catching up

So I am sure you have all noticed that I am terrible at keeping up with my blog, but I have been keeping busy with projects. I am back into my sewing phase. I still haven't made clothes for myself, but it's on my bucket list. Here are some of the projects I have completed. 

My best friend loves batman and I thought this was a suitable birthday gift. Suffice to say, she absolutely loved it! The bag pattern is one that I have used often. It is very easy and fast to make, which is why I make it often. The pattern was created by artsycraftybabe and can be found here. The  kimono slippers are a Sue Kim pattern and can be found on Ithinksew.com or on her etsy account. You should definitely check out Sue Kim's patterns, they are pretty awesome and her instructions are easy to follow. Lastly, I bought the fabric at Joann's. 

This scarf was made for one of my co-workers. I used the Seafoam stitch in from the Vogue stitchnary. The yarn is mochi and I found it at an awesome store call Michael Levine's in downtown LA.

The exterior fabric was found at the urban craft center, the hello kitty fabric was from Michael Levine's and the cupcake fabric was found at Joann's. I found the wallet pattern here.

This clutch pattern was purchased on keyka lou's etsy shop. Fabric came from Michael Levine's.  I don't know if you can see but the interior is architecture fabric. I love it!

I used same fabric, but I used a free pattern called the buttercup bag. I expected the bag to be bigger, but it really is a large clutch bag. Je je. You may find the pattern here.

OMG. I love this bag!!!!!!!!!! It is also a Sue Kim pattern. Fabric came from Michael Levine's.

 After making the batman slippers I had to make some for myself.

Of course there is more bookbinding. I can't remember where I found the cool vintage paper, but the sushi paper came from Papersource......

Well that's it for now. 

Another Bag

I made another messenger bag. This one has a zippered pocket! I found a tutorial here. Try it out.

A girl can never have too many bags.

I made another bag. This one is a messenger bag. I think I'm going to use it for my sketch book,  pencils and portable watercolor set. I don't mean to brag, but it's pretty darn awesome.

This pattern came from Sew What! Bags. It was quite simple and fun to make. 

The bag consists of rectangles, which makes life so easy. I don't know why I didn't start bag making with straight edges. The first few bags I made had round edges. This can be a pain to sew if you are a beginner. 

I also made sure to add lots of pockets! I was very excited because this was the first project where I didn't have to completely rip out my stitches and redo my project. 

Now here are random pictures from February and March.

Bags, bags and more bags

I can never get enough of bags. Here are some that I have sewn and knitted. I found the pattern for the skull bag in One Yard Wonders.

This pattern can be found here

It was my first time crocheting the Afghan stitch so it came out really sloppy. In order to fix the ugliness, I crocheted a border around the strap, which turned out very nice. I’m still not sure how to properly crochet the afghan stitch, but I’ll keep practicing.

I ended up using 1. 25 skeins of green. The green yarn did not match exactly because I bought them at two different yarn stores.

The bag was fun to make and the directions were very easy to follow. The yarn lends itself nicely to this pattern. It does stretch a lot and it ends up looking like a giant sock, but it serves its purpose: Reduce the carbon footprint!

One-Yard Wonder

This is Chispa

She is a 6 pound Chihuahua who has a slew of quirks. For instance, she snores really loud and she loves to hog the bed. She has her own bed, but she insists on sleeping on mine. So, I decided to make her a new one. I found this pattern in One-Yard Wonders.

I thought it was pretty awesome, but Chispa thought otherwise. This is how she chose to use it.

I think she might be boycotting it because it was meant for a cat. Tee hee.

First Blog of the Year.

Yay, it's my first blog of 2010. So far, 2010 has been exciting. I surprised myself and my parents when I kicked out some rowdy, annoying drunks who came unannounced and uninvited to our house. My father seriously needs to choose his acquaintances wisely. Any who, my days have been busy with craft making. Here are some of the things I have made.

Are you tired of seeing journals yet? I'm not. Tee hee.

This pattern is from Artsy-Crafty Babe. The fabric may be Alexander Henry, I really don't remember anymore. The bag was really easy to make and I loved how it turned out. I almost did not want to give it away.

I made this sling bag for my cousin. I found the pattern here for those who are interested.



Lastly, I have been wanting to learn how to embroider so I took advantage when my aunt came to visit from Mexico. She makes wonderful blankets, tea towels, and pillow cases. I started with a simple tea towel design and this was the result.

More Gift making and stamp making class

I had made succulent terrariums last year and I have been meaning to make more, but I never seemed to have time until now. I 'm going to give some of these away as Christmas presents. However, it's going to be hard to give them away since they are all so pretty.






For those wondering how to make one, it's a piece of cake....7 layer chocolate cake...yum. Sorry, I got side tracked.

What you will need.

1. A cool glass container. (I found mine at the 99 cent store, Ikea, Michaels, and my aunt's garage)
2. Succulents (of course! You can find them at your local hardware store or nursery. Just don't go out looking out for them when it's raining. I did and I got wet).
3. Cactus soil. (local hardware store)
4. Rocks or pebbles (local hardware store)
5. Sand (local hardware store or petshop. But it's cheaper at the hardware store)

How to:

1. add about an inch and of half of rocks.
2. Add about 1.5 to 2 inches of soil.
3. Put in the succas (succulents)
4. Add the sand

And voila, there you go! You can add cute little dinosaurs or other creatures. What I love about these plants is that they don't need much attention, which is good because I forget to water plants all the time.

I also have taken up sewing again. My poor sewing machine has been neglected since I started school. I'm almost finished with finals so I should have more adventures soon! The pencil bag and coin purse (along with the fan book from the previous post) are for my secret Santa gift exchange.




On another note, on Wednesday I attended a stamp making class held by Home Ec.
and it was so much fun!!! The ladies were HILARIOUS and we made very cute stamps made out of Staedtler rubber. These stamps may look crude, but they look awesome on fabric or paper. I haven't taken pictures of that, but I will put them up later.

Day of the Dead Purse

My aunt bought me this wonderful Day of the Dead fabric at Joann's while we were selecting a fabric for her make up bag. As for the lining, my best friend, L, gave me Muppets fabric for my birthday and I thought that it might be fun to use it as lining. I was right, it turned out awesome! I found the bag pattern here for those who are interested.




The pattern was really easy to follow, even if you are a newbie like me. The only trouble I had was with the straps. I sewed them in the inside, so when I turned the bag inside out, the straps were left sandwhiched between the lining and the exterior....oops! That's why there is a seam ripper, right? Tee hee. Well, I have been enjoying my free craft time. Soon, I will be a slave to school and I will be spending a great deal of time in the embalming and restorative art labs. Yay! (well...I find it exciting)