Pouches To Go!

On The Go With Across The Pond Sew Along 

See our past projects  {here}

Are you going on any trips this summer?  Maybe you'll find something for travel, or things "to go"  , that you 'd like to make!

Amanda, The Patchsmith, has made herself some beautiful  patchwork book carry covers! 
Isn't this so pretty!!   You'll see another book cover idea, as well, over at The Patchsmith!
Her patchwork  and stitching are so delicate and lucious!

      Amanda's Book Carryall        {here}
photo by The Patchsmith  

I love using pouches when I travel... "There is no such thing as having too many pouches!" (You can quote me on that!)   So I made  myself a Dumpling Pouch,  by Michelle Patterns.

Dumpling Pouch  by Michelle Patterns  -  free tutorial

I wanted it to coordinate with some other travel bags that I have made in the past.

Dumplings Zip Pouch Tutorial:   by Michelle Patterns  {here} - the easier pattern
  
Fabrics:   Dab Of Jazz    Maywood Studios  ( I had a lot of the Dab of Jazz line in my stash)
               White Brussels Linen

Thread:   Aurifill   Color Me Happy     the variegated light green
Zipper:   Apple Green        I get my zippers from Zip It!
Dimensions:  about 6 1/2 " wide  x 4 " high

Come to me,  my little dumpling!!

I used the  linen for two rows of squares in the middle. (They turn up in the bottom of the pouch.)

Oh, this  little pouch is super fun.  The only fiddly part was adding the binding in the lining for the ends of the zippers.    I took my time, and hand basted where Michelle suggests to hand baste.

The other side of my dumpling

The bottom- I love seeing quilting on linen... this is the  Aurifil " Color Me Happy"
  light green with variegations

The lining    

Next, I made an Eye Mask.  I usually want to go to sleep, while my husband reads awhile longer.  I like using an eye mask.

Erin, of Dog Under My Desk,  wrote a great , and free,  tutorial for an eye mask-

Free Tutorial at Dog Under My Desk

My Dab of Jazz  Eye Mask                      by Susie's Sunroom

My Travel Set      Susie's Sunroom

Are you curious about the other items you have seen in the pictures?

I'm ready for a trip!      Susie's Sunroom
(far left): The Linen To Go Pouch,  Eye Mask (in front pocket), The Dumpling Pouch  &
 Tote with Zipper (design by Taylor Made Designs- Totes with Zipper TMB-155)

The tall linen bag on the left is a tall zippered pouch, with handles and oodles of pockets inside. It is new  pouch that I created . I call it the "Linen To Go Pouch."    It has handy pockets on the front, as well as the inside.   ( If anyone is interested, I will try to make a pattern for it.  Let me know.)

Linen To Go Pouch - Dimensions:  10 1/2 " across  x 11 " high x 4  "  deep
Pockets:  4 outer  /   3 small ,   1 medium,  and 1 large pocket inside
Zipper top enclosure

Linen To Go Pouch  design by Susie's Sunroom

Inset zippered closure

Lots of pockets inside. Yoo-hoo! The Dumpling is down in there!

 The small duffle bag on the right is a  design by Cindy Taylor Oates. It is about 15 1/2 " across by 12 inches tall.  I made this bag a few years ago.  

I also made some bigger travel bags, in the Dab of Jazz fabrics, and will share them with you sometime soon.

Want to see what we are making in our Across The Pond Sew Along group?  You can look right here in our Flickr Group.

What will you be taking along on your next trip? 

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linking up to:    And Sew We Craft Together @ And Sew We Craft   and

                              Pet Projects Project Show  @ Pink Doxies  and 
                        Can I Get a Whoop Whoop!  @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict

One Lovely Blog Award

An Opportunity to Recognize Kindness and Support

Have you noticed the " One Lovely Blog Award " recognition that is going around in Blogland now?   

I have been nominated by the lovely Lara B,  of BuzzinBumble, 
 and also  ( a day later) by the lovely Soma, of  Whims And Fancies , to take my  turn and  share a bit about myself.   

Here's what we do when we accept the One Lovely Blog Award: 

1. Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link to their post.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Choose 10 blogs to nominate for the award. (It is fine to nominate less than ten, just however many you feel comfortable with.)

Thank you,  Lara  and Soma,   lovely ladies, for being  so supportive and kind , and surrounding yourself by folks who are also this way!  I adore both of your blogs!

My Nominations for the  "One Lovely Blog Award" go to:  ( in alphabetical order)

Amanda    The Patchsmith Blog

Geta         Geta's Quilting Studio  Blog

Janine       Crafty Tokyo Mama II  Blog

Sheri        Sunshine in the Attic Blog

****        waiting for one other possible person!  may be adding her later

Click on their blog links, to go over to their blogs for a visit.    

And visit Lara B and Soma, too!

