Rainbow Connection

A few weeks ago I went all OCD with my scraps, sorting them in these clear containers by color. This inspired a bunch of rainbow scrap zipper bags that I don't seem to have any pictures of right now, except for the one that got mixed in with the upcycled zipper bags posted below. But my favorite is this giant beach tote I'll be taking on my Sweet Cozumel Palace Resort vacation.

Sew Little Time

Hey, long time no blog! I have been so busy lately that I haven't had time to post here so I thought I'd better remedy that. I've still been sewing, as evidenced by the photos above. I'm madly in love with all of these items and am probably going to keep them for myself. I made the blue and green tote from some complementary fabrics that I used for my friend Jasmine's iPad case way, way back. And speaking of which, the denim with red and green flower print is an iPad case. I've been experimenting and I think I finally got it the right size. The two smaller zip bags are from a metallic Marimekko fabric scrap I found at the Crate and Barrell outlet in Berkeley. I suppose I could part with one of those ... maybe.

In other news, I've been busy trying to move some of my inventory to make room for more (and earn a little cash for supplies). I went last weekend to a little consignment shop in Sonoma called Sandbox. I'd met the owner at the Sonoma Charter School fund-raiser and she turned out to be the friend of my friend Paula, who lives there. I brought a giant box of tote bags and zippered pouches to choose from and she took it all! Oh no, guess I'll have to make more. How sad. Not.

Next up is a house event in July that a woman from my book club, who sells jewelry, volunteered to host. If nothing else it'll be a fun afternoon of showing off my stuff, which is basically the only thing I love more than actually sewing it. More details to come.

I'm also working on an Etsy store but that's not coming along very quickly. It's fairly laborious, because you need three or four photos of each item, and a very detailed description with measurements and everything. I need more hours in the day!

More Bags Galore

Can you believe I made all these bags this weekend? (It's only nine, not 10. The one in the middle is the same bag, just reversible.) And yes, I did leave the house a couple of times! My neighbors must be tired of hearing the hum of my sewing machine. These are all made with the upholstery samples, with the occasional thrift store lining thrown in, and I still have a ton left. I'm calling it my bottomless bag of fabric!

Upcycling With People

I hope you're sitting down. This may come as a shock. In honor of Earth Day this year, I decided to ... wait for it ... SEW SOME PURSES. Boy, that came out of nowhere didn't it? Ha ha.

Anyway, a longtime fan of reuse (in theory), I now have the sewing skills to (actually) repurpose tons of stuff. Since I started sewing I've been a regular at Thrift Town, where I am always sure to find bags of fabric for around $2 that hold untold treasures. And the East Bay Center for Creative Reuse is my other mecca, and thankfully closer to my home. There I get fabric and tons of notions, and the last time I was there I got a boatload of zippers for 20 cents each. You know how excited I get about zippers!

Then last week at the Martinez SWAN Day I met a woman who calls herself the Dumpster Diversion Diva and I traded her one of my bags for a bunch of fabric samples she'd collected from an interior designer who was going to throw these gems away!

So this weekend I made a bunch of stuff from that fabric, including my favorites: The three rope bags in navy blue, brown and red/white. The crossbody was pieced together from some smaller samples (strap included) and the larger tote was a sample that I put a grey bottom on from some scraps I had around.

On the left is a patchwork beauty from some thrift store pieces. All in all, a productive weekend of upcyling.

Happy Earth Day everyone!