Crazy Quilt Round Robin

I recently participated in a Crazy Quilt Round Robin on the HGTV Quilting and Needlework forum. I was a member of the "5 Star Stitchers" team. The work of each member is outstanding. This is the block that was returned to me, after my six team members finished their magic. I will add a few more embellishments, then have it framed and gift it to my daughter. Please click on the image to enlarge for a closer look at the embellishments.

A Quilter's Delight Birthday Give-Away!

Visit Ginny's Quilts for a fantastic quilter's give-away!!

Visit "The Talia Effect"

One of my cyber friends from HGTV Quilting and Needlework forum is hosting a blog giveaway!! She is extremely talented and does quilting, crazy quilting, jewelry making, tatting and who knows what else!!

Anyway, drop by her blog and check out some of her handy work and register for her crazy quilt fun pack give-away!

Click here ---> The Talia Effect

Enjoy!!

Santa Hat Purse Tutorial

I had a great time making these purses. Luckily, I bought 24 Santa hats after the holidays last year. I put them to good use and made each one into a purse. The lining and pocket adds a special touch.

You can make any type of handle. I have two different examples below: fabric and a wire handle with beads. You can make the fabric handles any length you desire. To make the fabric handles, I cut one piece of fabric on the fold, then pressed the cut edges in to the center. I placed a piece of Pelon inside the handle and top stitched four times, the length of the handle. The finished width of the handle was about 1 1/4 inch wide. I lined my purses, so the handle was sewn inbetween the lining and the hat. My handle fabric matched the lining fabric of each purse.

I purchased wire handles and added beads in the example on the right.






























This is the pattern I made for the purse lining. I lay the pattern over the Santa hat to cut off the top part, too. But be careful, as when you lay your hand on it, it tends to shift and may cause you to cut the top part too short. The top part is approximately 6" from the cut to the end of the ball.






















Here's a very poor drawing (made in Paint) that shows how the top of the hat is cut off. You also want to cut off the inside seam to separate the white cuff from the top of the hat. You will then have a circle of cuff fabric. Cut the seam off so you have a strip of white cuff fabric.













The seam allowance on all my seams (other than the basting) is 1/2". Sew the bottom of the Santa hat together (where you've cut it), right sides together. Turn right side out. Once you get the lining sewn together (right sides together), place it into the Santa hat. Be sure to mark the center of each side of the lining, as this will be important so that your placement of the handles is the same on each side.

You can see that I have the center of the lining marked with a straight pin (at the tape measure). Place your handles (these are 3" from center on each side) on both sides of the purse and pin them in place.






















I then pin the top of the hat in place as shown below. I have a pocket in my lining and I placed the top of the hat on the same side as the pocket. You can place it on either side of the hat. I then machine basted all in place at 1/4" seam allowance.






















Pin the cuff in place, fur side down, with the open seam at the side seam of the purse.




















Once the cuff is sewn into place, turn it out of the purse and sew the side seam of the cuff closed. turn everything right side out and you are finished.

I love jingle bells and on some of my purses I added a bow made from ribbon and used a safety pin to attach is from underneath. I then tied jingle bells to the ends of the ribbon. Use your imagination to embellish your purse.

Tutorial for Inside Purse Pocket

The following is a tuorital on how to sew an inside pocket into a purse. I learned this technique on Craftster, but I can't find the post to give credit where credit is due. If anyone runs across it, please let me know where you found it.

Step 1: Cut two pockets. I like to use a contrasting fabric from the lining of the purse.



Step 2: Cut two pieces of iron-on interfacing the approximate size of the pocket. Iron the interfacing onto the wrong side of both pocket sides.



Step 3: Mark the middle of your pocket with a pencil. Mark 1/2 inch from the side of the pocket, and 1/2 inch from the top and draw a line. Draw another line parallel to the first line, approximately 1/4 inch below it. Now draw a line inbetween these two lines, all the way across and stopping approximately 1/4 inch from the end. Connect the corners to the end of the center line with a pencil mark.



Step 4: Mark the center of one side of your purse lining with a straight pin. Pin one pocket side to the purse lining (right sides together), 1/2 inch down from the top, lining up your center marks of the lining and the pocket.



Step 5: Stitch along the outside pencil line, all the way around. I use the largest stitch on my machine (5 setting) and find that the distance between the top and bottom line is approximately two stitches. So, I don't try to sew on the line exactly....I just take two stitches and then turn and sew back across. The photo below depicts my sewing around the outside marks.



Step 6: Your next step is to cut down the center line until you reach the diagonal marks. The easiest way to start is to fold the piece in half and make a small snip on the line with your scissors. You can then insert the tip of your scissors to finish cutting on the line. You then cut each diagonal mark to the corner of your sewing.























Step 7: Lift up the pocket and press the seams, all the way around the stitching you just made.






Step 8: Now, this may sound confusing but it will make sense as you work it. Push all sides of the one-sided pocket through the slit until it is on the other side of the purse piece. Press flat.





Step 9: Pin the second pocket piece to the piece that is attached to the purse, and sew completely around the outside edges at approximately 1/4 inch seem allowance.








Now, turn it over and Ta Da!! You now have a nicely finished inside pocket for your purse. You can now attach the other lining piece to this piece and sew it into your purse.