Traipsing back & another bag

When my children were young, I made many of their clothes - shirts, shorts, dresses, vests, overalls, you name it. We were, as most couples are, young and pinching pennies, and there was a fabric store in town that was known for selling cheap and inexpensive fabrics. Since kids grow so fast, I shopped there often, especially their remnant table. For my boys, I had a particular shirt I liked to make for warmer weather and I wondered if the pattern were still available.

I scoured my brain and the internet both, looking for just the thing, and I found it. It made me smile because I also made my older son many pair of slacks from the same pattern. I have been saving some fire and rescue fabrics and decided to go ahead and buy the pattern to make a shirt or two out of it. And so I did!

I finished this shirt today. It's 100% cotton, so it may wrinkle a bit, but I hope some young man enjoys it.

Love the band on the sleeves. 

The pattern called for piping and a band on the pocket, but not this time. 

It was a trip down memory lane making this shirt and I think I just might have to do it again.

I had energy to burn today, so I made another Peter Max bag and put it on eBay.

Sewing Peter Max fabric

I've collected vintage Peter Max fabric for quite some time. I had a lightweight piece cut to make a tote bag and finally got around to putting it together today. It's so scary cutting and then putting modern thread and machine to this 1970s fabric - What if I make a mis-cut? What if I stitch it crooked? What if ... ? But sometimes, you just have to do it. (I still have a piece of silk that my mother hand when I was a child; I'm not sure I'll ever cut that!)

So, here we have it, a simple tote with Peter Max face fabric.

You can see the face in the center. Or you can ignore the face and enjoy the artsy fartsy fabric.

On the reverse side, the face is looking the other day and the colors are a bit different.

I made sure to get a signature on both sides (toward the bottom, in the center). 

This bag was lined with a mottled yellow fabric and the pocket was made out of the original PM fabric. I always attach my little tag. It doesn't show because it's on the inside of the bag when all is said and done. 

I'll put this bag on eBay. I have a giant sized bag that I use for a swim tote.  I don't sell them all. One was passed along to an art group in Richmond. Here are a couple more I've blogged about:

Pink tote bag and pieced bag and others.


Whatever your passion, don't let it intimidate you. Dive in and sew to your heart's desire!

You can never have enough!

Tote bags, that is.

I got to sewing again this morning and listed these two bags on Etsy. Do I rule or what?

This one, I made a while ago. It has a yellow lining and pocket. It's bigger than most that I make, measuring 17W x 14H. Not sure why I made it that big!

This is the one I made today. It's more like it - 15W x 14H. I had to piece the back, but I like the way the designs lined up! 

I used a swirly blue for the lining on this one and a Peter Max remnant to make the pocket.

For a day that started out with no electricity, RIP squirrel that landed on the transformer, it is turning out to be a pretty good one!

Updated my Etsy page, Peter Max bags and stuff

I've probably mentioned that I've been collecting Peter Max fabric for years. I was a big fan when I was a teen and just started picking it up here and there whenever I saw it recently. Now, it's time to put it to use and pass it on to others. I had always planned on making tote bags. And so I did.

Feel free to have a gander at other views of the bags on my Etsy page: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ScrapStitching

I was sort of burned out on making tote bags, but these are a little different. They're lined and the pockets have a Velcro closure. They're a step above simple library bags like the ones I made for CDR. This is not another 100-bag project! Whew.

My favorite of the Peter Max fabrics is the flowery one shown below in the two alike bags. The circle fabric was trimmed out of a full sheet. I have several other designs I'll use eventually from sheets, pillowcases, fabric runs, curtains, etc., but for today, this is it.

fin!

Sewing Catch Up - Quilt, Buttons, Tote

I'm back in Virginia after being in Texas for a week. While there, I had the opportunity to take a photo of a quilt that my sister and I made. She started it for her husband before she died. He sent it to me and a couple years later, I sent it to him. He had collected beer bandannas, and here's the result of my quilt-as-you-go quilt:

It is a little smaller than queen sized. My sister's work was done by hand. Mine was primarily done by machine. Michael, who passed away last week, picked the flame fabric for the sashing and binding. The back is a mix of several types of muslin; I could not match what my sister had used, but it's okay; it looks great. They lived in Grand Prairie, Texas. Before I traveled to Texas, I cut out a quickie hexagon mini quilt. I always have to have something to sew! I'll post pictures of that later. But I digress! The quilt above was finished in 2012, and it has taken this long for me to get a picture. Somehow, I let it get away without photographing it. Here is the initial story of this quilt - Sewing a Memory

One of the things I'm working on now is a button art project. The first installment of that project is here - Button Art. I took an updated picture of the work in progress today:

I have a long way to go. I can only do a few buttons at a time and allow them to completely dry before I can shift the form and add more. I'll reattach the stand to the form when it's done.

