Happy 4th!

Hope you all had a great 4th! It rained most of the day which was a little disappointing but it was still a nice relaxing day. Rick had to work so Gabi and I spent most of the day scrapping and baking. We made a flag cake this year to celebrate. Then my brother and his little boy came in town and we hung out. We got a short little break in showers to head out and see the pigs! When Rick got home we headed out for dinner. The plan was to get take out and have a picnic in the park while waiting for fireworks but once again it was drizzly out so we ate in! We timed it just right as they were shooting off the first fireworks when we arrived to the park. The display was a little short this year. I guess we all are feeling the effects of the economy right now! But I took my tripod this year and did end up with a few good fireworks pics. I love the one of the stars! We stopped at a fireworks stand on the way home and picked Gabi up some giant sparklers and continued the celebration at home! Gabi must have had too much fun as it is almost 11:00 here and she is still in bed!

An Amazing Experience

We had our calendar marked and knew our Mama Pig was due any day now. Gabi and I have been checking on her several times a day and when we went out yesterday afternoon for the 2nd time she had 4 little piglets! Gabi was so excited we had to run in and call Dad, Grandma, and Aunt Sally. We then grabbed the camera and headed back out to check on them and Mama Pig was grunting! Next thing we know she had another piglet and Gabi had the amazing experience of witnessing its birth! She ended up having seven pigs total but unfortunately two were stillborn. I was amazed how active they were right after birth. Gabi couldn't wait to hold one. They were so soft, warm, and cuddly! Gabi was a little surprised by the birth and commented that she didn't know you could stretch that much during birth. She has proclaimed that she is never having kids! Too funny!

Project Wednesdays: Tote Bag

Gabi and I were walking through WalMart the other day when she spotted some cute Hannah Montana fabric. I asked her what she would do with it and she said she wanted a purse. Well, back when the Bag Daddy purses were popular I took a class at our local quilt shop and learned how to make a similar style bag. I knew I already had all the supplies at home so I grabbed a yard of fabric! I didn’t want to make it as elaborate as some of the bags I used to make so I improvised a bit. You really do not need to be a seamstress to put this together. If you own a sewing machine and can sew a straight line you can do this! I found this fun fiesta fabric in my stash and decided to make one of my own!

Step 1: Gather all your materials. You will need approximately 1 yard of fabric or ½ yard of 2 coordinating fabrics if you want the lining to be a different pattern. You will also need ½ yard of fusible interfacing, a rotary cutter or scissors, clear ruler, a button, coordinating thread, a sewing machine, and an iron.

Step 2: First cut all of your pieces. For Gabi’s purse I cut 4 rectangles 12" high x 15" wide . I added a few inches for my own bag but the dimensions are completely up to you! Just keep in mind that the finished tote will be slightly smaller due to seam allowances. Two rectangles will be used for the actual tote and the other two will be used for the lining. So if you are using 2 different fabrics you will need to cut 2 rectangles from each fabric. You will also need to cut 2 rectangles the same dimension from the fusible interfacing. Fusible interfacing looks like quilt batting. It has an adhesive on one side that you can iron to fabric to give the fabric stability. Cut an 1 ½” square from the bottom 2 corners of your 4 fabric rectangles and 2 interfacing rectangles. For your handles you will need to cut 2 strips 4" x 25". If you want sturdier handles you may want to use a light interfacing on these strips as well. If so then you will need to cut 2 strips from the interfacing that are also x . For your button loop cut a strip 1 1/4" x 6".

Step 3: Next you will prepare your pieces for sewing. Fold the 2 long strips that will be used for the handles in half with the right sides of the fabric together and press. If you are using interfacing on the handles you will want to iron the interfacing to the fabric before folding in half. Do the same with the smaller strip. Then following the instructions on the interfacing iron two rectangles of fabric to your two pieces of interfacing. This will add stability to your purse and help it hold its shape.

Step 4: You are now ready to sew! I used a ¼” seam allowance but you can use whatever you are comfortable with as long as you are consistent and use the same seam allowance on all of your pieces. Stitch down the two long strips that will be handles and the smaller strip that will be the button loop. Then put the right sides together of your 2 fabric rectangles with the fusible interfacing and stitch down the 2 sides and across the bottom. Repeat with the remaining 2 fabric pieces that will be your tote lining but leave an opening at the bottom to turn the lining inside out when assembling the purse.

Step 5: Iron all your seams open. Using a safety pin turn your handles and button loop inside out and iron flat. For the handles I flatten and iron with seam running down the middle of each handle rather than on the side.

Step 6: Now we need to square off the bottom of the purse. To do this fold the purse and line up your side and bottom seam. Then stitch.

Step 7: Now we are ready to add the handles and button loop. Stitch in place as close to the edge as possible. This will hold the handles in place while assembling the purse and help to reinforce the handles. Do the same with the button loop. After handles and button loop are added center a button on the opposite side and sew on.

Step 8: Next take the outside of your purse and make sure it is turned right sides out. Take your lining and make sure it is inside out. Set the purse into the lining. Making sure your side seams are matched up on the purse and lining stitch all the way around the top of the purse. Using the opening you left in your lining turn your purse right side out.

Step 9: To finish off your tote sew a top stitch about an 1/8 of an inch around the top of your purse. You may also want to stitch the opening in your lining closed.

If you give this a try I'd love to see what you come up with!