"Make it yours" - enchanted clutch bag

Since I decided to enter the "Make It Yours" Sewing Contest I can't seem to stop make this bags. This is my 3rd try at it ( or 4th .. I had started another one before this but is not finished yet - still working on ideas on how to finish it ) .Here are the links to the pattern and contest rules ( pattern is free, entering the contest is optional ):

• Pattern 
• Contest

I wanted to do something different when I started. I was thinking of a tree patchwork applique. But when the "tree" was finished I didn't like how it looked on the background fabric that is so beautiful on its own. And I had already cut the enchanted fabric...  I didn't sew for two days since none of the 2 work in progress bags felt right. In the end I decided to keep it simple and add just a few beads and pom poms to it. It was ready really fast and I love it. Is so bright and colorful.

And the day light dress up photos:

"Make it yours" - owl clutch bag

You can vote for my owl in Deby's contest here:
Contest vote link.


As I said before I wanted to do more bags for the "Make It Yours" Sewing Contest. This is my second try at it.Here are the links to the pattern and contest rules ( pattern is free, entering the contest is optional ):

• Pattern 
• Contest 

For some time now I wanted to try do my own owl bag. I've been putting down on a list all kind of ideas for it but I didn't had the courage to try it until today. Deby's pattern seemed pretty good for it and I already had a try at the pattern so I had the confidence needed to make a few small changes. Some of this ideas involved a lot of work but I took the easy way... I took out all my fabric and start looking for prints I can use. Here are the fabrics I selected :

Here is how I did it: ( the picture not the best - it was night .... )

I did another copy of the pattern, folded it as the final bag will be and start drawing... After that I did 2 small cuts in the pattern :

Take a look at the picture with the 2 pattern unfolded and overlapping to get a better understanding:

The new pattern I folded in half and cut. Kept one part and used the other to cut out smaller pieces ( wing, eye, eyebrow ):

Note that because of this I now have to cut the fabric, the lining and interfaces on the fold:

I

After this I took the eye and the wing patterns and try to find something in the printed fabrics that I can use. After mixing and matching I decided not to use the exact patterns for eye or wing and completely dropped the eyebrow. Here was the preview setup:

I cut the extra fabric and and sew the eye and the wing on main fabric of the clutch. I also added some eyes for toys.

From here I just followed the pattern instructions with only one exception. I didn't let the seam open in the middle for reversing but more on a side:

the result seemed a bit to plain so I glued a few felt accents.

The final result:

"Make It Yours" - my very own red velvet matryoshka clutch

Yesterday I stumbled upon this very nice contest from So Sew Easy. I just love competitions. They motivate me to do some extra work and try new things ( I never did a magnetic closing before this one for instance ) and there is also a nice parade of creations that just warm your heart and give you so many new ideas. The task seemed pretty easy to do ( I think even a beginner can try to do this - there was only one tricky part for me following this pattern : how to fold everything together before the side seams) so I let my imagination fly... searching for my own clutch. I think this is one of the things I love most: take some simple item and make it personal, just mine, unique. That's probably why I got my clutch in the same day I decided to enter the contest... The pattern is free and easy and for me it turned out better then I expected from my first try. To be honest I started this project more like a test the pattern sewing with the scraps from my Matryoshka Skirt. But once it was ready I just  fallen in love with it. I took it to work today and it was nice to wear it. Is so light and bright and sticks to me... So easy to take it to park when I go play with my boy and not having to worry about the extra weight or losing it.

Here are the links to the pattern and contest rules:

• Pattern 
• Contest 

My printer is dead and I didn't had the patience to take it somewhere else to print so I opened the pattern pdf, put it to 100% resolution did some measurements and calculations ( math come easy to me ) and put it on one of my son drawing sheets ( did some recycling ).I cut everything out and start sewing. For the final band I did a hand stitch. I will let the pictures tell you more f the story.

Sewing:

 Inside the clutch:

Outside with my son after work :

 

 The outdoor photos got the color better that the indoor ones but I still like them.

Yellow and black polka dots circle skirt returns

 It seems that this skirt had a bit of the success so I was presented with the opportunity to make another. There are so many ideas and possibilities out there that it didn't made sense to do it the same. For this one I used lace tape for the lower hem and embroidered tulle for the waistband decoration. Here is how it turned out.

Red velvet matryoshka skirt with pom poms

I have seen this spring a nice red velvet skirt with pom poms and embroidered ribbons and I had to have one too... I knew I had a rest of red velvet from another project and a russian doll cotton  fabric I just loved and hopping I will find a project for it soon. I wanted to use more ribbons initially but but after laying all on the table and doing some mixing it seems that less is better... For the waist band I used the same pattern and decoration as for the yellow polka dots skirt from the contest. For the lower hem I used lace and pom poms tape. Is a bit short I think but that's all the fabric I had left. Anyway I just love it. Is full of color and joy.

And now the skirt taken outside to play this weekend. And I must say it feels really good to be in the clothes I make even with all their flows.

I also made a small clutch  to match the skirt here.