Zipper Pouch

  Lately I've been playing with clay and practicing sewing with a few projects. I found this video by Melly Sews for creating a lined zipper pouch. She does a great job explaining everything. I made this pouch to hold all my new clay tools. I don't have that many, but I wanted to keep them all together. It would do no good to add more mess to my messy craft room, so a sewing project and a bit of organizing is great for me. I'll show off some of my clay creations in another post.

   I used one of those Single Fat Quarter cotton pieces that you can get at Walmart or you can get them in bulk online at Amazon. The one I used was 18 by 21 inches, and was more than enough fabric. For the lining, I used a piece of cotton from an old bed sheet. The corners next to the zipper are a little weird, but it looks like it was done on purpose, so no biggie.

   Speaking of that old bed sheet... It was a king sized sheet and gave me lots of fabric to practice on. I made a few of these aprons, and I still have more to play with. I used the scraps from my Fat Quarter to make a small pocket. The sheet was going to end up in the trash since it had a huge hole in it, so why not upcycle?

Skirt and Matching Swag

    Here I am messing with my sewing machine again. Isabel actually started making this bag right after I made mine- Funky Little Bag. I used the extra fabric to make a skirt, or attempt to. I don't know what happened, but my measurements were way off and I ended up with a skirt that would fit one thigh and a half... maybe. I was trying to figure out how to save it with the least amount of work. I know, sad but true. So I used some scrap fabric from the circle skirt I made recently. My original idea was to add a piece to each side, but after the first side was added it was just the right size. Remember, we're going for minimal work at this point, so I decided to leave it as is. It doesn't matter how you get to fabulous, just as long as you get there. Right.. Needless to say, I am happy with the outcome.

     Like I said earlier, Isabel started the bag and like most teens with short attention spans, she got bored with it. Whatever her reason, she was taking too long to get back to it and it was taking up space in my craft room, so I finished it for her. I can't force her to like sewing. I added an insert with an inside pocket using the same fabric that I used for the side of the skirt. This bag is the smaller version of the other one I made. If I make another I think longer straps would be better. I think I had an issue with the straps on the other one too. Oh well, you've got to live and learn.

Funky Little Bag

   Ok, this was an accomplishment for me. I used a sewing pattern for the first time, and it wasn't a total disaster! I must have bought this pattern about 2 years ago and never got the nerve to actually do it. It's just a bag, so when I brought it home I thought, how hard can this be? I pulled everything out of the package, took one look and put it right back in. It sat in my drawer for all this time. Since I've been sewing more lately, I figured it was about time to give it a try. I took my time (it took all week) and stuck through the frustrating parts. I have to say I'm pleased with the outcome.

   I think I had the most trouble with the straps and figuring out the bottom corners of the bag. The straps were a problem because for some reason I can't sew completely straight. So you can clearly see my lack of sewing skills. I'm still happy with the final piece. All I need now is a liner and it is ready to hit the road. I think I will make the inside bright orange. Since it's an afterthought, it won't be as good as if I had sewn it in before, but it will make the inside look much better. Right now I have fraying ends and seams showing on the inside.
   I thought the zipper was going to give me problems, but it was surprisingly easy. I did watch a video on zipper foots before I sewed mine. That helped a lot.

   I love how the pockets go all the way around in different sections. If I make this again, I might do something different with the straps. Maybe make a long tube, so I don't have that middle (crooked) seam showing all the way through. 

Embroidered Name Tag

  My first embroidery project came out better than I expected!

  We got this "hand-me-down" book bag that was in really great shape. My only issue with it was that it had someone else's name on it, as you can see in the picture below. I blurred out the last name, but you can see it goes across the whole top part. My husband told me to just cross it out and put our son's name but I know it would look horrible and it would bother me every time I look at it.

   So I decided to give embroidery a try. It's not so hard. I used felt and embroidery thread. I colored his name on the felt with a sharpie the way I wanted it to look, using some fancy font in Microsoft Word. Then I did a back stitch along the border of the letters, then a fill stitch to fill it in. I don't think fill stitch is the correct term, but it fills in the letters, so that's what I'm going with.

   The border is just single crochet around. I started to do the "fill stitch" around the edge, but it just wasn't working out for me.  I didn't realize that I had yellow felt until after I was finished. Oh well, even though it doesn't match, I think it looks better than crossing out the name. I glued on the finished piece with some hot glue. Wala!

Fire Cracker Mesh Bag Pattern

  This bag can be made with any worsted weight yarn, nylon, or twine. It would make a great beach bag, or make it longer to carry your yoga mat. It could even be a laundry bag. Whatever you want to use it for. The strap makes it easy and comfortable to wear. Mix and match your favorite colors or just make it in a solid color.

Materials:

• size L crochet hook
• size I crochet hook
• worsted weight yarn, colors A, B, and C
• yarn needle for fastening off

Abbreviations:

• ch = chain
• sl st = slip stitch
• dc = double crochet
• hdc = half double crochet
• sp = space
• rep = repeat

Instructions:

Mesh Bag:

 Note: You will join to the top of first chain at the end of every round. 

 With color A and size L hook, ch 4 and join to make a ring.

Rnd 1: ch 2 (counts as first dc), 9 dc in ring, join in top of ch 2 (10 dc)

Rnd 2: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, 2dc in between each dc around, join (20dc)

Rnd 3: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, *dc in next sp, 2dc in next sp*, rep around (30dc)

Rnd 4: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, *dc in next 2 sp, 2 dc in next sp*, rep around (40dc)

Rnd 5: sl st in next sp between dc, ch3, *dc in next sp, ch1*, rep around, join (40dc)

Rnd 6: sl st in next sp between dc, ch4, *dc in next sp, ch2*, rep around, join(40dc)

Rnd 7-12: repeat round 6

Rnd 13-14: change to color B, repeat round 6

Rnd 15-27: change to color C, repeat round 6

Rnd 28: ch2, *2hdc in next sp, 1hdc in next dc* rep around, join, fasten off.

Drawstring:

 With color B and size I hook, ch about 200. (This can be longer or shorter depending on your preference). Trim ends evenly

Weave the chain in and out of the hdc round of bag. 

Shoulder Strap:

 With color B and size I hook, join yarn in a sp on the top of the 5th round of bag (bottom), on the opposite side of your drawstring opening. (You can adjust your drawstring if it isn't exact.)

Row 1: ch2, hdc in same space, *hdc in next sp* 7 times, ch2 turn (9hdc)

Row 2: hdc in each hdc across, ch2 turn

Row 3: hdc in back loop only of each hdc across, ch2 turn

Row 4-40: repeat row 3

Join in top of last dc round of bag (row 27), sc across hdc of strap and in the spaces between dc of bag

Fasten off and weave in ends.


Enjoy your new bag!

bottom of strap

top of strap

I'd love to see your finished projects! I can even feature them on my blog if you'll allow it. Just email the pics to daperfectmix@gmail.com. If you don't want the pics to be on the blog, just let me know, but I would still like to see your projects.

~daperfectmix