Matching Twist Bag

 

This is the little twist bag that I made to match the tote bag that I made for my oldest granddaughter, Lilah. It is made from the same fabric as the tote bag.  I had a little trouble figuring out how to add a pocket to the inside of the bag, but after one false start and one near miss, I got it done.  I hope she likes them both.

A Book Bag for Lilah

 

My oldest granddaughter likes "spooky things" so I decided to make her a book bag with this cute skull fabric from Me & My Sister's Fab-boo-lous fabric line.  I added some pockets, which I haven't done in the past with these book bags, because she said that she likes big bags with pockets.  Hopefully the pockets function okay.  Two are small and one is quite large.  I probably should have added a Velcro closure to the top of the large one.  Oh well, you live and learn.

I'm also planning to make her a smaller twist bag from the same fabric.  I have a matching twist bag and book bag set (in different fabric) and I enjoy having them match.  Hopefully she'll enjoy it too. 

Floral Twist bag

 

 

Yesterday and today I worked on making this little twist bag.  I made a similar bag for my granddaughter last year and I decided to make one for myself.  I don't often carry a purse, but when I do, I usually just want something to put my keys, wallet, and phone in.  I think this will be a nice size for that. 

I quilted the outer part of the bag on my regular domestic sewing machine in parallel lines.  The thread is Aurifil Bright Pink (#2425).

Since this one is for me and not intended to be inventory for my shop, I'm not going to count it toward my yearly goals.

Wizard Tote Bag

 

 

I made this bag today, from start to finish.  The wizard fabric is the same as the fabric in the bag I made for Ruthie, but the purple accent fabric is different.  This bag is also smaller than the one I made for Ruthie.  This one is my normal tote bag size, roughly 5 x 9-1/2 inches at the base and 14 inches tall.

I quilted the outer shell on my longarm in a spiral meander pattern, using Isacord thread in Sugar Plum (color #2912).  The batting was leftover 50/50 Bamboo Blend Happy Cloud batting from Fat Quarter Shop.

I made this just to be inventory for my imagined craft fair booth, that may or may not ever happen.  But it also fulfills one of my creativity goals for this year.

Running total of goals accomplished: 

1. Finish UFOs = 2 of 4
   
2. Use pre-cuts = 1 of 3
   
3. Do window paintings = 0 of 2
   
4. Do non-window painting = 1 of 1 (completed)
   
5. Sew sets of coasters = 5 of 5 (completed)
   
6. Sew small bags = 0 of 2
   
7. Sew tote bags= 1 of 2

A Bag for Ruthie

 

 

Today I finished up the last bag officially on my to-do list.  It's a bag for my youngest son's girlfriend, Ruthie.  She likes wizards and her favorite color is purple.  I made it the same size as the one for Gus, because my son said that she liked to be able to carry big things.

The fabrics that I used for the outside of the bag were fabrics that were already in my stash.  I bought fabric for the lining and thread for top stitching and quilting.  

I quilted the top fabric to the batting using my long-arm machine, just like I did for the last one.  This one is quilted in swirls to match the swirls in the fabrics. 

I'm planning to send it to her for a Christmas present.  Nothing says Christmas like wizards, right? LOL!

A Bag for Kim

 

When I was at Missouri Star Quilt Company, I saw this floral and skull fabric and it made me think of my daughter-in-law, Kim.  She paints flowers and she's into goth/morbid motifs, so I thought it was a good combination for her.  The accent fabric is from the same fabric line and has a spider web design.  The lining of the bag is black skeletons on a cream-colored background.  

I might try making a small twist bag with the leftover fabric, if there is enough.  I'll have to see.

Birds and Flowers bag

 

When I was at Missouri Star Quilt Company, I bought some fabric to make myself a book bag.  I used the same pattern as the bag I made for my mother for Mother's Day.  This time I decided to try something new.  I quilted the fabric using my long arm machine.  It's still just the outer bag fabric quilted to batting without a backing fabric, so I wasn't sure how it would do on the long arm, but it worked just fine.  The quilting is mostly a simple meander with a few flowers thrown in.  I'm happy with how it turned out.

Toddler Book Bag

 

 

My oldest daughter asked me to make a book bag for my three year old grandson to take to the library.  She wanted it to be wide enough to accommodate large books that were 12 inches wide, so I modified the pattern that I used earlier this year for a bag for my mother, and made this bag.  It measures about 15 inches tall, with a base that is 5 inches by 12 inches.

She suggested either trains or big trucks for the theme.  I couldn't find any train fabric that I liked, but I found this fabric with heavy equipment on it at Hobby Lobby.  I think he should like it, and I think it will hold plenty of toddler books.  I hope mom and son both like it and enjoy it.

Amazing Grace Bag

 

 

I decided to make a tote bag for my mother for Mother's Day this year.  The main fabric of the bag features angels and the words to the song "Amazing Grace".  The accent fabric, which makes up the bottom, top rim, and handles of the bag, reminded me of stained glass windows like you might see in a church.  I liked how they looked together.

The bag is approximately 15 inches tall and 15 inches wide, with a 5 in bottom.  The handles were cut at 23 inches long, and were set in 4 inches from the side seams.  The size of the bag is patterned after a tote bag that I use regularly when traveling, so hopefully she will get good use out of it.

Rainbow purse

 

 

I made this rainbow colored bag for my oldest granddaughter's 7th birthday, which is coming up later this month. It is a highly modified version of a Japanese Twist bag that was patterned in Quiltmaker magazine a few decades ago.  The outer shell of the bag is machine quilted.  The shoulder strap was cut at 28 inches long and is padded with quilt batting.  The little flap has sew on Velcro for the closure.  I think it turned out really cute.  I hope she likes it.

