Oriental Pink Zippered Clutch #2

I had plenty of scraps to finish a second clutch with these fabrics leftover from my large Oriental Pink Tote, and this time I experimented with quilting them. I really like how it turned out!



This one also has a grosgrain ribbon strap for carrying. I have a very small wrist (my kids like to borrow my watch), so I made it with enough wiggle room for larger wrists, too.

This clutch is approximately 9-1/2 x 5" and is 2" deep at the bottom. It has a metal zipper closure and is lined inside with the beige fabric, which I upcycled from a pretty bedsheet.

As I said yesterday, I made myself a clutch, and I love to take it with me when I'm not doing a marathon errand run. (I need just about everything in my purse on those runs.)

These are perfect for shopping at the thrift store or market, since they won't let loose and whack you at an unsuspecting moment while you're bending down inspecting something. They also don't hide behind your back or in your cart, where you always have to keep an eye on them, in case someone else decides to help themselves to the contents. I have found it much easier to browse through racks of sheets with a clutch hanging from my wrist, rather than a purse hanging on my shoulder.

It's in my shop, if you're interested. Enjoy! :)

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,

Oriental Pink Zippered Clutch #1

After I finished making the Oriental Pink bag, I had several nice-sized scraps leftover. I decided to make a clutch (or two) with them. This would be perfect to go inside the larger bag, so you could just grab the clutch if you were going into a store.



This zippered clutch features a matching grosgrain ribbon wrist strap. I used the main fabric as well as the lining fabric for this one.



Here you can see how easy this is to carry! [I made a different one for myself, and I've been using it a few days. I love it!] It has a depth of approximately 2", so it can carry a lot more than it looks like.

This is lined in the same print as the bottom of the clutch.

I was going to put this one in the shop, but my daughter has commandeered it. (I had given my son a manly "project fail," so I had to even the score and give her something, too.) There's more to come with this fabric tomorrow, and I've saved it for the shop! :)

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,

Oriental Pink 17" Zippered Bag

A friend of mine goes to auctions quite a bit and knows how much I love to repurpose things. I was thrilled when she brought me several large bags of curtains and tablecloths she had found. This particular fabric caught my eye immediately. It was one curtain panel, the kind that you "draw" shut with a cord.



It looked like designer fabric to me, so I was not surprised to read the selvedge edge after I had cut it apart - "Tea Garden" by John V Jacoby for Bassett McNabb. Apparently it was originally $60/yard.

The first time I looked at it, I saw this gorgeous pink print. After looking closer, I saw the Oriental design that print was framing. I knew then that I had to make a bag with it, and it had to be big enough to showcase those designs.



And so this bag was born. It started out at 18" square, so it's about 17x15" (after taking off for depth) finished, with a 3"depth. It could easily be used as a market tote or diaper bag, thanks to its generous size. I reinforced it with interfacing to make it extra sturdy.

I accented the bottom of the bag with a pink and white striped decorator fabric remnant I had picked up at a thrift store.



It has a different design on each side.



It closes with a zipper ...



... and has four small and five larger pockets inside to help organize your things. It's lined with an elegant beige reclaimed sheet fabric.



I've listed it in the shop, if you're interested. There are also a few matching smaller projects that I'll be showcasing over the next two days, so stay tuned. (You know I can't bear to waste good scraps.) :)

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,

Easy, Flattering A-Line Skirts

I mentioned earlier in the week that I was planning to sew myself some skirts, since I don't like the fit of a lot of commercially-produced skirts. (I'm pretty hard to fit with my waist and hip measurements.)

I love my denim skirts, so I decided to try one in chambray. It has a lot of the same look, but it's easier to work with. I had a twin-size chambray sheet I picked up at a thrift store sometime last year, so I decided to give it a try.

I searched for online A-line skirt tutorials, and I came up with a few. I started off with this tutorial from Boulevard Designs, and I don't think I'll need to look any further. This is my favorite skirt in my wardrobe right now. It fits perfectly, drapes beautifully, and actually flatters my figure.

I don't know about you, but I had a hard time adjusting to my post-baby body. (It's been nearly eight years since I had my first child, and I'm just now coming to terms with it.) I lived for 25 years with a flat stomach and smallish hips, but that all changed after I became a mother. What made it even more difficult was the fact that I needed a junior size for my waist, but I couldn't fit a junior's lack of hips. :) This pattern solves all of those problems.

I got two skirts out of one twin-size sheet. My skirts are 31" long (before narrow hemming) with a waistband and invisible side zipper. I made both of them in one evening.

One commenter said that she felt like she needed to be wearing a 50's-style petticoat with hers. Mine is not that full, as you can tell from the photo. I walk fast and take big steps, so I do have to have plenty of room to walk. So I took a skirt that I knew gave me plenty of freedom, and I measured the width of it at the bottom. I came up with 80" total, which amounted to a 20" line on my pattern.