Lastly, I've been moving my sewing room/computer desk and that has taken a lot of my time, but I did find time to make a couple of Peter Max tote bags! I have them on Etsy.

I put a Velcro closure pocket inside with my label.  

That's it for now. Well, one more thing - it's amazing how much stuff you find when you're cleaning a sewing area!

Sew well and stay cool.

Vacation!

Sorry to be gone for so long. I'm on vacation and thought I would take a quick minute to check in.

Before I left home, I cut out a Kwik Sew 3147 jacket/cardigan out of a light paisley denim and finally found enough time to get it together. There's a picture and a description of the pattern in my October 9 post.  It turned out really nice and fit really well. I'm so glad I added pockets. I did not use buttons and chose to leave the front open with no closures. I wore that and a brown V-neck tee along with beige capri pants for the flight, and my assistant after my last flight asked me if I was "a businesswoman." I told her that I wasn't really, and she commented on how "professional" I looked! What a great compliment, especially when you're wearing something you made. I thought it was a great looking outfit myself and the jacket pulled it all together. So keep sewing your stuff - you look great!

I also carried my Peter Max oversized tote as a carryon in lieu of a purse (my purse was actually in the bag!), and got unsolicited compliments and comments on that. Seeing as that was truly a scrap project, the fabric coming from a vintage curtain, I got another proud moment!

I'll be doing some hand sewing while I'm out of town. I always take my hexagon project with me. The flight attendant started a conversation with me about quilts when he saw me sewing. That led to conversation about tee shirt quilts and his grandmother and mother, and everyone else he had known who sewed. Let people see you sew! It makes for good chat openers and may encourage someone else to give it a try.

So enjoy your fall weather wherever you are, and I'll be here in Phoenix wasting away in their gorgeous climate.

Sewing, sewing, sewing!

It's been a month or so of finishing projects, organizing fabrics after giving away about 20 pounds or more of fabrics that I sorted out as "stuff I just might not use." It's SO hard to do that! Every piece of fabric could be turned into something, right?

I realized that my hexagon quilt is going to take more than I thought to finish, so I have been basting fabric to paper seemingly endlessly. This is not something that will get done quickly, for sure. I love working with the English piecing and the hexagon shapes, but it has gotten to where I had to buy some charm fabric packets from a variety of people on eBay and Etsy. It turns out, a lot of people have just as much fabric as I do! By my last count, I'm about 1/3rd of the way done with the quilt top. What I thought would take about a year will probably take two years, and that's okay by me. I'm flying to Phoenix on Monday, and I will take the hexagon bag with me again to make rows while waiting in airports or just while doing a little bit of nothing else.

I'm on the lookout for more Peter Max fabric, and I have been working with my smaller Max scraps making potholders. What a great way to use up small pieces of fabric! I keep a small supply of heat resistant batting on hand so I can always fabricate a set. I had thought about decorating hand towels with scrappy bits of Peter Max fabric, but I'm not sure it would hold up to that much washing.

I also sold a few Halloween items. I made placemats and trick-or-treat bags and though they didn't all sell, some did and now I have a couple left for next season. Along the way, I cut squares of the Halloween fabrics and sold a few charm collections myself.

And just today, I finished a jacket I cut out some time ago, just in time to wear on my flight. I added pockets and did not add the buttons. I also redrew the hemline for the front pieces and made them into a wavy line rather than a straight one. The back is also straight. I used a light fabric with a brown and turquoise paisley pattern, and used a bias tape I made out of a complementary fabric (turquoise crystal type fabric) to bind the front, sleeve edges, and pocket edges. This gives it a bit of a retro look, but it also added a unique look to a very simple line. It was not a hard pattern to make, but it was a touch time consuming for me because I'm used to making smaller items. A full sized jacket was a bit bigger than I generally take on, but I loved making it. I love that it fits well and that I have the perfect tee shirt for wearing underneath it. I also love pockets and with the two pockets on the jacket and the several in my capris, I'll have plenty of  room! I'm flying from Virginia to Phoenix and this fabric is light enough that I can wear it for a bit of warmth on my side of the country, but not too much for the warmth of Arizona.

