my beautiful bag has arrived from stephanie and i am so inspired and happy! of course i had to open the box no sooner i brought it in. and i'm pretty sure i was giddy with anticipation. i still have a big grin on my face!when stephanie invited me to do this swap, we chatted a bit about what pattern to use for each other. she mentioned she was thinking about the multi-tasker tote by anna maria horner as she not yet seen me make it. how did she know i had been eying that pattern for some time, but hadn't yet bought it? :) i love it. i love the size, the straps, the easy access pockets on the outside and two smaller on the inside. and i love the fabric she choose. the pink, orange and brown are so rich and fun! wow!
i told you she was a hippie chick!
of course she included a few little yummy treats tucked inside...a beautiful crocheted zipper bag and snap pouch! because you see, stephanie crochets. she paints and has made the cutest little panda felt animal, too. and now i've my own fwumpus originals. i'm a very lucky girl.
stephanie mentioned in her note that blogging has led to meeting new people and making friends. i couldn't agree more.
thank you, friends!
and if you have never participated in a swap, whether with one or a few, i would say, "go for it." i promise you'll receive in generosity and friendship as you so kindly give. i know, thanks to these fabulous ladies you really should visit here and here.
market bag with the strap tucked in ready to package...
beach stripes...
i'm soooo happy. stephanie has received the bag i made her in our bag swap. now i can post pictures and share a little about the fabric i chose for her.
when she first invited me to do this bag swap, well, i did have a little something in my stash i could have used...a little something also in a purple, my latest color craze these days...but it's much more fun to shop. you know i couldn't resist when i spotted the new line, hippie chicks by michele d'amore for marcus fabrics. oh my gosh. i just love it and selected a few different pieces.
i decided on the purple daisy stems and beach stripes to contrast. i browsed stephanie's pics of fabric she has in her stash and what she has used for her own sewing projects, noting she liked florals. so, my purple passion with her flower power and you have THE only choice possible!
the pattern is portabellopixie market bags and i made it fully reversible which is nice because i couldn't decide what side i liked better after i was done! and i like my bags sturdy, but not heavy, so i lined both the "exterior and interior" with a cotton twill. i hope she will enjoy the bag and the little fat quarters i sent for her own projects for moments and days to come.
and i am so looking forward to my own beautiful bag which should be at my doorstep soon!
please visit stephanie. she's doing a 10 day photo journal of Musikfest.rock out, everyone, and enjoy these magical days!
i'm so excited! the fab fabric has arrived from a funky new line by one of my favorite designers that i intend to choose from for a bag swap with the amazingly talented Stephanie (pop on over to her blog and visit her terrific photos on flickr). here's just a sneak peek, but i promise details after i've finished and my package has been mailed, delivered & received. it's been a while since i've been at the sewing table. this is the inspiration i've been waiting for and i'm sew ready to get back at it.
hope everyone is enjoying a terrific july, near and far. make the absolute best of it in perfect celebration of your interests and passions.
well, the day started out glorious...a blue sky, not a cloud in sight. i just had to take a walk to the krispy kreme for my favorite glazed raspberry filled donut (it's about a mile round trip, but only my second time going in a year...willpower!). i came home, threw open the windows to let the sunshine in, did some tidying up and cleaning, getting myself ready to sew a bag for my mom's friend.
i was listening the whole time for the mailperson who comes right around noon.
and there was my package from iris. our bag swap!
i calmly finished up my lunch then grabbed my camera and headed for the outdoors. only sitting on the grass, under the shade of the river birch, would do, for simple, peaceful pleasures.
pretty yellow tissue with "dragon-fly purple-blue" ribbon...
an amy butler notecard, handwritten...
the cutest, dearest Buttercup, wonderfully small, THE purse for warm spring and summer days in the perfect colors and design with matching buttons ...
lining to die for...matrushka dolls! how did she know i've two sitting on my bookshelves, fond reminders of visits to st. petersburg and moscow...
in blue tissue, hankies, bright, beautiful, hankies! two!...
mail love...
thank you, iris. for your wonder and light.
thank you all who visit my space, sharing your sweet shelves, your creative imaginings, your gift of friendship. to a total stranger.
to give is to receive. to walk hand in hand, on the road, here to there, is to grow peace.
i don't even really know where to start.
first, i may have misled some of you when i posted here into believing i had used all these fabrics in one project. my apologies! this was actually a patchwork card which i made to accompany a bag...in swap...and an apron for my wonderfully artistic virtual friend (virtual friends have quickly become my happiest and nicest friends!) and fellow blogger, Iris, of Creative Endeavors in a Busy Life.
remember my mail love? iris left me a comment, asking if i'd consider doing a bag swap with her. she's making these delicious buttercups (see here and here). of course i said yes! i remember it was a sunday morning when i responded in an e-mail. and then i began on my adventure.i had to find the right fabric. she's always left me the nicest comments about my bold & bright choices in color and design.lucky me jane sassaman had just the thing. i used prairie gothic (of which i had enough fabric leftover to make a "hip hugger goth cafe apron" to include) for my swing, a pattern iris told me she liked...my thinking, exactly. but ms. sassaman also has two lines called magic forest and hothouse garden that are perfect together and my latest favorite obsessions. that's what was in this pretty purple package.
i decided on the orchid tessellation for the exterior and the lime green starry night symbols for the interior (sorry you can't see it in this picture...i tried several shots...this was the best). i just loved it. i loved working on it. i loved it when i was finished. it's bright and bold, but not loud. it's magic for the eyes. and i'm so pleased to have made my friend a bag, a little something of me to share with her.
as she has done for me. my package shall arrive soon. and i just can't wait to see what i know is the beauty of her person, her hands.
i just really, really enjoyed my first swap. it's not something i do a lot of because i still get freaky nervous about sewing for others (although that's what i prefer!). but, one on one, i can totally function that way, for now. hopefully more some day! i admire all of you out there that share your craft in virtual quilting bees, in charitable sewing, on etsy. you've my admiration and awe!
today...be delighted. in moments. let it grow big if it's important and happy. big like the after effects that is this little project today for me.
and much thanks to iris. now, go visit her wonderful blog!
i've been sewing, every day this week, even today. and i've pictures. it's been soooo much fun working on this little project, start to finish, from the invitation to the fabric and to something of a greeting. all that's left is a pretty package. snail mail love.
but i can't show you anything, right now, except little bits & pieces of the fabric i used. for now. until my friend receives what i have made for her. in swap. i've left a few hints, around cyberworld. i hope she doesn't mind. :)
i feel like a little kid, wringing my hands. because it's the simple, beautiful things, like sharing "creative endeavors" that makes me crazy happy.
be happy today, too!
