Winner of the Nappy Bag Pattern

Winner of the Giveaway!

Nappy Bag pattern  at the Etsy shop of At Home With Mrs H

It's time  to see who Mr. Random Number Generator picked to win this stylish (and useful) Nappy Bag pattern !

Random number generation / Random Numbers

Generate a random number between  and   = 4

That means that Leanne is the Nappy Pattern Winner!!

4. Leanne  says:
Great bag! I'd certainly use the pattern to make diaper bags for friends or family expecting babies. No more babies for me (my youngest is 6), but there are always others having babies. Thanks for linking to TGIFF, and for the chance to win.    

Leanne, I will be sending  your email to Samantha and she will send you the pdf pattern.

Thank you, Samantha (Mrs H herself!), for generously donating this pattern to my blog for a giveaway !   

And remember,   If you stop by her Etsy shop,  please feel free to use the code ATHOMEWITHMRSH10 for a 10% discount on your purchase of pattern/s & or hardware !

Thank you to everybody who stopped by, and especially if you took a few minutes to write a comment!

Let me know if you make this great bag!  I'd love to see a picture !

                                              Congratulations, Leanne!

I'm off to my sewing room!

Purse and Pouch Passion

Purse and Pouch Passion:  Part 1

It's no  secret that I LOVE to make bags, purses and pouches.  (You can add several  a bunch of other things that I like to make, too...)

Recently, I have made more purses and pouches than I could blog about !  (When I started writing this blog about 17 months ago, I worried that I wouldn't have enough things to blog about!)

I'd like to share with you some of the cutest things ever...

First purse:     Little Bow Pleat Party Purse Clutch Bag Pattern
Designer:             Samantha @ At Home With Mrs H

Such a cute clutch!   click here for the pattern

         Fabric:  Michael Miller    and black blender

         Closure:     magnetic snap

Little Bow Pleat Party Purse Clutch Bag   made by Susie's Sunroom

This bag made up quickly and easily, thanks to Samantha's clear directions and great pictures!                            

I decided to make my little clutch without a chain.  The next one I make, I will put the little loops inside the bag, as I have since purchased a nice metal chain for another clutch!

Samantha has directions for this, of course!

Can you see the pleat in the middle?
 (I know my fabric is busy, so it is hard to see in my photos.)

  

I like this clutch because it easily holds my cell phone and glasses .

This clutch may look small and elegant, but don't let that fool you!  it really does hold a lot!

  Cell phone, glasses, blush , and keys

I love the ease of this bag... an intermediate sewist can whip a pretty  little bow clutch in an afternoon or evening,  and match her outfit for the event!   Hop on over to At Home with Mrs H and see how cute it looks in many different fabrics.

When you want to make one...the patterns are available as PDF files at  Samantha's Craftsy store!  

I"m ready to go.... where should I go??  ;)

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linked up at Can I Get a Whoop Whoop @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict

The Bookbag Backpack and a Giveaway!

It's a cute Bookbag and a Backpack... in one

I am as happy " as a clam" when I am testing out a new pattern.  
Sew couldn't be happier right now, because I just got to try out a new backpack pattern designed  by Samantha at At Home with Mrs H !  

Samantha's new pattern.... The Bookbag Backpack

For the first time , when I was picking out what fabric to make the backpack ,I decided to use a home decorator weight fabric. I wanted a fabric with extra durability.   I chose all of my fabrics from Terry's Fabrics .  Terry's Fabrics carries gorgeous  curtain fabrics.  ( I think this is what we call home decor weight, here in the US.  ) The prints are big and so pretty.

Fabrics:  I chose Sayuri , in moleskin color , for my main fabric.  

Sayuri   in moleskin color

Then I picked this brown poly/cotton blend fabric for the handles and straps.

Kensington  fabric    in mushroom color 

I wanted the lining to pop out with color, and luckily, they had just right color of yellow... lemon!

Panama cotton  Lemon

Zipper:  Coats Sport zipper  30 in   (I got mine at JoAnn Fabrics)
            2-  10 inch nylon zippers (from Zip It )
2 Tri-glide buckle ,4  square rings, 2 swivel hooks from JoAnn Fabrics

Intefacing:  Pellon SF 101   and Pellon FF987

I decided to split my tasks into several days, since this is a bag with many pieces to cut out and sew. 

• Day One, I read through the whole pattern and was so thankful that  Samantha's  pattern has excellent directions and pictures to show all of the steps in making this backpack.  I then cut my pieces from the fabrics, and labeled them.
• Day Two, I cut all of the interfacings out.  Since the outer fabric was home decorator weight, I used the SF 101 interfacing on the backs of those pieces.   I used the FF987 fleece for the lining.  And the straps were made from a poly/cotton blend, and after making a small test strap, I decided it did not need interfacing. Then, I sewed all of my straps and handles and hooked up the hardware to them.  I used a brown thread that blended with my brown fabric.
• Day Three, I sewed my bag together.  

( I left out , Day Two Evening.... I carried  my finished  straps ,with the cute  hardware attached, around all evening and then  to bed , to admire )

The backpack finished size is :  12 inches wide x 14 inches high x 3 inches deep
This bag can hold a lot!

The Bookbag Backpack     by Susie's Sunroom

I love the yellow pop, from the lining of the outer pocket.

It has strap for over the shoulder, too!

The back side  , with the backpack straps

Inside, it has a zippered pocket in the lining.   I added a slip pocket on the other side.

I smile when I look inside my bag, seeing this beautiful, lemony fabric!

Handles on the top of the bag.  I love these details.

Surprise.... there's another zippered pocket in the front pocket!!

What do I think about this bookbag backpack , after making it?
I  L.O.V.E. it!!

It's sturdy in it's design... yet so stylish.
It will hold a lot of fabric books and things!  It will really 'work' for you.
You have the options of using it as a backpack , or a bookbag .... using the  handles on top  or the shoulder strap.
It has lots of pockets!!!  I adore that front zippered pocket hidden  inside the front slip pocket!!

This was a project where I did have to stop to  rip out some stitching.... but it was a careless mistake that I made.   
I put one of the backpack straps on upside down.   (I  now have marked my directions with a red marker at that section!!)  But this is an error caused by my rushing around and not "checking it twice".

Will I make it again?  I most certainly know that I will. I think I might  make one , leaving the backpack straps off.  I love the handles at the top of the bag, and the shoulder strap.
I can see it carrying my laptop around when I travel.

Where can you get this fabulous pattern?   Click here:   At Home with Mrs H 
It is available on instant download!!  

Not only is Samantha an awesome designer, but she is also a sweetheart who is donating a free pattern for a giveaway on my blog!!  That means that you have a great chance of winning this beautiful and functional bookbag backpack pattern!!

This giveaway is now closed.  Thank you for your comments!
When?            August 28, 2013  12:01 am EST  -  September 4, 2013 10:00 pm EST
How to enter:    leave a comment on this blog post....  anything will do.
 Need an idea?  You can tell me what you would carry in your bookbag if you made one !
Leave me your email address in the comment....     then I will email you directly if you are the winner.  (If I can't find an address for you, I will have to have Mr Random Number Generator pick a new winner.)


Good luck!  

I'm off to my sewing room!

I am linked to :  And Sew We Craft Together Linky Party @ And Sew We Craft

                              Sew  Darn Crafty @ Sew Many Ways