If you try this pattern, too, I'd love to see your results (even though it's not my pattern). I'm a very visual person, and I've been wondering what it would look like in a gingham. I've always wanted a yellow or red gingham skirt, so I'd love to see this done in a print.

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,

Homemade Gift: Cards from a Page a Day Calendar

My friend has several page-a-day calendars she has collected from thrift stores. After I saw how well they worked for cards, I've kept an eye out for them in my own thrifting adventures. I haven't had much luck until a few weeks ago. I found a Kinkade tear-off calendar (for 2011) with every page still intact. I'm not sure who decided not to use this, but it's their loss. I only paid $1 for it, and I got 365 beautiful images to use on cards.

Since these images are beautiful in their own right, I don't have to load the cards themselves with embellishments. This is especially nice for masculine cards, which is what I made first:



I usually give you closeups of the cards I make, but there's no way I was going to upload 18 cards that followed the same basic pattern. :) How about just one?



I simply went through the calendar and chose several images that I thought were particularly masculine (since they're some of the hardest cards to make). Then I paired them with papers that matched, left room for a sentiment (so they're more versatile), and I had 18 cards made in no time.

I may make the feminine cards a little fancier, but this format was perfect for these manly cards.

I did a similar project with a Mary Engelbreit book a few years ago, and I'm still not through with all of those notecards. (They come in very handy, though!)

Homemade Gift: Guest Book #8

Supplies: stamps (Inkadinkadoo Coffee House Alphabet); ink (Jet Black StazOn); paper (ATD, recycled Kinkade image); composition book.

Here's another Kinkade guest book made from a composition book. I was happy that the book I was recycling had several church images in it, since I'm using these as "thinking of you" gifts for fellow pastor's wives.

So far, I've heard from several of the ladies who have really enjoyed them. It always makes me feel good to know that people actually like the things I make for them. Sometimes you really go out on a limb giving someone a homemade gift. I know I agonize over what style this person likes, what colors another one decorates with, etc. After all, I put time into homemade gifts, and I want them to actually be used and enjoyed. To find out that I've chosen (or guessed) correctly is always a relief! :)

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,

Denim Skirts from Bedskirts

Happy 4th of July! I hope you are all enjoying the holiday with people you love. Most of all, don't forget that we the citizens are what makes our country so great. If we cease to be good, so will our country. (Alexis de Tocqueville once said, "If America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great." It's so true!)

Today I'm sharing with you a project that I've had in my head for over a year ... jeans skirts from old jeans and bedskirts.

My daughter and I only wear skirts, and it's nearly impossible to find a nice denim skirt that doesn't have a slit the whole way up to your thigh. As a result, I have to get creative with our denim skirts.

My son is about one size ahead of my daughter, so I save his jeans as he wears out the knees. Then I cut off the legs and save the top part for these skirts.

My daughter is growing like a weed and will soon be too tall for the 3-4 denim skirts I had for her. So I decided the time was right to try my experiment.

Of course, the whole idea of adding fabric to the bottom of old jeans is not a new idea. However, using a bedskirt is something I've never seen before, but it makes the process so much easier because there's no gathering involved.

Let's take a look at how they turned out ...

I've had this bedskirt for several months now, and I knew I wanted to try one of these skirts with it. It was already ruffled (as most bedskirts are), so I just sewed it on, topstitched it, and it was done. My daughter loved it!

Here you can see how it fits her.

And this is what it looks like from the back. Since I had to cut high enough to get rid of the curl around the inseam, I ended up cutting into the bottom of the pockets. I've seen storebought ones that do this, so I didn't worry a bit about it. It looks really cute, and she loves having all those pockets.

I love eyelet fabric, but I wasn't totally sure what it would look like with denim. You know, eyelet can look pretty fancy if you use it right, and denim is a rather humble fabric. Once it was done, though, I loved it. So did my daughter, who declared it was her "wedding skirt." :)

I added a pink underskirt (another bedskirt) to this one, since you can see right through the holes in eyelet fabric.

Isn't it cute? As you can see, this one is long enough for her to wear it awhile.

Lastly, I used a ruffled hem from a vintage bedspread (the really thin, sheet-thickness kind that they used in the warmer months). I got this one at a yard sale for practically nothing (a whole bag of clothing for $1), and there were quite a few spots on it that didn't come out. However, I still had plenty of fabric once I worked around those spots.

Since this ruffle wasn't as long as the other two, I simply layered them. It was really quite easy, and this is the one she wears the most.

If I could change one thing about this skirt, I would have lined it, too. It's rather thin, and she doesn't want to wear a slip to play. I may go back and stitch a plain white bedskirt to the inside.

I'd love to see any denim skirts you've created! I'm in the market for a few myself, since I have such a hard time finding a good fit. (If it fits my waist, it's too small for my hips; if it fits my hips, it's too big for my waist.) I'm thinking of making a chambray A-line skirt, but I'd love to see some other ideas, too. Since I'm a SAHM now, I enjoy wearing my denim skirts almost every day. I need several of them!

I'm linking to ... Upcycled Awesome,