Santa Came Early!

I'm afraid I just can't wait to Christmas day to open any presents I get before the big day!

So when a Brit Bee parcel arrived yesterday, I had that paper ripped off quicker than you can say 'ho ho ho!!'

Our secret santa brief this year was a pin cushion, small and quick! And my very own secret santa delivered a cutey!

I've already found it useful as I try to finish up my tunic.

I agreed to a last minute commission for a friend, and delivered this messenger bag this evening.

I used my own pattern for this one, but downsized it slightly as requested.  The outer fabric is a velour type needlecord, and the intended recipient has a particular fondness for the fabric on the front of the flap, as well as campervans! Fingers crossed she likes it.

And speaking of patterns, some of you may know about the new EU VAT changes taking effect from 1st January.  They will impact sellers of digital items, like me. So until there is more clarification on the changes and thresholds, I will be converting all my Etsy patterns back to email attachments, rather than instant downloadable PDFs, from 1st January.

Sadly, lots of other pattern sellers are closing their shops because of the new ruling.  I hope that the decision makers in charge of these policies will see the devastating impact their new rules are having on small scale sellers across Europe.

And on to more happier subjects ............... just 2 more sleeps!!!

Jude xo

Finishers!

I love the excitement of finishing night in class!  Seeing the pleasure and satisfaction on the faces of my ladies as they hold up their finishes - aahhhh, there's nothing like it!

This is my latest beginners class.  There are a few ladies missing, but 6 weeks ago, most of these ladies had never touched a sewing machine before!  Just look at what they've produced!

And all of those cushions have concealed zippers in the back!

Well done ladies! I hope you enjoy many more happy hours of sewing.

And here are the finished (& almost finished) Pixelated Heart Quilts from my Thursday night class.

How stunning are they?  I can't wait to see these beauties displayed at our exhibition on 9/11.  If you fancy making one of these yourself, you can find the pattern here.

My Friday morning class were making Messenger bags, but I haven't got pics of them all yet so will show you their fabulous bags another day!.

Jxo

Don't Shoot The Messenger!

Bee Blessed was due to meet this Saturday, but I've had to cancel it due to a contentious paramilitary parade happening in our area. Boo!

It's been a few weeks now since we've got together, and we were looking forward to catching up and progressing the many quilts we have on the go! 

We've rescheduled BB for next Saturday.  Hopefully, the parade will pass over peacefully!

On the theme of messengers, I can show you the messenger bag I've made this week!



Following on from this one I made for my niece, I decided to make one for myself, but also to develop it as a potential future class.

I added a zippered pocket in the flap - when I pitch up to class with my arms loaded with stuff, I need a handy, easy access pocket for my classroom keys.  I'm planning to make a cute zipper pull for it!

I have some lush linen pulled to make a 2nd one, when I get some zips to match!  Here's an idea of the scale of the bag (approx. 14" x 13" x 3"):

That poke at the bottom disappears when the bag is filled with my rubbish belongings!

My new bag got its first test drive today and it didn't disappoint!

I've also managed to turn my Low Volume Charm Squares into something!

But more on that another day!

Happy Friday!

Ahhhhh!

It was so wonderful to hear the sweet purring tones of Mr Pfaff again yesterday!

Before I went on holiday I made a start on a Messenger Bag, and yesterday I got it finished.

Approx. 12" x 14" x 2.5"

This is a birthday present for my niece who turns 15 next week!  While she loves the colour pink, I didn't want it to look to 'youngy' and so needed to choose just the right pinks!

A good friend had shared some of her fabric winnings with me last year, and these were just the perfect pinks I needed.

I've been asked a few times now to teach a messenger bag in class.  There are quite a few stages to making this style of bag, but I think this one is a 'simple' enough design without looking too simplistic (if you get my drift!!).



So this one will soon be flying its way to the south of England. 

Hope you're having a great start to the new week!

Double '00' Delights!

On Friday night I had a date with this guy:

He didn't disappoint!

And on Saturday I had a date with the gorgeous Bee Blessed gals:

There was much hilarity over the prospect of us making the quilters version of a 'Calendar Girls' Calendar!

Here's a quilt that Sarah made, all ready to be donated:

And just look at how well your crazy patchwork blocks are shaping up:

And to finish off the evening, me, hubby and 2 kids had a date with these crazy animals....

... while the birthday girl and her friends partied on back at the house!

Bag Update:  Once she got over the shock of how big the bag was, she loved it!

And this was inside it:

A new pencil case!

I hope you've had some wonderful dates this weekend!

New Messenger Bag!

I'm so chuffed to be able to show you this, finally!

My beautiful girl is 17 today, and she is only getting 2 presents!  This bag (which she helped to design) and a laptop to put in it!

Shannon didn't want the flap to come down too far on the front, but instead wanted pockets to be seen.

She choose 2 Ruby prints to compliment the strong denim (I was sewing through 8 layers of denim at one stage - only broke 1 needle - not bad eh!).

Special features include a zippered back pocket:

...a laptop sleeve inside:

...an inner pocket for pens, phone, keys etc.

...and a fully adjustable shoulder strap:

I would have preferred to use silver metalware, but alas they were out of stock!

This is by far the sturdiest bag I've ever made.  Not only was the denim stiffened, but it is reinforced with vilene and the lining was prepped with wadding!

I didn't follow a pattern for this bag because of Shannon's specific requirements, but I did refer to Lisa Lam's Handbag Making Bible once or twice for guidelines on a couple of issues!

It turned out a little bigger than I expected, but at least there is loads of room for school folders as well as a laptop!

At the time of writing this Shannon hasn't yet received it!  So I will update you tomorrow with her verdict on it! (fingers crossed!).

My kids are now off school for half term, so I'm really hoping the sun keeps shining into next week as I take some much needed time off!

Have a fab weekend!