I just had to do another two Sashiko patterns and this time I knew they would be used to make a bag. I had enjoyed making my last cross strap, zipper bag so much and I use it all the time. I decided to do the Sashiko stitching on upcycled denim - we get through a lot of jeans in this house!!
These are the two patterns - they both start with a 6 x 6 grid of 1" squares
and this is the bag that I made - there is a Sashiko design on each side.
As the Sashiko is stitched on the same denim fabric as the bag I decided to add a fabric flange to set off the stitched panel and I thought you might like to know how I do this.
I usually want a really small flange so I cut a strip of fabric just ⅞" wide, fold it in half along its length and press it. I mark the stitched panel with a square around the design to show just where I want the flange fold to sit (unfortunately I only seem to have blue Frixion Pens handy so you probably can't see my line :) ) I stitch it to the panel quite close to the raw edges of the flange as I don't want these stitches to show after I add the blue denim border.
I sew the flange to the sides first and then to the top and bottom as this is the order I want to sew on the denim borders. This is to avoid bulky seams at the top where the zipper goes, and the bottom which I like to make boxy.
I cut the denim borders a bit wider and longer than I need them and I don't trim up the panel yet.
I carefully line up the edge of the border with the raw edge of the folded flange and sew a ¼" seam - this will give me my tiny flange.
After sewing on the two side borders I trim the seam allowance and the excess from the top and bottom of the border denim
After sewing on all 4 borders I top stitch around the panel.
These are the two finished sides of my bag and can you see that the panels aren't in exactly the same position? I make loads of mistakes when sewing, but this isn't one of them!! When I sew up the bag I don't want the seams in the back and front to meet on the side seam.
Now it's bag making time and these are all the things I need to make my bag.
- 2 bag sides and 2 linings, all measuring 10" x 12"
- An 8" zipper with tabs on each end
- A denim handle, approx 40" long and cut 2¼" wide, folded with the raw edges inside to make 4 layers and top stitched
- 2 handle loops (I originally intended to use the flange fabric, but decided that the zipper tab fabric looked better). These are 4½" long and were cut 1¼" wide and folded like the handle. It's a good idea to cut a longer length than you need so that you can discard the ends which can go a bit awry in the sewing machine.
I have posted before about making a zipper pouch, but this is a very quick run through of attaching the zip:
Bag fabric right side up, zipper right side down and sew along near to the edge.
Lining right side down and sew along near to the zip.
This is the zipper sandwiched between the bag fabric and the lining. The zipper tabs have been trimmed.
The other bag fabric right side up, the other side of the zipper right side down and sew along near to the edge.
Lining right side down and sew along near to the zip.
It looks like this - outside and inside.
That's the hard part done as far as I'm concerned and it just remains to sew up the sides, but I thought you might like to see how I position the handle loops just beneath the zipper tabs before I sew the sides together.
I also did a boxy bottom to my bag which you can read about in my post "Boxy Bottoms".
Here's another look at the finished bag.
I also made a bag in the same design, but slightly smaller, for my sewing friend's special birthday. I just had to use these very apt fabric panels. The left one says "best friends" and the right one says "piecing together a quilt".
This is the bag -
Well! - that's quite enough from me!! I hope that you have found something useful in the above - I know that I shall be returning to this post to refresh my memory when making my next bag!
I'm linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts - Finish it up Friday
Happy Sewing - Anita x
I've left it a bit late to join in the Blogger's Quilt Festival and there are some amazing quilts to see over on Amy's Creative Side so do take a look. I'm feeling a bit daunted to add my own humble effort, but here goes.
This is my Hexagon Horror
It's not a large quilt measuring only 41" x 37" and it had a few highs and lows in the making which you can read about with the following links:
Making Donuts
Hexagons Update
Hexagon Horror Story
Hexagon Horror Finale
I think my favourite bit of the whole process was choosing the fabrics and making the donuts. It was so satisfying to see the pile of them growing with just a little sewing in front of the TV each evening. We'll gloss over sewing the donuts together!!**, but I did like doing the borders. Another gloss over the quilting!!**, but of course doing the binding was great ....... a finish!
Do click the link see quilts made by some very talented bloggers in the Blogger's Quilt Festival .
Happy Stitching - Anita x
September is the start of another Flowerpatch Quilters' year and, after a very successful exhibition, we are full of enthusiasm. Next year's charity quilt is already well underway and we're also making decorations for the Christmas Tree Festival in St Mary's Church, Launceston.
We were delighted to welcome textile artist Cat Rowe to our meeting. Trained as an artist, Cat had lots of tips to share with us, but first a little look at some of her textile pieces, all of which are small works.
I love these vases of flowers
and these are two designs for greetings cards.
Cat said that she lays her fabrics on the backing until she likes the picture design, and then photographs it and prints out a version or two. Then she can draw her sewing lines onto the photo as a reference when she's at the sewing machine. What a brilliant idea!
Cat loves to make sketchbooks and these are always her first port of call for a new design. She carries pen, paper and camera wherever she goes because you never no where or when the next idea will come. Much of her inspiration comes from our beautiful county of Cornwall - coast and moorland.
These are some of her sketchbooks.
Another string to Cat's bow is the commission work that she undertakes. She also tutors workshops and sells patterns of her designs. Do take a look at more of her work, etc. with the link below:
Cat Rowe - Textile Illustration
Thank you Cat, you certainly inspired us and I for one will be armed with pen, paper and camera in the future!
Next meeting is on 12th October when our speaker will be Lesley Coles and we will be presenting a cheque to Cornwall Blood Bikes.
Happy Stitching - Anita x
Finally I have got around to looking at all the photos I took when at the Festival of Quilts at the NEC in Birmingham. This was almost a month ago and my very first visit to the exhibition. I certainly wasn't disappointed and in two days I only just managed to see all the quilts and stalls, and, of course, took oodles of photos. It's been really difficult to decide which I would like to show you as everything there was absolutely brilliant. Nevertheless here is a small selection.
Firstly four larger quilts:
Linda Forey's Diamonds are Forever - such precise piecing and lovely use of the stripey fabric for the squares in the corners of the blocks.
Rebecca Handyside's A Year of Colour - very effective use of rainbow colours in a simple design.
Sylvia Borrows British Day in Town & Country - you could never tire of looking at this quilt
and HMP Bullingdon Boys Two Man Cell - this was definitely a surprise exhibit!!
Now three wall quilts:
Mary Mayne's Seed Heads - I love all the colour and quirkiness.
ExDC Quilters Amsterdam Houses - what a brilliant Idea for a group quilt and so much intricate detail in each house panel
and Linda Anderson's Morning Mist - I just couldn't stop looking at these raindrops made with shiny fabric circles and precise shading.
Finally two small wall quilts:
Judy Beevor's No Place Like Home - a foundation pieced row quilt
and Hannie de Beer's New York Beauty Garden - it made my heart sing!
A big "Thank you" to Denise of South West Quilters for organising the trip - it couldn't have been better.
Rainy days means lots of sewing :) - Anita x
Flowerpatch members have enjoyed supporting the Charles Causley Festival in Launceston again this year. The small (approx A5) hangings below were displayed like bunting during the Festival and at our Flowerpatch exhibition. They depict some of the buildings in Launceston.
In a previous post I explained how I turn a photo into a line drawing.
That completes the posts showing quilts, etc. from our exhibition and you can view all the other posts by clicking below.
Large Quilts
Flowerpatch Exhibition
More Quilts
From Photo to Textile
As this is my last exhibition post I'm linking up with Crazy mom Quilts Finish it up Friday
Happy Stitching - Anita x
