Archie The Wonder Dog

I listed a three-in-one proposed finish in my  Q4 2015 FAL list  - these three tea towels needed to be turned into bags, and they needed to be finished this quarter as they're Christmas presents! I have to confess that these were a really quick finish - two afternoons and I was all done, including ironing and wrapping!  I can't take credit for the idea, that was my very talented friend B - thanks, B! All I had to do was stitch the long sides together (they were already hemmed so no seams to finish!), add handles, box the corners and zigzag the two resulting seams to stop them fraying.  I also added a bit of Fray Check to them, just to be safe.  I also used Fray Check for the raw ends of the handles (cotton twill tape) because, although they were enclosed, I thought the bags might get washed quite a lot and I didn't want the handles fraying out. They don't look like much with nothing in them (which bag does?!), but look much better once they've be...

Another item on my FAL Q3 list  was to turn these fabrics (half a metre of each) and this trim (all brought back from France by a friend) into a simple tote bag: I used this as another distraction activity while Archie was poorly but again I couldn't be away from him for long as the whines were really quite mournful and he kept getting distressed.  I'd like to blame this for a certain 'design feature' inside the bag...you'll see what I mean in a moment! I decided to keep the bag as simple as possible, just a straightforward tote bag for carrying parcels to the post office, etc. and so I kept nipping upstairs to cut fabric or sew a seam, in between sitting in front of Archie's cage and reassuring him that everything was okay.  After an afternoon of nipping, stitching and unpicking (that sounds like a sewing class in an infant class, doesn't it?!) I had a bag! And now it's time to reveal my 'design feature'.  I made the outsi...

I'm not entirely sure what I've done since I last blogged so let's see what I can find in my 'June' folder, shall we?! I got the backing sorted for my hexy quilt .  There was a bit of a problem when I discovered a small hole  (which I knew I hadn't caused) in my first order (after I'd washed and ironed it) but the wonderful staff at The Cotton Patch sorted it out in a jiffy and sent me a new piece of fabric (and kindly allowed me to keep the original piece, I suspect because I'd already washed it - their customer service is wonderful, I've shopped there before this and will definitely be going back!)  This is how it's been for about four weeks: (A big piece of fabric folded in quarters and laid over the back of a settee!) Isn't it pretty, though?!  It'll be even better when I get it layered and tacked - I've got as far as finding the masking tape and tacking thread/needle tin but not much further, I just haven't had the...

Before I start my Fresh Sewing Day post I'd like to say thank you for all your lovely comments on my last post .  I decided that there were too many comments to reply to and that, rather than wearing myself out trying to reply, I'd save the energy for making the prize!  I extended the deadline by a couple of days as I knew I wouldn't be able to organise an Archie picking session until Sunday.  If you haven't left a comment yet then why not go there now ? I've been really tired this month and that's partly because I'm still recovering from Christmas (it wipes me out and takes me until about Easter to bounce back) and partly because I went on a workshop to make a bag.  It was a fabulous day and about a fortnight after the workshop I finished my bag.   There was quite a lot of work in it (adding to the tiredness!) but I think it was worth it... The front (royal blue cord is from Annie at The Village Haberdashery ) The side - I do love th...