a pretty little unicorn

so many birthdays for little ones in the past few months! i was late in finishing up this cutie for my boyfriends, nephews, daughter...but this unicorn, made from a Funky Friend's Factory pattern, turned out extra sweet i think :)

i used up a very old piece of soft flannel baby cotton for the main body and a sparkle felt for the extra pieces. enjoy!

owls, bags and wallets! oh my!

a very dear friend of mine has asked me to make all kinds of wonderful things for her and her family. to start with, she requested one of my "famous" bags and a matching wallet. so i found some great fabric online at fabric.com and got to work...here is the results:

the bag (interior and exterior) is made with quilting cotton 

and is lined with a lightweight batting. 

the interior shows the pocket and key leash detail that i added.

the wallet is made with the same cotton fabrics as the bag, 

but i used a bright blue to accent in the bag and a pink 

(to match the zipper with is pink, not white!) in the wallet.
the interior is interfaced and it closes with a snap.

practice wallet

so i was commissioned to make a wallet for a very dear friend. but i have never made one before! so, i found a great pattern online from Confessions of a Fabricaholic (tutorial can be found here), made a few tweaks to it and made a test model. i think it came out pretty great! 

the entire wallet is made with home dec fabric from my stash 

it has a double snap closure to adjust the "fit"

 the interior has lots of card slots and two large pockets for cash and other items. there is also a lined zipper pocket for change and other small items. 

bright butterfly

i was feeling the need to paint something bright and beautiful since this winter has been so cold and dreary. so i came up with this pretty little butterfly and i think it did just the trick for the living room. 

18x24 acrylic

my NEW new purse

you might remember a post a did a couple months back about my new bag. well, i showed my mom and she insisted that i make her one just like it! hooray right? well, not exactly...it was fabric that i have been holding on to that my mom had given me Y.E.A.R.S. ago...and there is none left. so, needless to say i gave her the bag with the intention of making another one for me. 

well, i have finally finished it. and it is pretty fabulous. i used a home decorator print by Joel Dewberry that, of course, is no longer available on fabric.com for the exterior and a basic teal cotton that my mom gave me from her fabric stash. :) thanks mom! the hardware i picked up from my local fabric store and the zipper came from fabric.com as well. 

the pattern is my own design and includes a convertible handle (from shoulder to cross-body), tons of pockets inside, two large exterior pockets, a recessed zipper, and top-stitching all over. 

i love it. 

shoulder version

cross-body version

top-stitching detail

view of recessed zipper and interior

diggles the birthday dragon!

it was my nephews birthday a couple weeks ago so i made him a little something from Funky Friend's Factory (my favorite place to get patterns for softies!).  they have the best patterns! i have made a few different ones, but this Diggles the Dragon has been my favorite to make. 
i used a Dr Seuss minky fabric (that fabric.com sent to me in error, but i liked so i kept it!) for the main body and fleece for all the other parts. 
my nephew loved it and i hope you do too :)

another cross body bag

a client i made one of these for earlier this year has requested another one, this time in autumn/winter colors! it is constructed out of sturdy home decorator fabric-which i find perfect for bag making! this bag is my favorite cross body bag to make. it includes side outer pockets, roomy interior pockets all around and a key leash inside to attach your keys to! 

side/front(ish) view

view looking into interior of bag

would you like a custom bag of your own? send me an email and we can discuss the details!

my creative space

it dawned on me that i haven't posted any pictures of the space that i am lucky enough to sew and create in. i used to sew in a little space in the spare bedroom corner, but last year i asked my boyfriend if i could turn an unused room in the basement into my sewing room. he agreed and the transformation began! 

so here is a look at the transformation...

here is the GOOD before picture! after i had cleaned up some of the mess already. there were kitty litter boxes and food in here too. 

here is the gorgeous after! i absolutely love working in here. we painted the walls and the floor to give it a fresh clean look practically all of the furniture is from Ikea, cheap and easy to put together :)

all of my sewing books and patterns are in the upright bookcase. fat quarters and smaller pieces of fabric, along with interfacing and felt are kept on top of the upright bookcase. all of my other crafting books and supplies are on the horizontal bookcase. easel, portfolio, canvases and art supplies are on the floor, in the basket and in the bottom sections of the upright bookcase. the desks contain additional art and sewing supplies. and my dress form is off in the corner by my sewing machine.

ironing station against the wall. my fabric is stored under the cutting table in large plastic bins. my rotary mats and cutter are on the wall ready to go. additional supplies for cutting (scissors, rulers, books, pattern weights...) are stored n this side of the cutting table along with binders of inspiration projects and current projects i am working on.  

i also found this old desk chair and.......

 turned it into this beautiful sewing chair! i love it :) the pattern is little trees. 

in closing i love my sewing space. it is my perfect little getaway to sew and paint and create. i feel very lucky to have such a great place to be creative. 

a new purse

i have made myself a new purse! it is a design i created based on a purse i already own, but wanted to tweak it a little. the original purse had a top zipper and a fixed shoulder strap. for this new version i used a heavyweight upholstery fabric with a cotton lining, made a recessed zipper and included a strap that can be worn on the shoulder or worn cross body. i like having both options and have a difficult time finding a purse that i like with options. the interior also has plenty of pockets to put your stuff, always a plus! the exterior also has two pockets on either side perfect for sunglasses and your phone.

purse with shoulder strap in place

purse with strap extended

interior of bag
(also shows recessed zipper)

a call for costumes

my older sister asked me to make costumes for my niece (10) and nephew (5) for Halloween this year! so exciting to be asked to make them so of course i said yes! 

my niece wants to be a Hershey Kiss. so i found a discontinued pattern that i purchased from a great seller on ebay. i figured that would be pretty easy with a pattern and some fun metallic fabric! she is a size 10 and the pattern i used was a child's 10/12. it just needs to have a bit of tissue paper put in the bottom to add some fullness. but i think it looks great! i think the finished product is pretty fabulous! 

here is the pattern 

McCalls 8376

the completed costume

the plume is made with a bit of lightweight interfacing 

hand lettered with a blue fabric marker

now, my nephew wants to be a Lego Mini Figure of Luke Skywalker. um, what? ya, there are no patterns for that, and no good instructions online for making a costume like that so i was on my own. it took a lot of time to draft the pattern using his measurements and making the costume to scale. lots of math and trial and error. i am very pleased with the finished result. 

my inspiration

the boots

they have a bit of elastic underneath to keep them on

the hands

i couldn't resist taking of picture of mr. bear with them on

he is such a good model :)

the head

being modeled by my dress form :)

 

the body

being modeled by a cardboard tube :)

front

side

back

and view of cape

attached a shoulders

there is a full Velcro closure down the back

a view of the whole costume together

my sister promised me she would get a lot of pictures of the kids in their costumes and send them to me, so i will put some of those pictures up when i get them. 

for now, i am pleased with the results of both costumes and rather proud of that hand drafted Mini Figure costume. :) go me!

**EDITED***

here is a picture of the kids in their costumes! i think they look great! :)