Ode to the Feedsack....The Lucky Denver Mint Bag

My Lucky Denver!

Ok...it is almost 1 am so this is gonna be short. The Lucky Denver Mint Bag is complete and just under the wire too! I actually was going to make this post in the morning but luckily went to Angela's blog to confirm what time the Big City Bag Monthly linky party closes....oops in just 6 hours! Every month Angela hosts a linky party and we sew a bag from Sara Lawson's Big City Bags book.


The month of July was The Lucky Denver Mint Bag which is what my friend would definitely call a "feed sack" bag. She always hated them! Well, I happen to love a "feed sack" style handbag. I don't like to carry huge bags (like my friend does) and this is one great thing the "feed sack" has going for it. Just enough room for my normal stuff with maybe a bit to spare.

I found this graphic which shows the different types of bags and what they call a "feed bag". But in my opinion their's is not quite right.

Almost...but not quite right.

This bag, the Lucky Denver Mint Bag seems to be designed for simple practicality. So, from the beginning, I liked the bag design.
 

From Sara's book.

The Lucky Denver went together for me faster and easier than the bags we have sewn before. It was an easier pattern with less cutting but I think I am getting better! This bag turned out smaller than I thought but partially because I made a cutting error that took some correction. Still, big enough for me.

Just right size wise for my needs!

A sweet vintage floral print was used for the lining. Both fabrics have been in my stash for a while so another reason I love this bag, was able to do some stash busting!  (I actually made a skirt to match this bag out of the same two fabrics, will try to post pics later.)

Helloooo downthere!

Thanks Angela for hosting another month of the Big City Bags SAL. And good luck to everyone!

Update: I just read Betsy's post here. She mentions a couple things that I definitely noticed as well. One the bag handles are too short! And here's kind of a weird thing about that....why don't the bag handles look short in the picture in the book??? Man, they have some real tricks of photography in that book...that is all I can figure. Also, pocket design. Too far down in the bag. They need to come up a inch or two. Perhaps a zippered pocket would be a positive.

Since this bag came together so quick, I can definitely see myself making it again, maybe with a nice lightweight wool that has some embroidery. When I do, I will know what needs to be changed. Till then it's me and Lucky D!

Goodnight Irene SAL - January Progress

Most of the blocks for Terry's Goodnight Irene SAL January assignment have been done for a while now. This was one of the first projects I started for the new year and the first major quilt that I have attempted, with one exception, in a very long time. To finish it the size I want to and to finish with everyone else, I need to sew 3 rows of 7 blocks (for a total of 9 rows) each month. I am a couple blocks short of that but worked on it some today and hopefully will be all caught up by the end of the weekend.

Really love this quilt pattern!

I am using Kansas Troubles II jelly rolls for my prints and a cream cotton couture for the X blocks. These are not normally colors I would choose being a brights person but I really like them in the quilt pattern.

Some of the prints in the Kansas Troubles II lineup. Cream cotton couture underneath.

Very happy with the way the quilt is coming together!

After having visited many of the links Terry has on her blog I am amazed at the talented group of quilters sewing along! So fun to see other peoples fabric choices and sew along with them. Thanks Terry for hosting!

A Mini Finish.

Kind of on a whim at the beginning of the year I joined the Sew Can She Mini Log Cabin sew-a-long.  A quick SAL that only last until January 29th; the goal of which is to produce at least one 4 1/2" Log Cabin quilt block. A perfect project!

Some years ago I was going to attempt a queen size Log Cabin quilt but (thank goodness) was talked out of it by a friend and quilter. She didn't actually say "don't do it". What she said was......"hmmmm that can actually be a somewhat difficult pattern". Since she is AMAZING and accomplished as a quilter, I took the hint and passed. So glad I did because at the time in my sewing it would not have been a positive and I most likely would have never finished the quilt.

This mini quilt though would give me a good run through of what I needed to to make a larger one in the future.