I have so many sewing projects in my head. Will I ever finish them all? Will you? Sew on, friends. Fall is here and it's time to sew clothes to keep you warm!

Wow! Time has flown, hasn't it?

Let's see - an earthquake and a hurricane, no power for a period of a few days, several sewing projects  being worked on, then on hold, then being worked on, and a busy life in general! That's no excuse for ignoring the blog, now is it? Time for some good karma!

I have a store-bought quilt that is falling apart on the patchwork side, but the back is in great condition. I decided to rescue it and repurpose it and make it a loved member of our winter warming blankie collection. I gave away lots and lots of my stash, but I held onto the browns I have. I cut those all into 8" squares, saving the smaller pieces to make binding. I've been spending time at the machine sewing the squares into strips. It looks like it will be 10 squares by 12 squares to cover the queen quilt top. A true scrap stitching project, I'm using threads that are left over from other projects and garments. I have so many that are gold/brown/off white! After I get the top completely sewn, all the strips combined into one piece, then I will tie the patchwork onto the old quilt, trim up the edges, and bind it anew. I'm very close to finishing the quilt top!

I've also decided to make some clothes for myself. In making this decision (and knowing I'm losing weight), I went through my patterns and have decided to put all the oversized ones on Etsy for sale. As things tend to happen, I found a bunch of 18" doll clothes patterns that I had in duplicate or were collecting dust, not to be used, and am also selling those on Etsy. Soon, I will put together the unlined paisley shirt jacket and the aquamarine top to wear under it, and thus will have a new outfit for flying in October.

Lastly, I have been looking into purchasing more Peter Max fabric for bags and other items to sell. I get so many comments on my Peter Max bag. Every woman should have one!

Happy sewing and look for pictures soon of the browns quilt. It's coming along. Happy Labor Day and enjoy the end of summer. Think good karma!

P.S. Here are a couple pillows I made on contract:

 

and their backs:

Max, Peter Max, Calling Peter Max!

Here I go again. I'm not done with my Peter Max fabric. I've made potholders, a tote bag, and tonight, made another lined tote bag to sell on Etsy. I've got enough fabric to make at least one more. We'll see how this one sells. the Peter Max/M&M potholders sold today. They were fun to make too. But tonight, the house was quiet and I hit the sewing room, taking apart some more of the curtain that I have, and came up with this lovely item.

It's about 15 x 13 and is lined with a cotton blend fabric rather than the Peter Max fabric I used on its larger counterpart. I have some turquoise fabric that matches the turquoise thread and designs on the Max print, so I went with that.

I made the handles out of the hem of the curtain. I cut it off and folded over a hem, then folded the whole thing in half again and stitched three rows of stitching to provide stability and long life of the handles.

I always try to make sure there's a signature showing somewhere on the bag, and in this case, it was front and center on one side and to the left of center on the other. I'll be sorry to be done with this fabric as I've so enjoyed working with it! How can you not love those hippie dippie colors? My bedroom was filled with this stuff when I was a young teen.

The top of the curtain was used to make a large pocket for inside the bag and I cut a small bit of Velcro to use as a closure for that. You can see the lining fabric with this photo of the inside of the bag.

The bottom line is I got some sewing in today. It's been a whacky week and I was hoping to get to the machine for a little while. My next project is a Smurfs dress for a little girl somewhere. I think it's a size 5, but will know for sure the next time I mention it. A friend on the Hippie Sewing email list sent me a white zipper to use to finish it up, so there's no reason for me to not get started on it.

Buh bye Mr. Max.... for now.

Stash busting - UFOs - Hand Sewing

We've talked before about half finished projects or items that merely need that last bit of hand sewing done, right? For instance, when I make placemats or pot holders, I apply the binding with machine on one side and by hand on the other. I have a really bad habit of finishing them up to the point of the hand sewing. I bet I am not alone on this!

 

The latest is a set of Peter Max and M&M potholders. I finally finished the hand stitching on the binding on the one bound in green last night. It's been sitting around for about a week or so just waiting for me! I still have remnants of the Peter Max and of the M&M fabric and who knows what comes next for them. For now, I have one more placemat to bind! 

