New Purse

Last week some of my friends were taking a purse class at My Lil' Quilt Shop in Millington. I remembered that I had bought the Lazy Girl Towne Purse pattern and fabric and never made the bag, so I decided to take the class. When I dug out the pattern and fabric, the receipt made me realized it had been in my stash for five years!


The pattern has a pocket with a flap on the outside, I opted to only put the pocket on the front and leave the back plain.



The inside has six pockets. I decided to line the bag with lighter bright fabrics. My sister-in-law had once recommended that it would be easier to see items inside a purse with light linings. I imagine she was thinking of white or beige fabric but I love bright colors.


I learned a lot in the class and had a good time with my friends.

The link to the flower pattern used in the bag:
http://www.amybutlerdesign.com/pdfs/Snow_Mum_Pillow.pdf

Awesome Tote

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. My husband and children gave me some very thoughtful, neat presents. The best present is Jenny, she came home to visit for a few days. Jenny does a wonderful job designing and creating quilts and tote bags. She made me a tote for Mother's Day.



The tote has a gorgeous wool felt mum flower on the front. The center of the mum is comprised of different red beads.



Jenny lined the inside with vintage fabric. She also fashioned numerous pockets on the inside.



The handles and top of the bag are decorated with red twill tape. The tote is a beautiful one of a kind gift. Thanks, Jenny :)

Embellished Denim Shirt

I really like denim shirts, even though I have a feeling they are not in style any longer.



I purchased a denim shirt from LL Bean on sale and used my sewing machine's decorative stitches to embellish it. I don't have an embroidery machine so I bought a couple of appliques on EBay.




I used a couple of types of variegated thread, but find I like the Signature brand from Jo Ann Fabric the best.



Most of my tulips and daffodils are done for the season. While wandering around the yard I was surprised to see the Flirty Mary's (a type of mini iris) were blooming. My sister-in-law, Kathryn gave me a clump a few years ago and they have been multiplying.

Spring Flowers and Birthday Presents

This is the view from my kitchen window. In the spring I have a variety of tulips and daffodils planted in front of the fence and arbor.



The tulips are beautiful in their prime.



Our quilt club decided our beverage cups should have tops that can be sealed so there won't be mishaps involving quilts and beverages. For my friend, Pat's birthday, I decided to dress up a mug for her. I bought a photo mug from Starbucks and lined it with fabric instead of a photo.

I used Heat and Bond to put Pat's name on the fabric. I think appliqueing the name would have been neater but the space in the mug was too narrow to allow for the stitching.