I am loving our summer break this year! The last couple summers were hectic and we didn't have a lot of down time. This summer is different. It's all about relaxing, reorganizing, and crafting. So far, we've barreled through quite a few things.
I got a really cool pattern from my friend Heidi to make to new kind of tote bag. She and her girlies keep their knitting supplies in them. They're the perfect size and the open top gives easy access to the "stuff".
Here's our first one. Alli picked out the fabrics and even had the idea for bow on the pocket.
Knitting has been a big hit around here. So far, we've mostly just been practicing. This poncho pattern looked pretty simple, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I used the wrong size needles, so it's a miniature version. (It was supposed to fit an adult.) I think it might fit a 5 year old even better than Alli. But it was great practice!
I made this adorable pillowcase to match a my comforter. (Using Jona's tutorial, of course.) Custom pillowcases...what a great idea!
But this, by far, is the most ambitious thing I've ever sewn. I've been working on it for months.
I thought I would save myself some money, but it ended up costing way more than a store bought curtain and it was way more challenging than I expected. The Waverly fabric is pretty and goes with some of the darker colors in my house, but prefer a more cottagey/whimsical look, so I used Vintage Dot fabric by Sandi Henderson as the contrast fabric. That way it's not too formal looking. :)
I'm so glad it's finished!
This summer, we'll be hosting a few more sewing parties for the girls' friends along with lots of other fun projects. I even have a bunch of my all time favorite fabric, Fresh Cut by Heather Bailey, set aside for a quilt...my first one! Hopefully, I'll be able to get to it.
I never never ever would've thought to put that zebra stripe with those fabrics!! Look how cute that is! And that valance is simply amazing. Fancy piping and everything, no wonder it took so long. I thought I would saving money making the kids shower curtain a few years back and it ended up costing over 60 bucks. Crazy.
Posted by: Jona | June 01, 2009 at 08:03 PM
What pattern is that? It looks like the one I am getting ready to do for our kitchen. I just need to buy some contrasting material. Any hints on making it?
Posted by: Kathi | June 17, 2009 at 01:12 PM
Yikes...I'm not getting any comments sent to my email and I had no idea that these were here.
Jona...I think I'll stick to skirts and tote bags for a while. :) Quick and cheap!
Kathi, it is pattern McCall's 0609. Hints...I found that the marks that were supposed to line up the panel seams didn't line them up and I had to go through individually and make sure the bottoms of each panel was lined up perfectly. That was the trickiest part. Other than that, it's a fairly straight forward pattern. Good luck with yours!
Posted by: KellyinVA | June 21, 2009 at 07:54 PM