Purse re-creation

My husband got me this purse a few years ago for Christmas and I love it:



So, I decided to try and re-create it:



I was fairly successful, but I'd still like to work out some kinks. To the average eye it probably looks fine, but to my critical eye it's just not quite good enough. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to use it, but I've also got two other fabrics to try to get it just right.

Dreaming of letterpress . . .

My Kelsey is packed up and in storage at the moment. It's probably the best place for it to be right now, considering the production it has been to get it working in the past. Anyhow, this past weekend we hit up the Antique Fair in Petoskey. I haven't been to many (if any) antique fairs, and before owning the press I really didn't have that much interest in them. I found one vendor selling block type and blocks for printing and I found a few treasures. I can't wait to try them out once we've settled somewhere that I can set up the press.

I was particularly fond of these printing blocks. The one on the far left is a scene with a couple fishermen in a boat, then the scotty dogs, a small telephone icon and a much larger fish. Should be fun to play with these!



I chose to purchase the letters that spell "Boy" and "Girl" as I've always thought it would be fun to do some letterpress birth announcement cards at some point. I picked out letters that aren't all the same typeface so there will be some movement and fun when they are printed.


If you haven't seen my previous letterpress posts, you can view them HERE and HERE.

Some things are worth holding onto . . .

. . . like this jumper. I initially thought it would become a gift . . . but after the number of hours I spent creating it, I think I'll hold onto it. Hopefully, one day, I'll have a daughter to wear it. For now, it's so cute I may just keep it hanging in the closet to adore every now and then.

You can see my initial post on this project HERE.

Fun with Frogs!

I got a request for a frog themed gift for a baby shower. I have completed the stuffed frog and will now move on to create an outfit using a frog appliqué (currently working on the design). Check out this little guy, though. Isn't he adorable? You can make one yourself if you want. The pattern is available on the Lion Brand website. Just click on the "Patterns" link and do a search for "frog."

Criss/Cross Apron #2

I've finished another criss/cross apron for my mom. I may have to make a couple for myself. I love that you don't have to tie anything, you just slip it on and you're ready to bake!

Apron Front


Apron Back


Fabric #1


Fabric #2

Criss/Cross Aprons

My mom asked me if I could make her a couple of aprons similar to her favorite one that was starting to fall apart. I said "of course!" and she let me bring the apron home with me to copy the pattern. Here is apron #1. I bought enough fabric to make a couple of them. The coolest part about this apron, I think, is that you don't have to tie it. The straps criss/cross in the back so you simply slide it on and you're good to go.

Now, time to do some baking?

Apron front


Apron back
Notice the criss/cross straps.


Fabric detail #1


Fabric detail #2