I had a bag that I put all my hand sewing in and took it to the living room with threads, needles, and all the other items I'd need to finish them up. Every night while we hang out, I work on a different piece. I've made a deal with myself not to start something new till these are done. That includes no machine stitching on the Peter Max tote bags I have cut out. It feels good to finally be using those fabrics that I've been sitting on for so long!

One last stash busting note - I sent out five boxes to people from my email group and have three more to fill when I get the postage together. It sure feels good knowing that fabric has found a good home. It has also been an eye opener for me, reminding me what I have on hand and what I don't need to keep. Bust away fellow sewing people!

P.S. for an easy how-to for potholders, I have a generic potholder project/instructional/tutorial for you on the Scrapstitching project page. These are easy, use up all sorts of scrap fabrics, and require very little in the way of buying. The only thing you really need to buy is Insul-Bright Mylar/Poly Batting. The rest of the parts, you already have. If you don't have Fiberfill, use an old towel.

Oh the sewing we can sew

I've got a really fun stash of fabrics, from M&Ms to Peter Max to strawberries, Star Wars, Elvis, German Shepherd Dogs, the Smurfs, Harley Davidson, various NFL teams, and all sorts of designs in between. The last few days have seen the M&M fabric and the Peter Max fabric come out to play. First same these:

 

Everyone needs an M&M light switch cover, right? I made a few of each and put them up on Etsy. 

Then I made these two pot holders: 

 

The log cabin one is on Etsy too. 

 

I love them both, but am particularly fond of the Peter Max one, also available on Etsy. I made sure to capture a signature piece for the strip quilting:

I had some fun sewing these. I suggest if you have a spare couple of hours this holiday weekend, grab up some batting, Thinsulate and some of your fabric bits and make some pot holders. Keep or sell. It's up to you!

That's my fun for today. What's yours?

Peter Max and Hexagons

The Peter Max tote worked perfectly for my flight from Virginia to Arizona. Besides the fact that it was the most beautiful bag in the airports and on the planes, it held what I needed, fit under the seat and on my lap. I noticed a few folks taking a gander. How could they not? Okay, the arrogance is a little fake, but my pride in the piece is real.

Inside the bag, along with a lot of personal items, were some pieces to be sewn for my ongoing hexagon quilt. I read recently that it will take about two years to finish a quilt like this, so I'm taking my time, enjoying the process, and loving collecting charm fabrics without duplicates. I am working in lengths of 11 hexagons now instead of 10. I made an error early on and had some 11-hexagon rows, so I decided that was my new unit size. I can pull 11 hexagons out of my bag and stitch away at my leisure, and that's exactly what I'm doing. I highly recommend a small hand sewing project for everyone who sews. It's always there and willing to be utilized. Take your time, enjoy the process, and relax a bit. Beach time is coming and a hand sewing project, to me, is as important as a good book to pack!

And, while I have you, Happy Mother's Day to everyone.
My mother passed away several years ago, but she is still fondly remembered. My children all contacted me and we had fun phone conversations (I'm out of town). Overall, it was a beautiful day. That's my mother with the dark hair in the photo and her mother with the white hair, sitting on a bench in Austria, her home.

On a dinner outing Saturday, we saw many, many teenagers in formal gowns. I am thinking it's prom season! Here's hoping your prom experience this year was a fun one and that many of you made those dresses!

Enjoy your day! keep sewing.

Peter Max Tote

I've had a vintage curtain panel, genuine Peter Max, for some time now. I've been waiting for it to speak to me. The fabric is too heavy for a garment. It's too precious for a pot holder. I wanted to make something that would last for a while and show off the fabric. I'm traveling Wednesday. I had a light bulb moment - tote bag! I need a bag with shoulder straps that I can use instead of a purse, and there you have it, the planning began.

I cut the hem off the panel and made two shoulder straps, each about 39" long. I folded them toward the center and stitched, reinforcing with a few more rows. I chose orange thread to keep with the Max and 70s theme.

I used the fabric from the curtain header to make pockets for the inside. I cut four pieces of fabric, about 40" x 40", and made a lined basic tote, adding the pockets to the lining and the Velcro closure for the bag itself after I completed construction of the bag and lining.

I have a large piece of the fabric left and am not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I'm very happy with phase one - the travel tote with shoulder straps.