today is a bag day...

hey... i got my sewing mojo back today and have made a handbag.

As most of my fabrics are packed away at the back of the new, still to be finished workspace which is full to the brim, i raided my little home stash instead. I am not sure where i got this piece of retro silk from but it has been in the cupboard for ages. I love this fabric and have often thought about making a dress from it. I have just under 4 yards of it so decided that i could make a handbag and still have plenty left to use for another project.

The shape was based on a small linen handbag that i designed in the past but i scaled the pattern up to shoulder bag size and elongated it slightly as an experiment. I was too impatient to make a prototype so just went for it. The whole bag was backed with a canvas to give it some body as the silk was very soft and floppy.
Taking inspiration from the florals in the fabric i appliqued on a flower motif and highlighted it with tiny seed beads. Once i had made it up i thought that a long strap would work well with the proportions of the main bag. For this i used a complementary furnishing fabric sample. The bag is lined with a gray satin. It has an integral pocket with a bound edge made from a piece of the main floral fabric.
As you can see from this mosaic i had been more inspired by my river walk on Sunday than i had realised! I also have been wearing washed out old jeans and a green tee shirt today. It seems different days bring different colour inspirations. I wonder what colours tomorrow will bring...

click on the image for a bit more detail
g x

Summer time.....

Happy Summer sunshine to you. It has been glorious here in the South of England.. I hope it has been good wherever you are. A bit of sunshine is so good for the soul. I just adore closing my eyes and feeling the sun's warmth on my face. It makes me feel so alive .. it's like the sun re energises me. As promised i will show you some of the things we have made recently. These little pretties are our Summer bags made from linen combined with recycled fabrics and buttons. We made these for Hampton Court but due to the bad weather (rain, rain and more rain) we only sold a small amount of them. Now the sun is out again they kind of make sense and we are putting them into our Summer sale as we would like them to go to new owners before the weather goes pear shaped again. No... i am actually optimistic that this warmth will be here for a while especially as we're off camping soon!

This is a pretty rose floral which had originally been a skirt and jacket set brought whilst a thrifting. We have used the same fabric for a beautiful Isadora doll which was bought as a christening gift at HC. I so love the button on this one as it picks up the pale gold in the print.


This pretty floral fabric is another Liberty tana lawn. I just adore this print. We have a flower peg bag in the same fabric which i am secretly coveting ( not told Alice yet).


Oh i do have fun.. these photos were done with the self timer (hence slight blurriness as i wasn't there to focus on..if you know what i mean).. i think my neighbours must think i'm mad.. or just plain vain photographing myself all the time, as that's what it must look like from over the fence. I am actually trying to photograph the bags .. really.. ( which 'bag' as my husband delights in saying)! This cherry bag is really sweet. The fabric is a tana lawn. I love the richness of colours in this print and i often use it for the flower brooches as it combines so well with a variety of colours and textures.


This little strawberry is fun. It's a red, and white floral sprig and has a tiny bit of black in too. The button is an unusual black vintage one. These bags are lined with calico and have pockets on each side .. one large enough for a phone and two smaller ones for essential lipstick and hankerchief. The bag dimensions are approx 34cms across and depth (excluding straps) is about 24cms. We designed them for adults and had a bit of fun with the fruity applique motifs but they seem to be appreciated by any girl from about 10 and are great for teenagers. My two both want one ... probably as mum made them, although my 9 is getting more particular and the fact that she likes them is compliment indeed. Here she is modelling an apple one.




We have had lunch out today at the park.. lots of time playing and a girls shopping trip to buy a few new summer clothes for our hols. Always feel i should make them but never quite get around to it.. most of the items we bought were in the sales so i didn't feel quite so bad. I really only try to buy what we need although sometimes it's fun to have a treat. Also today my faith in human nature was restored. My parking had run over by 20 or so minutes... As we approached the car (panting... ) the parking attendent was just issuing a ticket.. I was prepared to pay as i knew i was late ( a hold up at the checkout).. but the lovely lovely man .. took pity on me and said if he could reverse it he would. He could and he did. I was astonished and very grateful. The girls and i then had a discussion about good karma and decided that when he got home that night his wife would have made him his favourite meal and pudding!
The 'Summer' bags are on our website although not put in the sale yet.. need hubby to update for me . They will be sold at £20 if anyone is interested just drop me an email.

Well done if you made it down to this bit.. i know i always make my posts too long.. can't seem to help it... am a bit of a rambler in real life too. Anyway....
Here's to another day when we have to wear our sunhats!
G
x