Get Carded Wallet #10

Jess received the package of all the Typography projects today. She had fun opening and examining everything, and besides all the stuff she'd seen and was expecting, she also found a little surprise!

I'd made her a couple of Get Carded Wallets before, but neither of them was a very good color to go with her new Sandra Saddle Bag, so I decided to make one to match it out of the scraps I had left. Now doesn't this look like the perfect set?

The inside matches the lining of the larger bag, although I had to use some of the main fabric for the center part because of the one-way design of the Lorem Ipsum fabric. It was a pretty quick item to cut out and sew, especially since I'd made 9 of them before and knew how things worked.

One of the things I like best about this wallet is that the credit card slots face the center, so that when the wallet is closed, there's no chance of the cards slipping out.

Now to use up some more of those Typography scraps. I already have a plan....

Fooled ya this time!

Bet you didn't think I'd have my final Typography fabric project done for a long time yet, did you? Well, surprise! I even finished it already last night, but today I had to take photos and then get everything packaged up (which was interesting, due to the various sizes and shapes) and taken into town to mail to Jess, plus do the other things of daily life, so I'm just now getting around to showing you.

This was a very quick project. Probably the most time-consuming part of it was printing and cutting out and taping the pattern pieces together. It took 12 sheets of paper, which is much more than any bag project I've sewn! The cutting out of the fabric took 5 minutes at the most. The sewing was very quick also.

Soooo... here you have it - boxer pajama shorts (for Jess, not me)! 

They're made from a tutorial you can read about here and download free pattern pieces. If you decide to make some, be aware that you have to print the pattern pieces twice, thus the total of 12 pieces. The front and back pieces of the shorts are laid out one on top of the other. An alternative way of doing it would be to print and tape together one set, then just trace the smaller pattern piece off of it. I didn't think of that at the time. Duh.

The only part I did differently than what was suggested was the elastic. The tutorial calls for a casing with the elastic inserted inside, but I like to use "pajama elastic" and sew it right to the fabric on the inside. I think it's just a nicer finish, and you don't have to worry about the elastic rolling. You can see some of the inside of it in the top photo, and here's a closeup of how it looks on the outside.

Most men's pajama pants are made this way (aren't boxers, too? I confess I don't even know!), and I've made a number of them for Grandpa back in the old days when I was more ambitious and sewed garments for the whole family. Now they're just easier to buy. Bags are more fun to sew, and you don't have to worry about fit.

Speaking of fit, we won't know if these fit Jess properly or not until she receives them. If they're good (and maybe even if they're not), hopefully she'll model them and send a pic that I can show you later.

So that's it for my Typography big stuff. Now we just have to wait for the fabric to reach the stores sometime this fall! However, someone I know is working on another project with the entire Typography fabric line. Maybe I can show that to you when it's finished, or at least link you to it when the time comes.

NOW what am I gonna sew?! Ha. I have a list a mile long of things I want to make. And some Typography scraps left to play with. The question is "what should I do first?"

In case you're interested...

I keep seeing these two lovely bags sitting together, since I haven't sent them off to Jess yet (because I have one more project to sew from the Typography fabric), and I thought maybe someone might like a size comparison photo. (Besides, with them there in my photo tent, I just couldn't resist another pic.) So here you have them!

Trail Tote (left) and Sandra Saddle Bag:

The last project is cut out and shouldn't take long to sew up (have you heard that from me before?), so hopefully you'll be seeing it soon! I'd better get at it...... !

Crafting with Courtney

Last week when Courtney was here, she got inspired to write a book! So she did. It's a very tiny book, with very tiny writing. Here's her little book, which she is very proud to show you! (We forgot to take pics of it last week, so she brought it along this week so we could do so.)

(Sorry... I don't remember what's under her thumb!)

Just so you know where Courtney got her inspiration... we'd come across these tiny books written lotsa years ago by her Auntie Jess. :)

I sure love both my authors of tiny books!!!!

P.S. Like those fancy fingernails? I just noticed they match the book colors! :)

Trail Tote

It.Is.Finished! "It" is the Trail Tote from the pattern by Anna Graham of Noodlehead. It wasn't a difficult pattern to sew. It's just that... well, if you've been following my blog long, you know that... I'm slow. Especially in the summertime. So without making you wait any longer, here it is!

It's a large tote bag with an adjustable crossbody strap, piping trim on the sides, and has no gusset but instead darts in front and back that give it more room. It's a fun bag!

The fabric is from Jess's new Typography line for Cloud9 Fabrics. The outside is the teal "Wood Type", and the inside is teal "Lorem Ipsum", with a solid orange (of course!) for the strap and piping.

It fastens with a magnetic snap, and there is a large slip pocket inside besides the zippered pocket on the outside.

The pattern is free(!) and it can be found here. As it says on the cover, the pattern level is Experienced Intermediate... "I know the ropes and would like to test my skills!" I would say that's pretty accurate. You would do best with some bag-making know-how already in your pocket.

At photo-taking time, there was no one to hold the bag or take pics of me doing so, so I'll just show you the pics from the pattern cover for size reference. There are two sizes in the pattern, so here they both are, modeled by Anna herself. The one I made is the larger of the two.

Anna also has more fun photos and even links for a couple other free patterns in her blog post here.