Lara B    BuzzinBumble Blog   **** Giveaway at  BuzzinBumble !!  ****

Soma     Whims And Fancies Blog

Sharing  7 Things about myself:

1.  I have a big sweet tooth! I haven't met a dessert that was "too rich to eat" yet!!   Vanilla Ice Cream is rarely  never  refused and is my favorite flavor.

2. I love to embroider. For years,  I only sewed  cross stitch and embroidery, and did  some hemming by hand.   It is harder to cross stitch now, as I need some 
uber-strong  magnifying glasses to see the pattern and the stitches!!

3. I love music... I play handbells  in my bell choir, sing in the choir weekly (during the school year), and play my flute at our church.  I am a soprano now, but sang as an alto  for years.

4.  I am allergic to  all seafood.  I can't cook any  fish or shellfish at home.  Fortunately, I can still eat out in most restaurants.    ( I can't eat at crab places at the beach... too many allergens in the air there!)

5.  A  " True Confession"-      I love to watch the Discovery Channel  while I sew:  

The Deadliest Catch ( yes, even though I can't eat or cook  a thing that they catch!)     Alaska : The Wild Frontier  
Alaskan Bush People 
Gold Rush   
I don't camp, but like to see others braving the wild !!   Notice a trend?   Apparently I am drawn to Alaska... I can't "do cold extremes" but can live it vicariously through these shows .

6.  I learned to sew on my sewing machine , as an adult, so I could make tote bags and purses.   I  have made well over 100   " Bow Tucks  Tote " bags through the years..... in both  the large and the small size.   

The Bow Tucks Tote pattern   here

The Bow Tucks  tote basic pattern  uses 3 different  fabrics.  I think I have spent hundreds of hours going through fabric stores to find different fabric combinations!   

7.  I was always just "average" in my Art classes in school. ( Phys Ed and Art were always my lowest grades.)  I began taking lessons in painting with acrylic paints on wood, from a neighborhood friend .  Maria taught me  how to shade and layer colors and stipple.  I loved the Folk Art/ Primitive style.  I think painting  was preparation for my  sewing and quilting!  

Some projects I made

I love making friends and meeting folks who are supportive and helpful and kind... and "sew lovely!"   

I'm off to my sewing room!

The Sunburst Clutch

What could possibly be more fun than a paper piecing project? 
A new little  clutch purse pattern,  by Mrs H  ... COMBINED with a paper pieced flap!  That's what!!

Samantha, of Sewing Patterns by Mrs H,  and Kerry, of  Pennydog Patchwork,  collaborated to create this  super cute pattern ... a clutch with a fun flap! 

As Samantha explains in her pdf pattern description:  

"If you're a bag maker wanting to give paper piecing a go, this is exactly the pattern for you, with just a small amount of paper piecing to dip your toe!

In fact, let's just say this is an excellent pattern for anyone who wants a cute clutch, for a date night, a wedding (it is wedding season after all!) or even just running errands when you only need your wallet and phone!

The finished bag measures approximately 8.5" x 6" x 1.5" (22cm x 15cm x 4cm) and features mitred corners, a sunburst paper pieced flap and a magnetic clasp closure.  "

Go to buy here

I am lucky to be a pattern tester for Samantha. When she showed us this cutie clutch, I knew I would MAKE time to test out this  pattern!

The Fabrics:

Black Denim    (bottomweight) from JoAnn Fabric
Barcelona   charm pack  by Zen Chic  (5 inch squares)

Magnetic Snap

Dimensions:   8.5" x 6" x 1.5"  approximately

Now, I won this Barcelona  charm pack.  It is not in colors and designs that I normally choose for myself.  It sat in my "Charms Box" for probably over a year.  It is very modern and darkish.

photo courtesy of Emerald City Fabrics

However, I was determined to use something from my stash.  So, I began sorting out the fabrics into piles of similar colors.  
This is what  I came up with.... and I LIKE it!!

The Sunburst Clutch          Susie's Sunroom version 

Some of the rays in the sunburst pattern  are longer than 5 inches.  I simply sewed sections together.  (Patchwork piecing !)   The inside lining of the flap is pieced...
see below.

The flap lining and the inside of the clutch.   Yep... it's all pieced from charm pieces!

 Samantha's purse pattern directions are written clearly, with lots of pictures . It is a pleasure to make bags from patterns made by Mrs H !

This pattern took longer for me to choose my fabrics, than to sew up the clutch!  
You can see all of the different fabrics that the other testers used to make their Sunburst Clutches...  Here      I love how this clutch can be made to be dressy or casual.... fun and funky or traditional.

If you'd like to make your own Sunburst clutch, you can buy the pattern in Samantha's  Etsy store here.
*  For this first week only the pattern is 15% off using the code NEWPATTERN15 .

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linking up at:             Let's Bee Social @  Sew Fresh Quilts   and
                                         Sew Cute Tuesday @ Blossom Heart Quilts  and
                                   And Sew We Craft Together @ And Sew We Craft