Fall Tag Swap

Still waiting on my tags to arrive but here is a sneak peek at the tag I created for the Fall Tag Swap this year. I sent mine in over a month ago and have been anxiously awaiting the return of the other tags. Can't wait for them to arrive! That sweet little witch is a candy dispenser that I got at Walmart.
Next up is a White Christmas Tag Swap. I participated last year but somehow my brain omitted the "White Christmas" part and I came up with a rather colorful tag. It was cute, but this year I'll be sure to follow the directions more closely. Here is last year's tag:

It's been a busy week. Doug and I went to Dallas this week to see Morrisey on the SMU Campus, I met up with some of my Investment Club ladies to do a little shopping at the Chi Omega Christmas Market at the Dallas Convention Center and yesterday was Glittermarket in OKC. Wait until you see all the beautiful things I got!

Cosmo Bag Complete!

Today I finished the Cosmo Bag for Jemellia's Sewing Challenge Month One. This bag was much more difficult than I anticipated it would be and I made a few mistakes along the way but overall, I am thrilled with how it turned out!

In doing the outside of the bag I accidentally put the handles on incorrectly and didn't discover my mistake until I had topstitched and clipped the insides of my curves. Let me tell you - I wanted to cry. It took me HOURS to undo all those stitches and I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to match things up correctly - but somehow things worked out. Like I said, my bag may not be perfect, it may not even be close to as good as some of the others in the challenge but I don't care. I'm not going to compare myself or my Cosmo bag to anyone else. I'm just so happy that I have a complete bag and I will be absolutely proud to carry it around with me.
This bag is completely lined and has four pockets on the inside and two pockets on the outside side panels.

I have never sewn anything other than straight lines for blankets and dog beds - and dogs don't care if your seams aren't straight. ;)
Amy Butler lists this as an "Easy" project and while that may be true for a more experienced sewer, I don't think that it was easy for a beginner.
My suggestions for improvements in the ease of this project would more pictures along with the directions and directions that didn't have you referring back and forth for the lining part. Although with a book there is limited space, I think I would have settled for one or two less projects to have more illustrations and lengthier directions for the actual sewing.
Let me know what you think of my project!

January's stash and a snow day...

So, I promised a few pictures of the Stash I received from A Gilded Life's Stash Club. So, on this snowy, January day, here they are:

I'm not sure you can appreciate how lovely these goodies are, but I can assure you, they are fabulous!

Now I just need to not be afraid and go ahead and actually *USE* my goodies to create something beautiful.

I need to just remember that there is more goodness to come. Get over that feeling that I've had since I was little that once something was gone, it's gone. Life is abundant and there are plenty of other beautiful things for me just around the corner.
I *am* going to use the day to create. We got some snow overnight - nothing compared to what my family is dealing with in Connecticut, but nonetheless, there is some snow on the ground. That means I don't travel too far from the house. I'm scared to drive on slick streets even though I have a very good 4 wheel drive vehicle. Better for everyone if I just stay home.
I'm going upstairs to work on my bag for this month's challenge. Wish me luck!

Fabric for January's Challenge

When Jemellia announced her Sewing Challenge for 2011 I was all over it. Doesn't matter that I've never really sewn anything more than a blanket or pillows for my dogs. I *want* to learn to sew so what better time than right now?
So, when Jemellia posted a picture of the fabrics she intends to use for this challenge, I started searching online for mine. The problem was that each time I found a main fabric I liked, there weren't any matching fabrics to go with them. I started to panic.
Until this afternoon when I stumbled upon this:

This fabric is so "me" - even Doug thinks so - and I just love it.
The first fabric store I tried to go to today was closed for inventory. Ugh. I checked their website prior to heading over there and there was no mention of being closed today.
Then I remembered a small fabric store here in Tulsa that I had driven by once - the Cotton Patch. What a pleasant surprise! The store is little but has some of the prettiest fabrics. I will definitely be shopping there again.
It only took me about two minutes to zero in on my absolute favorite fabric. Since Valentine's Day is right around the corner I opted to go with fabric that had pink and brown. The hardest part for me was picking the "plain" fabric. I couldn't quite find a matching solid until I found the brown that seems to go well with both the bag fabric as well as the lining.
Now I'm just waiting on my Amy Butler Style Stitches book to arrive so I can get started!

Jemellia's Monthly Bag Challenge 2011

I've decided to do Jemellia's Monthly Bag Challenge 2011. Sounds fun so would you like to join too? Check out this link and get all the details.

Jemellia gives some great reasons for joining in and here's why I'm doing it:

1. I love bags!
2. I am a beginner sewist and would love how to do a little zipper bag. I'm always buying little cosmetic bags for my purse and can you imagine the beautiful little bags I can make once I learn how to do a zipper!?!
3. Amy Butler - need I say more? I've been to a few creative conferences where Amy Butler has spoken and I just love the energy that comes from her. So peaceful, serene - wow. Plus - her fabrics are beautiful and this gives me the perfect excuse to buy her books!
4. If I get particularly ambitious I can make gifts! I would *love* to receive a beautiful handmade bag as a gift and luckily, I have some friends who love handmade too. How great would that be to be able to make a cute bag for someone?
5. This may expose the limitations of my cute, humble sewing machine so I may discover I need to upgrade to a newer, more sophisticated machine! ;) (Put this on my wish list)

There are many more reasons I'm joining and I'm sure it's going to be so much fun! Thanks Jemellia for the awesome Challenge!