handbag with hippos

I promised myself an early bedtime tonight, so I have only about ten minutes to make good on that pledge. I made this handbag for my Godmother who celebrated a birthday recently by taking a bunch of us out to see the Boston Pops. Yeah, she’s a very nice lady. Plus she’s very fun and funny, and, hands down, is the best Godmom a girl could wish for, really.

I chose the animal fabric for two reasons: 1) she asked me where I bought it and 2) she has a thing for hippos. [Check out the hippo with the bird on its back in the photo below that shows a close-up of the fabric. I love those apple trees too!] The dimensions of the bag are based on the “Dotted Dream” pattern from Ottobre Design. I didn’t follow the pattern beyond the dimensions because I wanted this handbag to be reversible, have longer handles, and also wanted to use that little green ribbon as a closure.

OK. My ten minutes are up. Good night!

post dinner play

We had a very nice long weekend. The highlight for the little guy was his new sandbox–a Christmas present from Grandmama. Can you tell he loves his new gift?

best thing i ever did

Bar Harbor, Maine. May 26, 2006.

monkeys and kangas not included

This was my first try at making a handbag. It’s reversible and the brown ribbon serves as a closure.  I love how the top flares out slightly, though I think the next time I will try to make one a little more (isosceles) trapezoid-al in shape.  Yes, I looked that up. 

I love the size of this bag (6″h x 7″w).  It is just big enough to hold a small sketch book, wallet, change pouch, sunglasses, keys, and chapstick/lipstick etc. What is really nice is that I could make a whole bunch of variations using that neutral color on one side, and some of the louder prints in my stash on the other side.  One fat quarter of printed fabric (with heavy interfacing) will do the trick, and I have plenty of those lying around.  I plan to give this one away, but I will make myself something similar using this print. 

The fabric used in this bag was purchased at my favorite local fabric store on their home decor remnant table.  And that kangaroo duo and the monkey-with-a-monkey-on-his-back?  Those are fingerpuppets that Grammy picked up for me the little guy on a recent trip to New York City.  They were handmade in either Peru or Bolivia.  I can’t remember which country, but I love them.

 

trying something new

I cut this project out last night and hope to finish it tonight. We’ll see how it goes.

increasingly independent

It’s not always pretty, but the little guy is happily feeding himself these days. It’s a bit messier at mealtime, but we actually get to eat along with him (rather than feed him and watch our warm food go cold), so we’re cool with it. I love that Redhead Auntie caught him kicking off his shoe in the top photo. He does that at every meal so its great to have a shot of it.

I know, I know. It’s hard to contain yourself when you read all the exciting news that emanates from your computer screen when you check in with this blog. I bet you are just sitting on the edge of your seat waiting for me to tell you all about our entrance into the grand era of potty training.

napkin rings for a growing family

I sewed up a set of cloth napkins and napkin rings for my mom for Mother’s Day.   I made personalized napkin rings for Grandmama (my mom), each of her children (my siblings), their significant others, and the grandchildren.  I had to leave one napkin ring blank because there was a grandchild on the way.  (Horray for Island Baby!)  I also made a few extras that will be personalized in the future. I am pretty sure that this family has a few more weddings and births on the horizon.   

Grandmama chose the printed fabric at the store where this talented blogger works when we were visiting Alpine Auntie in Salt Lake City.  It is a Moda print.  When she selected this particular fabric, my first response was “Are you sure you don’t want something a little more springlike?”  She look at the fabric, then at me, and said with a smile, “This is what I like.”  She has a good eye, because the napkins are beautiful and will go with the decor in her dining room perfectly.  I matched the print with a coordinating Kona Cotton to make double-sided napkins.   I used the same solid fabric for the rings and used rubber stamps with fabric markers to print the names.  The napkin rings are reversible, so if Grandmama is entertaining friends, she can just flip them over to the blank side. 

OK–Now we just need everyone to fly home so that we can have one big family dinner. When is everyone free? 

island baby is here!

My baby niece was born last night (May 14th) at 8.33 pm. She a peanut (of the very healthy variety) weighing in at 5 lb 14 oz. She’s got curly brown hair and brown eyes. All reports so far say that she is gorgeous. Since I don’t yet have a photo, here’s one of her mom when she was a wee one.

Congrats to the proud parents and welcome to the world Island Baby! I haven’t met you yet but I love you a ton already. We are sending Billions of Big Boston hugs and Millions of Massachusetts kisses all the way to Hawaii just for you.

moms

I love Mother’s Day because I am a newish mom and the day feels like a bonus day.  An extra birthday of sorts. I also love the day because it gives us the chance to celebrate our moms and thank them for all the wonderful and generous things they do. We live very close to Grandmama (my mom) and Grammy (his mom) and I cannot say enough about how much of a blessing it is to have them nearby. Not only do both Grandmothers accept impromptu babysitting requests at the drop of a hat, but they also send over food and other goodies — just because. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Seriously. The list is endless. So, because we can never say it enough–THANKS MOMS! You are the best.

We invited our families over on Sunday for an outdoor Mother’s Day brunch. Grammy brought this beautiful apple cake and my mom brought a delicious quiche. We probably should have insisted that they take a day off from kitchen duties, but well, they offered… and they are really good cooks.

I made Grammy this bag, which compliments our strawberry patch beautifully.

I was happy with how it came out except for one small goof that happened when I sewed on the ruffle. You may be able to spot a little bit of raw edges poking out in the top right corner of the bag in the photo below. Just a tiny mistake. The kind of mistake a sewista grandmother can appreciate (and pretend not to notice).

This was my first attempt at 1) sewing a ruffle and 2) using fusible interfacing. I am always afraid of “firsts” when it comes to sewing, but neither task was all that difficult. Getting the bias fabric to go around the handle loop was a little tricky, but I used a zig-zag stitch and that seemed to hold it in place well. I think I may make another bag like this one but change the width so that it holds two bottles of wine. (I think this one is wide enough to hold three.) The bag was inspired by Amy Butler’s Chelsea Bag but I didn’t use a pattern. I came up with my own dimensions, made the handles round instead of rectangular, and added the ruffle. It is reversible and has a pocket inside. I love the lining fabric. So sweet and old-fashioned. I plan to use moreo f it to make myself a mini-quilt to drape over a certain little white rocking chair at some point soon.

P.S. That sweet little Mother’s Day flower (top photo) was made by my boy, with heavy assistance from his wonderful daycare provider. Three cheers for artsy craftsy mommy gifts!

my sister and her calf

Alpine Auntie has a thing for cows.  They are her favorite animal.  I think she once said that she would like to receive a cow for a wedding gift.  Well, her wedding came and went and no cow.  But now she finally has one.  She got it for Mother’s Day.  Best looking cow I’ve ever seen. 

The cute is just killing me. That little pocket with that little stuffed cow friend inside!  How do I wish this little one could “graze” in my backyard every weekend.  Thank goodness she will be joining us for a summer vacation in a few months.  Otherwise, I think I’d go crazy.  I miss her.  And her mom and dad.  It stinks.  And I know I’m going to feel the same way once Island Auntie has her little one.  That big event will be happening in the next few weeks.  They live even further away.  Though the Cydermaker and I have pledged that we will make a trip to visit them in the next couple of years, so that helps.  But only a little.  ***Sigh.*** 

OK.  Enough of the “poor me.”  Thank goodness for digital photography and the internet.  Because I have these to make me smile and think about my sis and her dream-come-true.  Her sweet baby calf.