~elton clutch~

After making the clutch purse for my friend's birthday,
I really wanted one for myself.
I have an old Elton John concert shirt that I had
previously turned into a zip up vest.
I love the colors in it and thought it would be
great to re-invent it yet again only this time
turn it into a "going out" purse.

Here is a view of if zipped up, folded over and buttoned.

I used some knit fabric I had for the lining and
the zippered front of the vest became the purse opening.

The picture above is the front of the purse.

The old vintage buttons that Jolie gave me were used
as an embellishment and also to hold down the top
half of the purse once it's zipped up and folded over.

This picture below is the back of the purse.

Here is a view of the inside of the purse.
Just the right size for all the "going out" essentials.
I threw on a wrist strap and called it good.

I'm really into rockin t-shirt purses right now.
The possibilities are endless.....
hmmm.....
stay tuned.

~coupon/shopping organizer~

My friend and fellow couponer/bargain shopper
has a birthday coming up.
I saw this idea on this blog and knew it was
the perfect gift for her.

It's a coupon/shopping organizer.
I absolutely love it and I'm having a hard time giving it up.
If I didn't have the stationary printed especially
for her at this place
I would probably keep it for myself.
As you can see,
it has an elastic that keeps it tightly closed so
all your coupons and shopping necessities don't fall out.

Here it is inside.
It has a zippered pocket,
a pocket for a calculator and cards,
a slot for a pen
and a pouch to slip a little note pad in that serves as
a grocery/shopping list.

It took me somewhere between 2-3 hours to complete.
The tutorial was tricky for me to "decode".
I'm not complaining though....I love any tutorial
that can walk me through a project even if
it is down a rather bumpy and windy path.
If you decide to make this and have any questions,
let me know and I'll see if I can answer them for you.

I can't wait to give it to her.
I think she's gonna like it.

~tile necklaces~

I made these necklaces for my sister and sister-in-law
for their birthdays this year.

tile necklaces.
they were super easy.
i wanted to make a fancier one-of-a-kind necklace
for both of them, incorporating other beads and/or gems
and i just couldn't find the time.
i thought they turned out cute anyway.

thanks for helping me with these nanc.

~fabric~

I hate Walmart.
How's that for an opening line?
I only go there when I absolutely have to.
The closest fabric store to me is
about 20 minutes away so when I have
to grab something like Velcro, thread, needles, a zipper, etc.
(you know, those random items you need at random times)
I run to Walmart to get them because it's only 5 minutes away.
It's pretty bad when Walmart is the closest thing to a
fabric store in your vicinity.
And guess what?
I don't even live in the Styx or B.F.E. people!
I live in a city!

Anyway-I'm getting way off topic here.
Back on track.
I was pleasantly surprised to find these cute fabrics
at Walmart the other day for only $1.50/yard.

Stay tuned too see what I'm doing with these.

This charming fabric right here:

Vintage corduroy from my Mom.
She's going thru all her fabric and I am benefiting greatly from it.
Bring it on Momma.
I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this yet.
I'm thinking of making baby girl a cute little
romper dress when she gets a little older.

How much fabric do you have laying around waiting for
the perfect project?
Do tell.

~clutch purse~

I wanted to make a cool "going out" purse
for my friend, Jolie's, birthday.

I started with this t-shirt.
I ordered it for free from www.vistaprint.com
and only had to pay for the shipping.
I was able to pick from a bunch of designs
and put my own text on it.
I decided to put a bunch of words on
it that I felt were positive affirmations to take
her into her next 40 years.

I got the inspiration for the shape of the
purse from a gift bag I received at Christmas.

This is what I came up with.

Although the purse zips up, I thought
it would be cute to fold the top over and fasten
with a little flap. Decorating the flap is an
old vintage button that was actually Jolie's
husband's Grandma's (did you get that?).
The top can either be folded over neatly to one side
or bunched down and fastened.
I think it looks cuter bunched down.

I lined it with plain black fabric and used a
black/white animal print for the sides, strap and piping.
It's been awhile since I've made a purse and it took
me a few minutes of pinning and thinking hard
about what steps have to be done first.
You basically have to start with the details and
do them first....i.e. zipper, pockets, piping, flap, etc.
The last thing you do is construct the bag
and sew it together.
This is total backwards thinking for my brain.
I usually start a project with the basic construction
and add details last.

Here is the inside.
Just big enough to throw in a few "essential" items.

I intended this to be a "going out" purse but
I think it may be too flimsy for that.
By flimsy I don't mean poorly constructed,
it's sewn very well and it's not going to fall apart.
I mean that it doesn't hold it's shape
well once you put too much weight in it.
I only did a heavy interfacing on the bottom,
I should have done it on the main
body of the purse as well to give it
a stronger shape.

It may end up being a little travel bag
for jewelry or make-up.
Whatever she uses it for, I know she's going to love it.

Truth be told,
I want to keep it for myself.