Birdie Sling for Sister + a Fish Story

I seem to be on a roll with bags... I just finished this Amy Butler pattern Birdie Sling for my sister, Carrie. She is an up and coming photographer in Tampa, FL and commissioned me to make her a new bag for photo albums and all the odds & ends that she has to lug around. Its made from Michael Miller "Dandy Damask" and inside is an Organic teal blue cotton. After quite a few hours of work, here's the finished bag! Pay no attention to my tiny, yet-to-be planted garden covered in petals... ok, its kind of pretty.



And then there's Justin. (aka the Husband or boyfriend-for-life) He and about seven other Wilson men took a weekend to go fishing and camping in SE Ohio at the AEP reserves. Here's the one photo I found on the camera, I'm told that its a Large Mouth Bass. Apparently its quite large considering what everyone else caught~

Gloria's Bag - Sum Sum Summertime... OK, at least Spring

Over Easter weekend I had almost two solid days of sewing! It was awesome - and I loved every second of it! So here's the story: my good friend, Gloria, had a hankerin' for a new spring bag. So I said, "Hey, lets find a great pattern and I'll make it for you!" so thats what we did. We found this fun Sandi Henderson bag pattern on Etsy then we went for a little fabric shopping at Sew To Speak - my new must visit at least once a week fabric wonderland in Worthington. We oogled their goodies for probably 30 minutes and then tried to narrow down the options to just 2 designs. After much indecisiveness, this fun Katie Jump Rope fabric was chosen, cut, and wrapped up to go home.
Gloria's fabric is similar to the bag on the pattern, eh? Looks perfect for spring! Here are a few photos of the process. My FIRST attempt at following an actual pattern:


And Hazel - giving a helping hand, as always...


Ta-daaa! I'm quite happy with the outcome, and so was Gloria when I handed it over (reluctantly) on Sunday. Why do I have to WANT TO KEEP everything I create for other people? Its just cruel.

There you have it - the story of Gloria's bag.


Another drool-worthy package came in the mail too! I got a little Ebay crazy and won 3 auctions... for all these fun Amy Butler and Erin McMorris square packs! I cannot wait to make quilts out of them! I'm even tossing around the idea of making a lap quilt to KEEP in my living room. Such a foreign thought. Keeping something. The middle set, from Amy Butler's "Ohio Sky" collection, might just fit the bill. Only time will tell.

Last but not least, my Etsy shop Hazelnut Designs is being featured on The Simply Made blog. Go check it out! Thanks Tabitha! You rock!

Fun with Dick and Jane

I decided to cut into this fun Dick and Jane fabric, and thus far have only used about 1/5th of it.
I just can't bear to see it go. I think my next endeavor will have to be something substantial - since the county fair design is pretty big. I don't know what, though.

At any rate - Here's the security blankie (or changing mat) that is now listed for sale in my Etsy Shop.



Quick little project, but great to accomplish, none-the-less.
More to come later today... including a Sandi Henderson bag I made for my friend, Gloria.... from the Katie Jump Rope line... too cute!

I'll have the usual, please.

Back to the daily grind.
I'm home from a 10 day missions trip to Nicaragua, and I have a whole new outlook on life! No matter how deprived, or broke, or poorly clothed you feel... the majority (80%) of Nicaraguans make less than $2 per day. Can you imagine? How do you feed your family, or keep a roof over your head... much less pay for health care? The people work hard but due to government corruption and their current economic situation they just cannot get ahead. I'll post photos and more thoughts on another day. Let it suffice to say we are SO blessed to have been born in America, and all the opportunity it brings.

Now on to fun sewing things! I really missed my sewing machine while I was gone, so I thought I'd seek out some fun fabric to make a baby shower gift for a friend from church. I found this BRAND NEW fabric from Alexander Henry (called "Sloane Paisley") at my new favorite fabric shop in Worthington, OH, called SEW TO SPEAK.
The owner literally was pulling this bolt out of a UPS box and exclaimed "this would make the perfect baby blanket!" and I agreed... and snapped up a yard to make a baby blanket and set of burp cloths, backed with creme flannel. Here's the outcome:

My friend, Allison, is having a girl... she doesn't strike me as particularly "girly" so I thought this would suite her, and hopefully her soon-to-arrive daughter.

Another fun part of my day was getting a much anticipated package in the mail! I ordered two coordinating yards of "Dick and Jane" fabric (from the Fat Quarter Shop) and now I have to decide what to do with it! I think I'll just let it sit on my cutting table for a bit so I can drool over it a tad longer...


If you have any suggestions for me - I'd love to hear them! I'm thinking baby blanket... or stroller quilt?