Linen loveliness

I have had some scrappy offcuts of the most amazing Irish linen in my stash boxes for quite a while now and when I needed to make up a little cosmetic purse for my mum's best friend a couple of Sunday mornings ago, I reached for the linen and some scraps of Bonnie and Camille.

I really didn't want to over- fuss this little zippy pouch with extra lace or trimmings because I think the linen just speaks for itself.  So, as you can see I simply stitched little mini-charms into a centre panel front and back, quilted with two discreet lines of stitching either side of the panel and added a pretty floral and paisley print from Scrumptious to allow the lining to be a bit of a feature.

Since I had to give this pretty one away, I took some extra pics.  Above is the front and below is the back.

I promise the pouch is evenly angled on both sides even if my photo makes it look like it's not.

Think I might need to make myself something useful in some more of this linen and B&C - just sayin'.

Start to Finish

Last week I continued to "avoid" the larger projects on my list, choosing some more little projects that can be started and finished in a relatively short time.

A number of weeks back my mum surprised me with a little pack of fat quarters she had ordered from a television shopping channel.

Last week I decided they might make cute little cosmetic purses and whipped up a bunch for my mum to gift to her friends.

I find production line sewing a bit tedious normally, so avoid repetition fatigue I varied the designs a little on each one.  I like some better than others, but mum seems to think her friends will like them, so that'll do nicely.

I also snuck in a quick frame purse for myself made up in this lovely Bonnie and Camille fabric - Marmalade on the outside and Scrumptious to line it.

It will replace this tired little box that normally holds my make-up and I think my dresser is looking better already.

I have some more avoidance tactics from the weekend to show you tomorrow when I take pics, but I think that maybe this week I will have to behave myself and get back to that FAL list!

Mmm Mmm

That's Mmm for Martha and Mmm for May.

Yup, meet my Martha May bag made from the absolutely fabulous pattern just published by Judith today!

I cannot tell you how much I LOVE this bag!

For me it was infatuation at first sight when Judith showed us Martha May on her blog a while back, so when she asked me if I would pattern test this bag for her, I almost bit her arm off for the opportunity (not literally you understand, but close to it).

The shape of the bag is cut from a template which you get in the pdf and then you're off following Judith's cutting instructions and methodical pattern steps.  The great explanations and step by step instructions with plenty of photos really helped me to feel confident that I was interpreting the stages of the pattern properly.  So, you fine folks out there are bound to find it just as accessible and, as Judith says, while it has been graded as Intermediate, if you have experience fitting zips you could very happily tackle this bag.

The pattern is now available on Judith's Etsy shop at a snip of a price. So, if you feel the need of a new bag for yourself for the autumn, or fancy making a start on some Christmas gifts for family and friends, stop reading this post now and get on over there and buy a copy!    And, if you're heading anywhere special in July 2013, buy the pattern now and then this could be your must make bag for the FQ London Retreat - just saying!

And finally, if you go a bit Martha May mad like me, you can even draw up a smaller scale pattern template and follow the pattern all over again to stitch yourself up a matching Martha Mini to hold your lippy!