Bag of the Week 33

Cyane’s Spoonflower Bag

I am very excited about today’s project.  This is a recently completed bag and it has a story to go along with it.

My friend Cyane and I went to college together and I recall being amazed at her extensive pink and green wardrobe (my public school upbringing had never exposed me to this degree of preppiness before).  She was, frankly, one of the preppiest women I knew in school.  She was also very artistic and creative.  This is a purse that I made for her though that is not the end of the story.  You see, Cyane created the fabric for this bag (with a little help from the people over at Spoonflower).

Cyane has a business called Snazzy Frogs where she sells her whimsical drawings and creations.  You can find her at the Charlottesville City market most Saturday mornings and also online.  Not too long ago she discovered Spoonflower, a business based in NC that turned her artwork into printed fabric (just like they can do for you).  One day while we were having lunch she showed me swatches of her fabrics and I loved the one with martini glasses.  I ordered a yard of the print in linen/cotton canvas and set out to make her a bag.  (You can see all of Cyane’s fabrics here or by searching for snazzy frogs on the Spoonflower site).

I debated and debated which pattern to use and finally settled on Simplicity 5606 (OOP).  I fused fleece to the outer bag pieces and added curved, piped pockets to the ends.  I used a white jacket zipper for the closure.  The handles came from All Craft Supplies. 

The lining fabric (a soft, light weight woven plaid) is fused with Décor Bond and features two sets of pockets (two along one side, three along the other).  I sewed in two labels, my Juliet Originals label (which I stitch out on my embroidery machine) and a Spoonflower label that was included with my order.

I have to tell you that this pattern was one of the most difficult bags I have ever sewn.  Setting in the end pieces was extremely difficult and it had to be done four times (two outer and two lining pieces).  In the end it all came together but I spit and fussed my way through it.

You will be seeing this fabric again, hopefully in a few weeks, as I plan to make myself a bag from it as well (thought rest assured I will be using a different pattern!)  I know Cyane is enjoying using her new bag and I hope you enjoyed reading about how it came to be.

Two New Favorites

Tonight I want to tell you about two new products I've just discovered.  The first are MiniCards from Moo.  What are MiniCards, you ask (I wondered, too).  Half the size of a traditional business card, MiniCards are perfect for showcasing some of your work since you can have a different image on each card.  The front of the cards feature a photo of your choice (either your own image or one from Moo's design gallery) while the back contains your contact information (or whatever text you wish).  In order to promote my blog I designed a batch of MiniCards with five images taken from some of my creations.  On the back I listed my name, blog address, phone number and email.  The process was fun and easy (they walk you through the various steps) and I received my cards in about a week.

To give you an idea of what the front of my MiniCards looked like I used the second product I want to tell you about.  Blue Daisy Designs has created a set of Photo Blog Templates which makes it easy to display multiple pictures here on my blog.  Using Photoshop Elements 7.0 I uploaded the five images I used on my MiniCards and placed them into the single image you see above.  I think this will be a great way for me to show a grouping of pictures for a project without having to post multiple pictures.  I can't wait to use these.  Blue Daisy also has a blog where they offer a free sample of their work each Friday and lots of other products in their Etsy store.  Go check them out.

Two new products that will hopefully make my blog prettier and aid in its promotion -- FUN. 

Window Treatments for a Nursery, Part 4

This is the final of four posts on the window treatments I made for my great niece’s nursery.  The first week I covered making your own cornice board.  The second week showed how I constructed the valance which attached to the cornice board.  Last week I shared how to make a Roman shade.  And today I will talk about how I installed each item and put it all together.

The first step was to install the cornice board and this step was completed before I determined the final length for the Roman shade.  Use the angled brackets attached to the bottom of the cornice and drywall anchors to fix the piece to the wall above the window.  I allowed the bottom edge of the bracket to rest on the top window trim which raised the cornice just slightly above the window.  Once it was in place the final shade length could be determined by measuring from the hanging bar to the desired length.

Next came hanging the valance from the cornice.  As you can see in the picture above, the hook side of Velcro has been applied to the top edge of the cornice.  The corresponding loop portion was sewn to the top of the valance.  Hanging is a simple matter of matching the center pleat to the mark made at the cornice center and pressing the valance in place from the center out.  This allows for easy removal of the valance for cleaning.

Finally, the Roman shade is put in place.  Determine which side of the window the cord will draw from and install a cleat on the wall (you may want to wait until after the shades are hung to determine the location of the cleat).  Insert the hanging rod through the casing at the top of the shade and hang in place.  Tie one end of thin drapery cording to the lowest curtain ring on the far side of the shade (the side away from where the draw cord will hang).  The cord is run up through each curtain ring, through the eye hook on the cornice above those rings and then through the other two eye hooks on the cornice board.  Allow a length of cord to remain for pulling the curtain up and cut off the remaining cord.  Repeat this process with each of the rows of curtain rings.  The row furthest from the draw cord will run through 3 eye hooks; the middle row will run through 2 and the row closest to the draw cord will run through only one eye hook.  Pull all of the cords taught and tie together in an overhand knot.  Determine the length of cord needed for drawing and cut off remainder.  Wrap cords around cleat to secure shade in the open position.

I have purchased most of my drapery supplies from Drapery Sewing Supplies.  They have an excellent selection of notions and supplies as well as lots of helpful resources about sewing window treatments. 

Moving on to new projects now!

Beautiful Beets

I don't usually post about my dinner preparations but I had to show you these beautiful vegetables I got through my CSA.  For those of you who don't know, CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.  I have, essentially, purchased a share in a farm; share is the operative word as I share in the bounty and share in the risk.  I pay a fee at the beginning of the season and each week I receive a bag full of fresh fruit and vegetables.  I am never dissapointed.  Farmer John at Graceland Farm works awfully hard to provide me with lovely organic vegetables all summer long.  To find a CSA near you (and other useful food-related information) try FoodRoutes.

Back to the beets:  these were so lovely I had to photograph them.  I had several smaller dark red ones, a large bright pink one with pink stripes and a lighter pink one with white stripes. 

I roasted them (425 degree oven for about an hour) with some potatoes and onions (also from my share), garlic cloves, a drizzle of olive oil and seasoned with salt, pepper and fresh rosemary.  I crumbled a little feta cheese on top to serve.  They were as good to eat as they were to look at.

Check back tomorrow when I will post the final installment in my window treatment series.

Bag of the Week 32

Yoga Bag

I created this bag to store my yoga mat in many years ago.  I fell in love with the yoga font from Embroidery Arts and had to have it.  I had grand visions of making customized yoga bags for people and using this font to monogram them.  Who was I kidding?  I think I made a total of 5 bags (which brings the cost down to about $2.50 per letter).  But I still love this design.

The bag has a carrying strap which also forms the drawstring closure.  The monogrammed bellows-style pocket is large enough to carry a water bottle.  I created my own pattern for this bag but have long forgotten how I did it.  Luckily, Amy Butler has a free pattern for her Nigella Yoga Bag with wonderful illustrated instructions.