Hapai Tote

 This is a largish tote that I sewed this weekend. Santa was pretty good to me this year - this Hapai Tote was offered as a kit from CloBird Designs. It arrived in January and didn't sit around too long.

It's designed by Jessica Curzan of SewDaKine in Hawaii. This is who I order my cork fabric from.

For this tote kit, I opened it up and was rather dismayed to find it was all taupe. The cork, the lining, the main fabric were all shades of nothingness. I almost started sewing it with the burgundy thread in my sewing machine but decided to sew it as a normal person who never deviates and always has matching thread in the sewing machine. (It was screamin'difficult for only ten minutes)

 I liked how Jessica designed this. She also runs  a Production Sewing group on Facebook. Keep the shapes simple, cut multiples at a time, sew each section, then move on to the next. Already things I'm interested in. Jessica puts it out there in a fun, productive way. She is earning a living (plus) sewing bags. A goal to emulate.

 Once I was finished, it was still beige, and the rainy day was so not helping on the camera lighting.  I added a Hawaiian zipper charm and then hung it up to ignore for a couple of hours.
 
 I decided it needed a giant tassel.
 
I still have Kyle's turquoise tassel that she sent me. It was the right size but not quite right, color wise. I rummaged around and found a burgundy vinyl and quickly made a tassel that *helps*.

I love how the pattern designer added a recessed zipper to this bag. It keeps things from toppling out. This bag is made with firmer materials like cork and canvas but it still likes to collapse a bit.

Her directions are for the intermediate sewist. There were a couple of directions that a beginner would need help deciphering.

It's big enough to throw a couple of beach towels in. It's also washable. Yes, that cork is washable. It's a renewable resource, backed onto a stabilizer fabric. It doesn't fray, making this easy to execute.

I'm still staring at it and knowing it will pop over to the etsy shop to be sold to someone who appreciates it more.

It's way too big for  me. Perfect for a beach tote - size wise - but the colors don't make me happy. I might do some more work on it - maybe some hand-stitching in a burgundy color to match the tassel.

Rummaging At The End Of October

 Found at the last church rummage sale. A linen tablecloth bought new at the old Meier & Franks Department Store for $3.98 and then tucked away as too nice to share.

Or, buyer's remorse?
Or, a gift that wasn't quite what the recipient had in mind for their home decor.
Or, it was on sale.
Or, .....????

Still with the tag attached.

 It measures 54" x 70" - just large enough for my dining room table.

 Oh good - you spotted the Piper J-5 ailerons being stored here.

 I just love this grape vine motif with the aqua-grey stripes. Supposedly hand-printed.

 This was found at another church rummage sale. Opening it ----

 Airplane Dominoes! Woot!
Two bits.

 These are the thick - nearly 1/2 inch thick old fashioned dominoes.
28 of them.
I don't need dominoes. I have zero use for them.
But they have airplanes on the back.

  I'm home sick today with the coughing crud. It came on last week and I spent most of the weekend in bed just sleeping, trying not to cough. I think I turned the corner this morning as my energy seems to be coming back. I called in sick because I'm still hacking up sputum samples (as the pharmacist son said).

I had been giving out Smarties last week at work to my very smartest customers. Inspiring Smarty jokes - tailored to the transaction at hand. They lend themselves to humor so well. Laughter is the best. And, most people love these.

Anyway, I was taking a break with two of my carriers who, quite obviously, had a different childhood than mine. Most of us, as children, decided these were pills, to be taken as needed.
These two, however, used to smash them to powder and snort them up their noses.

Yes.

Moving on.

Vilnius, Lithuania

DD is back from her European vacation. She loved Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Very affordable. Sweden and Helsinki were more expensive.
I love her rooftop photos with all the red roofs.

Laney Hobo Bag In Linen

 I was fairly productive sewing-wise Sunday. It was raining cats & dogs outside. Just because we (Willamette Valley) have experienced a few days that proclaim Spring is coming - Mother Nature told us to back off a bit before we plant our gardens.

 This is a very cute Laney Hobo Bag - free pattern by Swoon Pattern. It's well written for the confident beginner sew-er. I say confident because the middle piece - perfect for fussy cutting/patchwork/embroidery is eased onto the side pieces. A bit of a curve there and while pinning often was addressed, cutting notches to help seam lie flat was not.  


There are only two pattern pieces. The side pieces need to be cut mirror-image which is clearly stated in the pattern. I think that's an advance beginner skill as well.

I, being an intermediate sew-er had to add a curved back slip pocket (with contrast piping - stash)  as well as a welted zipper pocket inside. Whats a purse without pockets? Bag jumble from hell.

I also added a little slip ring ??? at the top of the handle to hide the seams. It's made out of the lining material to add a little subtle bling.

 I did a welt zipper pocket inside and let the pocket lining 'appear' around the zipper.

 I cheated made this out of some linen -blend fabric that was reversible so even when I cut my interfacing not with a mirror image, I managed.

 Which is why I still say confident beginner because while you may remember to cut out the main side panels with mirror cutting, I am confident you will forget when it comes time to cut out your interfacing.

I interfaced only the main fabric as both fabrics were heavier than quilting cottons

I almost did not add the ties at the top middle because I would never tie these but I found some ribbon in stash that matched and went with it as a design element instead of a practical, useful, element.

The Laney Hobo Bag was easy to sew. Easy to add some design usefulness (pockets). In the mid-size of bags. This one is very spring/summer in off-white linen.

The link is here.




Doing almost nothing on a Sunday except watching the birds fight.
{Bad video from smart phone through kitchen window.
--See if you notice the neighbor's cat near the end}