Now I just need to buy some stickers and gel pens to go with the rainbow journal I made for her, and I'll be all set for her birthday.

More Trick-or-Treat bags

I made a couple more trick-or-treat bags from a different pattern. This pattern is modified from a Japanese Twist bag that was published in Quiltmaker Magazine about 19 years ago, I think. They are smaller than the first two bags.  The outsides of the bags are made from two fat quarters that I won at the quilt shop several years ago.  I really like the twist design, but it does make the bag a little trickier to put together than the first two.

These two are for my grandson and the grandchild that is still on the way. 
 

Trick-or-Treat bags

 

These two bags are made from orphan blocks and fabric from my stash.  My intention is for them to be trick-or-treat bags for my granddaughters, but they are a little large for that.  They are purse-size, or book bag size actually, so they could be used for those purposes if they prefer.  

It feels good to be doing some sewing again.  And I especially like making things for my grand-kids and using stuff from my stash.

Chubby Charmer

I finished this bag today.  It is made from a pattern called Chubby Charmer by Penny Sturges of Quilts Illustrated.  The pattern calls for 48 charm squares and 1-1/2 yards of fabric for the handles, lining, and pockets.  The charm pack is Mill Book Series c. 1852, one of Moda's Collections for a Cause (purchased in 2014).  I also used 1/2 a yard of fabric from that same line (purchased at the same time) for the handles and to cut some extra charm squares.  And I used some yardage from my stash for the lining and pockets.

Now I will have a bag that is large enough to carry a quilt in that isn't a reusable Walmart shopping bag.  I got teased about that recently.  This one is big enough to carry a 9x13 casserole dish in the bottom.  It says so right on the pattern!  The bottom is 9x18.

A New Purse for Camryn

My youngest son (who is 20 years old, btw) told my that his girlfriend said that she needed a new a purse.  I was wanting to make something for her, so I volunteered to make one for her. As far as I know it will be a surprise for her.  Her favorite color is green and she wears a lot of dark colors.  My son says that she will love it.  I hope so. 

Patriotic bag

I know that it is after the 4th of July, but I wanted to go ahead and make this bag anyway.  I figured that I can use it until the end of July at least.  I actually got the idea for the bag around the 4th of July, and I went ahead and ordered the fabric.  I didn't want to wait about making it, because I was afraid I would forget about it by the time next summer rolled around.  I tend to do that with projects, I buy the fabric, don't work on it right away, and then either forget about it or lose interest in making it.  I didn't want that to happen this time, so here it is, my new patriotic bag!

New quilted bag

I made this bag from fabric that I had in my stash.  It uses the same pattern as my Not Quite Giant Jellyroll Bag, except this time it is not giant and it doesn't even use 2-1/2 inch strips.  I also added a flap and button closure to make it more like a purse, which is my intended use for it.  I have to stop making bags with this pattern.  It really isn't fun.  I'm not sure why I decided to do it again.  Oh well, at least I have a new purse!

Not Quite Giant Jellyroll Bag

Our project for this month's quilt guild meeting was the Giant Jellyroll bag from Shabby Fabrics.  We were told to go to the Shabby Fabrics website and print off the free pattern.  I did, but apparently, I didn't do it the correct way.  I clicked on "download free pattern" and it opened in the browser window.  From that window, I clicked "print."  It would seem that if you want the pattern to print at the correct size, you have to actually download the pattern and open it in Adobe.  Make sure it is set to 100% scale and then print.  So mine ended up a little less than "giant".  Not that it was really that big to begin with.  It would have been nice if it had been a bit bigger, like the original pattern, because I was making it for my daughter-in-law to use as a diaper bag, but I'm sure it will be fine.  Here is a picture of the inside with two nice, big pockets.

I think I might try again to make it with the right size pattern.  Not sure what fabrics I would use.  I think it would also be nice if you put pockets on the outside as well as the inside.  You wouldn't bother with jellyroll strips for the outside if you were doing it that way, though.  Unless you were going to cut the exterior pockets out of jellyroll strips.  That might work.  I would have to measure.

A New Beachy Bag

This is another bag made from a Moda candy.  This one is made from a "Hearty Good Wishes" candy.  Like the last bag, it is not really designed to be a purse.  It has an inner pocket, but no key holder or closure and it has shorter handles.  It has a nice, cool, beachy feel.

Update: It is actually a birthday present for my oldest step-daughter, but I didn't want to say so until after I gave it to her.

A New Book Bag

This is my latest project.  It is made with a "Color Me Happy" candy and yardage.  It is much like the purses I've made recently, but this one is designed to be a book bag.  It doesn't have the closure at the top and it doesn't have the d-ring to hook keys to.

It also has shorter handles and a slightly narrower bottom.  The narrower bottom was unintentional.  After I had cut out the pieces, I realized that I would need to cut the piece of fabric for the bottom of the bag in half.  Since the fabric is directional, if I hadn't cut it in half, it would have been upside down on one side or the other. 

Update: It is actually a birthday present for my youngest step-daughter, but I didn't want to say so until after I gave it to her.

A Bag for Spring

Remember that spring bag that I mentioned yesterday?  The one that I was going to make from the "Chance of Flowers" fabric I bought yesterday.  Well, here it is.  That must be some sort of land speed record for me.  I don't think I've ever picked out fabric in less than 5 minutes and then used that fabric the very next day.  Wow, that was fast.

It really is a good feeling, though.  So often I have an idea of something that I want to make, and I buy the fabric for it, but the fabric just ends up lying around in my sewing room.  It feels good to have an idea and be able to act on it almost immediately.  And finishing a project on the day that I start it is always nice, too.