Category: sewista stuff

Finally…and New Design

RockStar Bag–done! On to an insulated bag.

I have FINALLY finished my SewSweetness Rockstar Bag. There are several things that I will do differently next time, but it turned out well.

Anyone need more insulated grocery bags? I always need more. I’ve read many tutorials online and they’re okay, but I wanted one that I could launder easily and that would hold a little more than most of them do. So I designed my own.

I bought a roll of Reflectix insulation at a local building supply store. You get a 33.3 square foot roll, 16 inches wide, for about $16. This is seriously tough stuff. I was a little worried that it might tear easily, but I think it will hold up well.

I used quilting cotton for the bag outer and lining.

I didn’t take pictures during the process. I will when I make a tutorial. This is what the bag looks like finished. The handles are a little short. (Note: Make handles longer next time.)

It is roomy. It’s easy to make.

The insulation comes out. It is a separate unit that can be washed off and the bag can be thrown in the washer and dryer.

More to come.

 

Valentine’s Day

I’ve been reminiscing about Valentine’s Day. You might think that I’m getting mushy and romantic, but I’m not. Valentine’s Day was a benchmark for me from an early age as the day when we had to have our peas planted. I got so sentimental that I looked up the old guidelines on Google. This is what I found.

Mother Earth News’s article on organic growing in a changing climate.

It makes a lot of sense, using natural guidelines to determine when the environment is right for planting. We planted cabbage and lettuce when the oak leaves were the size of a squirrel’s ear. The article is a little different than how I learned but close enough.

I don’t know why I torture myself this way every year. I don’t even have a garden anymore. Haven’t had one in years. But I still dream about what beautiful vegetables I could grow, how I should hurry and get them out.

Sigh.

Hat Collaboration

My friend, Eiko, is a wonderful weaver. She has only been a weaver for about 3 years I think but has absolutely fallen in love with it. Her fabrics are beautiful. She designs some of her own patterns and often uses bamboo and linen threads in fabrics that are subtle and elegant.

I have fallen in love with hat-making. I don’t say millinery because I don’t think I’m good enough to qualify for that moniker yet, milliner. I love the cutting, shaping, decorating–everything. Where else can you use almost any kind of fiber, natural- or man-made material in a project? And I love sculptural arts. My beadwork was often sculptural.

Morning Glories necklace

Eiko had a table-runner that she couldn’t sell. It wasn’t long enough to be a scarf and no-one seems to use table runners anymore (except me). She admired my hats in the shop in which we sell and wondered if we could collaborate. Yes!

In Japan all women wear hats, Eiko says. When she visits her mother she comes back to Tennessee amazed at all the hats she owns. I have to wonder if the wearing of hats is why Japanese women have such wonderful skin.

So she gave me the table runner to work with. It was very supple and drapey. Quite a challenge for a hat maker. I had to stiffen it a lot.

It turned out okay. I think I could have done better if I’d had a little more time. Eiko had a hand-woven ribbon with which she will replace the blue band. I’ll use it on another hat. 

The fabric is linen with a wonderful woven-in slub style pattern.

I learned a lot on this hat. I will do much better on the next one. Thanks, Eiko!