I have long had a fascination with the Log Cabin pattern. There is something very distinctively pioneer about it. Something rugged, solid and sturdy. Like it will last. In today's throw away age this particularly appeals to me.  My inner traditionalist really comes out with this quilt pattern. At my core I believe it should be finished with solids. They can be any color, light and dark but must be solid. While I have seen many stunning Log Cabin quilts made with gorgeous fabrics, mine needed solids. Since this year I am attempting to sew sthrough my stash and already had a small tub of solids set aside for a project, it was easy to get started.


The cutting was not very difficult but took a bit of time. I did figure out a way to make it faster as I went along by not trying to be so precise and squaring things up later. I chose a George Mendoza print from 2009 for my tiny 1 1/2" centers. Love this line, even if it is older. And if you don't know the story behind the artist you might enjoy reading about him!

Center blocks

A good tip on cutting the strips for the logs is to cut on the lengthwise grain instead of across the grain. Even woven fabrics have a bit of stretch on the cross grain. Your fabric will be a lot more stable lengthwise making it much easier to keep your logs from getting wonky and helping with your precision.

For piecing, a scant 1/4" was used. I really wished for a straight stitch plate for my machine which is so helpful in keeping lightweight fabric from bunching down in your needle plate. But, I resolved to NOT spend money on my sewing for one month so had to find a different way. Another problem on a scant 1/4" can be that your fabric is not on top of both feed dogs. A simple and FREE solution for both possible problems is to use a "starter fabric". Once I got going I then just chain pieced everything.

Fabric was so lightweight that it kept wanting to bunch up even with my small hole 1/4" quilting foot. This technique kept that from occurring.

After every log was added I square up the block. This was pretty tedious but necessary for a nice square 4 1/2".

One family liked this one!

2 family members liked this one!

Then lay out and sewing the blocks together. My lay out went pretty quick as I already knew what I wanted to do with the blocks. A small mini quilt to give as a gift for a wall hanging.

No ones first choice.

The final design all quilted up. Quilted all the seams to make a pretty design on the back. 

Very happy with the way the quiltlet turned out. And completed before the deadline. :) :)

Big City Bags SAL, Fireside Bowling Bag Complete!

The Big City Bags Sew-a-long.  A bag a month for 12 months.

It is not too late to join us!

Hmmmm….after Bag #1 it seems possible!

Albeit, not many bags have been sewn around here; I just don’t “feel” like a person that sews bags. What does that mean? I’m not even sure myself.

I can easily list the bags sewn in the last couple of years. It is a short list. A few easy totes, a bucket type bag a while back and recently, a test bag pattern for Deby at SSE and the Colette Cooper Bag. I wasn’t really sure how this bag making endeavor would go. However, motivated by the design of the first bag which I have adored since last January, I plunged in. My goals were to get some general experience making bags, learn how to sew bag details, the use of different weights of interfacing, work with purse hardware and to end up with some nice gifts for some sweet people in my life. After the first bag of 12, it seems pretty likely it can be done! All 12 I mean.

Very pleased with the end result!

A list of the good:

This bag sewed up easily and quickly once all the prep work was done.

I made a mistake and ended up with two layers of stiff stuff.
A layer of soft and stable AND a layer of fusible fleece.

The bag design had some sweet details that were simple but really added to the finished product such as the accent trim and the bit of piping between the main and accent panels.

Love the shape of the bag and sweet touches
such as the accent panels and clippy dodads!

I really LOVE it when metal clippy things and D rings and the such are added to a bag. Instant glam.

The interior of this bag is large. Love that. As soon as my daughter saw the finished product she listed all the reasons why she needed the bag for herself. J

A list of the bad:

I make copies of the supply list and check them as I get them done. 

There is a LOT of prep work. It takes a loooooooong time to cut all the pieces.

At least it takes me a long time. Confession: I find the cutting part of bag making to be very tedious. Is it just me? I really have to break out the “get ‘er done” attitude to get it finished.

I think I may have done something wrong because the lining part did not compute. Mine just sorta hangs there. I actually plan on tacking it in the corners after this post. It is too floppy.  The next time I make this bag I will be adding ½ inch seams to the pieces and using French seams to finish. I also am going to layer and cut my lining and main fabric pieces all at the same time.

