The Final Totes (for a while at least)

So, I got quite ambitious with the last set - six petals! another circle (after I swore never again)! I think they turned out rather well. I really like the color combination, although I never expected dusty rose and tan to work together.

Dragonfly Totes

Last Colorado Totes

The left one has a double pocket worked into the front - one for pencils and lists and one for extra bags. Yay!

Just three more sets to make and two are already cut out. They're for Oregonians though so I'm not on quite the same time deadline.

More Totes

The only green totes, even though they don't really look it in this picture. Five sets to go...

Brown Totes

These are my favorite, although circles definitely stretch my appliquing skills.

More Kittens and Totes (and a Quentin!)

The lone blue tote pair. (Browns to be posted later today!)

Q and Ewok asleep!

Q and Ewok awake! (I told him that he shouldn't let such little babies watch TV.)

The Black Grocery Totes

Only 9 more sets to go and four of those are all designed and cut out. The sewing machine decided that it no longer wants to sew through as many layers as it used to so I had to change the strap attachment after one top took me an hour! Thank you again serger for making my life a little easier. Thankfully, the rest went considerably more quickly.

The rectangle on the one with the stripe is a pocket! I like that a lot.

The flower applique was of my own design and by far the most complex that I have attempted. I'm not pleased with the result (the curves came out a little sloppy) but I am still learning and the bag will still hold stuff.

Holiday Crafting - First Success

So, here's the first pair of grocery bags that I am making for holiday gifts. Only twelve more sets to go. So much fun!

Sewing Practice, Kittens and Cooking

Today, Black Friday, I braved the bargain seeking hordes and went to JoAnn's Fabrics. I was surprised and delighted to find that by the time I got there it was pretty quiet and they still had everything I wanted, including the serger that was on the doorbuster sale!

I got the bottomweight fabric necessary to start me on my Christmas "shopping bags for everybody" project. With materials and tools now at my disposal, I went home and learned how to use a serger and how to use my sewing machine to do simple appliques. Below is the first bag...not professional quality, but sturdy and neatly done.


After sewing around the bottom, I used the serger to give it a quick finish. SOOOO EASY! I think I'm in love. Thank you for the early birthday/Christmas present, Mom!
On other, entirely unrelated, fronts, I promised to put up pictures of the six kittens we're fostering. The three black ones are named Hekyll, Jekyll, and Funf. The two black and white (a boy and a girl) are Puppet and Little Girl. The tabby is called Ewok. Just over a week and they go back to the shelter to find their homes.
Ewok had just had her bath about a week ago. (They're better at cleaning themselves now.)

And for my final sidenote, I've been meaning to post this photo since November 1. It's the huge batch of Three Bean Casserole that I made and froze. Four solid meals worth. I carried the casseroles down to the freezer in the huge pan I made the batch in. I got it at an estate sale. It's black enamel on the outside, bright red inside, and absolutely enormous. It makes me very happy.