Tuesday

This Tuesday brings this finished item(another challah cover) and two hats for the charmed knits knit-along. I'll be sending those off later on this week.

What I've been up to

What I've not been up to is posting a lot lately, but.... What I have been up to is this:I made a skirt out of Sew What! Skirts.
This is an absolutely fabulous book. I can't recommend it enough. The amazing thing about the book is that, rather than just providing you with patterns, it teaches you how to draft a pattern based on your measurements. The book is full of helpful hints. For instance, it has the simplest and clearest directions for sewing on zippers that I've ever seen. It suggests and gives clear instructions for a variety of waistbands and has lots of inspiring photos of ways you can vary your skirt patterns. I've already bought fabric for another skirt for myself and one for my littlest. Also, I'm planning on dyeing and batiking some yardage to make a skirt from my own fabric. Can you tell I'm really excited about this book?
But. Wait. I've been doing more than just sewing. I've also started a beret for the Charmed Knits knit-along.

I'm using Knit Picks' Andean Silk. It's a terrifically soft yarn and knits up very quickly. This picture was taken this morning, but I'm practically done now. I ordered two balls of each color, so I'll have plenty to make a second hat.

Remember When...

Remember when I said I was going to turn my African Folklore Embroidery into a flap for a bag? Well, I did! And I'm so happy with it. I had really been stumped as to what kind of fabric I wanted to use for the body of the bag. Should it be some of my own hand dyed or a commercial fabric I already owned? I just couldn't decide and, also, nothing seemed quite right. Then yesterday, as I was driving to the fabric store to pick up some other stuff, it dawned on me. I wanted the body of the bag to be made out of a Japanese brocade. It just suddenly seemed to be the perfect mix. When I got to the store, it must have been kismet, because I found the perfect fabric in terms of color match. I just knew it was right the minute I saw it. I was so excited, I practically ran home and spent the evening making my bag and here it is:

I'm Still Here

I have been a very bad blogger this past week. Though, my husband says that he doesn't like it when people spend time on their blogs lamenting that they haven't posted lately. I'm not exactly lamenting, but, I do enjoy posting, so not having done so for a while is a bit of a bummer.
Today's entry is a bit of a cornucopia(whew, I didn't think I knew how to spell that). This is my completed, quilted and bound, on three sides, African Folklore Embroidery. I only bound it on three sides as I'm planning on using it as a flap to a book bag.I've also been dyeing and dye painting a lot of fabric lately and am planning to use most of the larger pieces to make bags.
Here's a view of the inside of the bag with an elephant peaking out from the pocket.

Tuesday's Posting, One Day Late

I couldn't post my usual Tuesday update yesterday because it was the first day of Passover, so here I am today. I made this challah cover for a customer and wanted to make sure I got a picture of it before she picks it up tomorrow. Anyone know what it says. Hint: It's in Hebrew, so make sure you read it from right to left.