on Friday.

Happy Sewing!
Tami