I ended up with extra bag and interfaced pieces. Wonder where they went? Haven’t a clue.

Some of the directions seemed to be lacking in details and I think I found a couple of omissions or mistakes but, again, this is probably just me. I found myself ignoring the directions a few times in order to get something done.

All in all, the bag was a success and I am quite happy with the end results! Thanks Angela for hosting this SAL! I am looking forward to the February bag.

2014 Sew-A-Long Roundup

Welcome to 2014! Well almost anyway, you still have a few hours to do those last minute 2013 things. 

I don’t think I have ever been so excited for the new year and have soooo much sewing planned.  

One thing I plan on doing is documenting my completed projects better. The other day someone ask me what I had sewn and aside from a few recent items I could hardly think of anything! Craziness.  So, I plan on documenting my stitching endeavors much better this year. I have already gotten started with this free sewing journal available from SewMammaSew. To get things started I am putting my last few 2013 items in the journal.

In between my sewing time I have been browsing around the internet researching 2014 sew –a-longs (SAL) in the hopes of finding something interesting! Well there is plenty of interesting THAT IS FOR SURE. The harder part of this search has been deciding what I am going to attempt to tackle.

FACT. There are many quilting SALs out there for 2014 and from previous years. So if you LOVE to quilt you will be very happy with a simple google search of Quilt Sew-a-Longs!

FACT. There are many garment SALs from prior years still available and they ALL look awesome.

FACT. This post is about early 2014 SALS and these are the ones I plan on participating.  All the SAL's that I am going to mention have buttons on the right that will take you to those pages. Here goes:

First off….the Garment of the Month hosted by Sarah Liz. This really was the thing that got my garment sewing jump started and I joined up in October right after taking a Craftsy workshop to sew a knit dress. The challenge of making a garment for myself once a month was really intriguing and what I truly wanted to do so I joined! If you contact Sarah Liz, she can get you signed up. There are some very friendly folks associated with this group and a lot of sewing knowledge.

2. A Challenging Sew free Marfy pattern SAL. For ages now, I have been wanting to sew a Marfy pattern but have had serious “Marfy fear”.  But recently Marfy posted three free patterns on their website and Leisa is hosting a three month SAL to sew up those patterns. The patterns are for a blouse, skirt and jacket. My girl is a debater so this is for her!

3. Amity at Lolita Patterns is hosting two back to back SALS, one for the Gunmetal dress to begin Jan. 6th and one for the Spearmint Coat that starts up in Feb. I am pretty excited about these especially the coat because I purchased an amazing stretch twill from EmmaOneSock to sew up a spring coat for my daughter.

4. Sewing with Squeaks is hosting a 12 month SAL based on Sara Lawson’s new book Big City Bags.  There are 12 bags in the book. Didn’t that work out perfectly?

5. Craftytwinmommy is also hosting a 12 month SAL except participates can use any crafting/sewing book they have languishing in their sewing room. I particularly am enthralled with this SAL because A.) I am going to use it get all my Christmas “shopping” done for 2014 and B.) I hate hate hate having books laying around with super doper good information and projects in them and NEVER picking them up and using them.  Oh and C.) I have gone on a fabric buying fast and want to sew through my stash. This fits very nicely!

6.  LAST BUT NOT LEAST. I have been wanting  to sew a quilt for a particular friend from long ago. The thing is this friend and I are polar opposites now that we are adults and there has been much tension between us mainly over politics. Ugh. Hate that. I am hoping the quilt will be therapy for me (haha) and a balm between us. I found Terry from Terry’s Treasures in Ohio who is hosting a Goodnight Irene SAL.  Terry is so sweet. Love her already and I know this is weird but I thought this Quilt SAL is the one because my friend also lives in Ohio. Terry is starting things up Jan. 1^st or so.

Whew…I am getting tired just thinking about all this. There is no doubt some good organization is in order here. I have been working on that as well. Maybe a post in the future!

For now, Sew on Friends, Sew on!

Judy

P.S. There are also a bunch of contest at Pattern Review.