Quilted Bag 2 & 3

These are two more bags made with the shiny lame-like fabric.  The fabric has pinks and purples and the bags are made from the same colorway but I used mostly pink fabric in one and purple in the other as the fabric has different shades in it.  I also used pink poly thread in the pink one and a deep purple poly in the purple one.  These have become so addictive that I have three more in the works.  I am using the turquoise colored fabric that I put in the previous post.  But I have gotten a different look by using green thread in one and a purple thread in another.  I love this fabric and the reflections of different colors.

Quilted Zipper Bag

This is a quilted bag pattern that I found on Stitch Delight. She has some delightfully complicated-looking easy patterns.  The fabric I used is from JoAnns and is the type of stretchy knit fabric used in swimsuits and dance costumes.  In some light it is green, teal, purple, or even blue. I found another colorway that is pinks and purples with a pastel look.  The bag has a layer of polymesh, a layer of thin batting, and the fabric.  The thread is a Yenmet medium blue metallic.  I am also trying a purple Superior Rainbow polyester which works just fine.  I have found that the thread works better if it is on the dark side as the shine continues to come from the fabric.  More bags like this are in my future.

Memory Pillows

My brother recently passed away.  I volunteered to make memory shirts for his twin sons.  These shirts had been gifts from his sons.  Both shirts were his favorites as you can see, but the tan one was worn so much with his overalls that there are strap lines from his overalls on the shirt.  I thought this was a very unique characteristic!  I also downsized his bib overalls to fit atop the shirts.  I hope they love them as much as I loved making them.

Patchwork Purse

My brother passed away unexpectedly and I thought his wife would like something made from his overalls. I had been wanting to stitch the Patchwork Purse from Sweet Pea Designs. So this is her purse made from the denim of his overalls. I used different shades of denim for each section of the bag, the overall straps are the purse handles, and the back pockets are stitched on the red bandana lining for inside pockets. I think she will like it.

Tic Tac Toe Game

This game from Embroidery Playground jumped out at me this morning as I was looking a Facebook. Of course I had to see how it was made and if I needed to make it.  I made the first one from vinyl but it does not lay very flat.  So now I am going to make one from some heavy cotton and I'll see how that works.  I do like the X's and O's made from vinyl.  They are very easy to handle and use. 

Vinyl Bookmarks

On Sunday I was hunting for a strawberry key fob and found the cutest bookmarks in Buggalena Designs.  Surprisingly the designs were 75% off so they were only $1.00 each.  Into my basket went an elephant, an owl, and a pony.  They are simple to make with vinyl or felt and I think will be enjoyed by their new owners.  Happy Reading.

A Dyeing Day

 Wednesday was dyeing day for the monthly sewing group.  Diane has a nifty shed that is a good place to do messy work.  The big shirt I soaked in a soda ash solution, wrapped diagonally around a 4" plastic pipe, attached with rubber bands, scrunched together, and added dye in wide lines.  The small shirt I had completed before and thought it was colorless, so I redyed it after soaking it and tieing it up with rubber bands.

These two photos are from the same dyeing process.  We used gallon ice cream buckets, scrunched shirts into a layer, added soda ash solution to wet everything, and then poured on dye.  The top photo is the bottom layer.  The other t-shirts were other layers to fill the bucket.  Let the dye work into the fibers for 24-48 hours or more.  Then you are ready to see the results. It was a fantastic fun day!

Addition:  After rinsing two buckets of shirts and several single shirts that were each in a plastic bag, I have noticed that the bucket shirts absorb almost all of the dye.  There is very little color when I rinse those shirts.  The shirts we soaked quickly in soda ash solution and then gathered with rubber bands before adding the dye needed much rinsing because there was a lot of dye not absorbed. I find that interesting.