Dreaming of warmer places!

 

The frozen tundra that we call home has kept us inside A LOT lately.

 

Which means I've found some new things to sew!

 

 

I decided I needed a new beach bag for a trip in March.

 

Then I decided it needed accessories!

 

And I always hate how everyone's suitcases look the same at the airport.

Problem solved with a few cute scraps and a new luggage tag!

 

Can't wait to use these in a few weeks!



A little flour sack fun!

I have a bunch of Blue Bird Flour sacks in my sewing room.

 

 

I had NO IDEA what to do with them.

 

 

Until I talked to a sweet lady at The Kalona Junction who gave me the idea to make super cute bags out of them.

Why didn't I think of that!

 

 

 

I came up with a couple of adorable Market Totes!

 

I am positive each one that I make is going to be different.

Good thing I have lots more flour sacks because I have lots more ideas!

 

They will be at the Kalona Junction soon!



One Strap kids bag

My two kiddos LOVE to carry their own stuff.

 

This one strap bag featured on Sew Mama Sew looked like a great one to try!

Picture from sew mama sew.

 

I had pinned it awhile back thinking it would make a great summer bag for trips to the pool, the park or on car trips.

 

 

It was fairly quick and easy to sew (even making two of them) and they are just the right size for carrying a few important things!

Try to ignore the outfit choices Peighton made...the dress is quite cute by itself ( or with normal leggings) but when paired with floral leggings and turquoise reindeer socks it's a bit random.
 

 

They LOVE their new bags!

And so do I since that means they will actually carry some of their stuff and I won't be quite such a pack-mule this summer!

 

 

 

 



A sweet little wristlet for me

One thing I was missing on our trip to the Domincan Republic was a tiny little wristlet to carry a few things in the evenings.

 

 

 

I have been looking for one this week for our next trip and just couldn't find one I really liked.

 

So I made one.

 

 

I think it turned out pretty cute and is just the right size too!

 

It's pretty tiny.

It measures about 6" across the top and it's 6" tall.

 

Two things I love about this bag:
1. I made it out of my scrap box

and

2. I just started cutting so there were no pattern pieces or directions to follow!!!!

 

 

 

Peighton must have liked it too...she asked if she could borrow it sometime!

Guess I'll be making a few more of these.

 

 

 



A Beach tote for me!

There was a big snowstorm Wednesday outside my windows.

 

I was fine with it though...

I have a few really fun trips to look forward to and to make new bags for as well!

 

I finished one while that yucky white stuff was coming down.

 

 

 

It's from one of my favorite "go-to" bag books.

 

 

It's acutally a bag I never thought I'd make because of the handles-I HATE the kind of handles that the pattern has you make.

If you've ever made them  I'm sure you know why.

 

 

 

But I sat and thought about it and really liked the rest of the bag-especially the ruffle.

Finally, I decided there had to be a way to modify it and I was going to try!

 

I knew it would be a super cute beach tote for a few reasons:

*It's big-I need lots of room to carry all of Dustin's stuff ;-)

*It's open at the top-great for throwing everything in

*I can fold it into my suitcase easily

And did I mention it's cute!

 

 

The big change I made was the handles.

It's supposed to be one continuous piece-

I HATE sewing those where you have to cut the center circle out and then tuck in all the raw edges....HATE IT.

 

So I cut the piece in half horizontally and also made the opening a bit bigger.

If you look closely you can see my extra seams on the handles but it doesn't really bother me!

It turned out perfectly and it was much easier!

 

Who doesn't love a good ruffle?

 

I can't wait to use my new bag on a sunny beach in a few weeks!

 

 



Amy Butler + Grey Chevron = :-)

Two of my favorite things:

Amy Butler Bag Patterns

 

AND

Grey Chevron

 

 

Naturally, combining the two of the makes me smile!

 

 

I tried out Amy Butler's Field Bag

 

 

Super cute.

A little larger than I thought it would be but still very cute.

 

I did not use the piping because I just don't like it.

I also chose the "tote" version which does not include a zipper.

 

I made it in my current fave, Chevron.

I LOVE it.



 

I will definately be making this again and adding the zipper.

 

It is a LARGE bag though.

I was hoping it would be more of an "everyday" bag but it's just too big.

I think I could easily size it down a bit.

 

I used it thanksgiving day to put all of our "stuff" in and take to Mom's house.

I had :

Preston's diapers

 nap things,

 extra clothes

 a box of crackers

 a container of batter for our fried cheese curds

and a cheese ball in there with room to spare!

 

This one's a keeper!