Cake made by Kerry for his birthday last year |
Sewing is as much about creativity as it is an expression of
love for me. While sewing I am
concentrating meditatively on my creation while at the same time reminiscing
about the person I am sewing for. So
when Laura asked me to make tote bags for the bridal party it was a labor of
love. Most of these girls I have known
since they were toddlers and teens and therefore, there are many memories stitched into those bags.
The actual process was an adventure. First, we needed to decide the style of the
bags which led to a two hour drawing and coloring session with Laura.
Next we went to Joanne Fabrics and Crafts to
"audition" fabrics for the totes. That was at least another two hours of
comparing and contrasting color and pattern choices. We finally settled on three fabrics; a solid green, a striped green, beige, and brown,
and a paisley brown and green (My favorite). Once all of that was figured out
it was time to begin construction.
I decided the easiest thing to do was to make a patterns of
each section of the tote out of interfacing. Then I would place the pattern on the fabric, place my rotary square on
top of it carefully lining up the edges and squaring the corners. Then I’d swipe the edges of the rotary ruler
with my rotary cutter making straight, clean cuts like magic (the rotary cutter
is the best invention in the world!).
I used an iron on interfacing on the lining of each bag. I ironed the interfacing onto the lining of my first bag and the heat from the iron damaged the fabric! UGGHHH! But this is sometimes my favorite part of sewing. My favorite saying in sewing is “There are no mistakes only opportunities to embellish.” So rather than waste the fabric I salvaged most of it and turned it into an outside pocket for the bag. Once I got that first tote done I took a picture of it on my phone and sent it to "The Boss" for approval.
I used an iron on interfacing on the lining of each bag. I ironed the interfacing onto the lining of my first bag and the heat from the iron damaged the fabric! UGGHHH! But this is sometimes my favorite part of sewing. My favorite saying in sewing is “There are no mistakes only opportunities to embellish.” So rather than waste the fabric I salvaged most of it and turned it into an outside pocket for the bag. Once I got that first tote done I took a picture of it on my phone and sent it to "The Boss" for approval.
She liked it and I
was on a roll from that point on. Making
seven identical totes would have been too boring for me so while each bag is
similar in design they are also individualized for each girl.
(Here's mom with all the bags ready to go!)
While making these bags I came across a tutorial on
Noodlehead for a lined make up bag and decided that would be fun for each
girl at the Bridal Shower as a little teaser to the bigger bags they would eventually be getting.
That meant another seven bags (plus one for a give away on Laura’s blog) and then I also decided to make one for each of my sister’s three
daughters. I am really addicted to these
bags! They go together pretty quickly
and easily and they make a really nice gift.
Now on to my favorite giveaway I've done so far!! My mom has made one extra Bag for one Saying "I Do" Reader!! (Thanks Mom!)
To Enter:
1. Leave me a comment below why you would like this bag AND/OR leaving a comment trying to convince my mom to open her own Etsy Shop and sell these bags! (I mean come on, RIGHT?!)
Extra Entries:
2. Follow my blog, and leave me a comment saying you do.
3. Follow me on twitter @Lwoodsny and leave me a comment saying you do.
4. Tweet about this giveaway mentioning @Lwoodsny in your tweet, and leave me a comment saying so.
Contest will end next Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:00 MIDNIGHT, and the winner will be announced on Friday, September 2nd! Good Luck!
46 comments:
Wish Mr. CHristopher a happy birthday for me. I wish I could be Oprah and start jumping up and down, screaming,"You get a bag! And you get a bag! And you get a bag! The whole audience GETS A BAG!!" Another thing on my bucket list that just won't be happening. But one lucky winner will get a bag! Good luck to all of you.
Oooh those bags look great! I'm looking for more of a totebag thing for grad school and they're so cute! Yup... me wants!
And I follow your blog :)
Mom - Can I just say not only do I LOVE your bags, but I love reading your blog comments after each of Laura's blogs :) SO great to see the Mom-of-the-Bride point of view!!
DEFINITELY start a shop selling your bags, they are gorgeous! I would most definitely order some make up bags for my bridesmaids next year if you do!!! (perfect addition to the gifts I have planned)
Annnnd well, how can I put a comment about why I would want to win the bag, when the bag alone says it all :)
Good luck to everyone!
PS. Now following your twitter :)
Happy birthday to Chris! These bags are FABULOUS, and your mom should 100 percent start selling them! If I had her talent and skill, I know I definitely would. I would love to win this bag to replace some of the cheap "wedding fair" style totes I normally use.
I follow your blog!
Just tweeted and posted to my FB page!
Mama 0 - Please PLEASE open an etsy shop! This bag is too beautiful not to be made again and again! I want one! Consider this my official entry.
And for extra credit: I follow LWoodsNY on twitter and retweeted the contest. Pick me! I have a lot of Fall outfits that I want to rock this with :)
I LOVE the mix of patterns! So cute!
And your momma should TOTALLY open an etsy shop - I'm trying to get my mom to open one, too! They have unlimited opportunities being creative AND being able to sew!
I'm a follower of your blog! :)
I now follow you on Twitter - I don't know how I wasn't before!
Just realized that everyone is leaving separate comments, so I'll be a follower of the rules:
I follow your face on Twitter. (LWoodsNY)
I tweeted about the bag - @Vereb
Sorr about the bag...
Happy Birthday Chris! And Mom... come on lady! That's some serious sewing talent happening right there!! You designed your OWN patterns!! Most people can't just do that!!! Yep, etsy shop it is. I would totally shop there! :) That said, definitely need that tote!!!!
Loyal blog follower! Of course!!!
I follow you on twitter! @kassarie
I shared to twitter! @Kassarie
First of all, how did I NOT know you're on Twitter??? Ohmigosh - well that's remedied & I'm now following you & I've been a follower of your blog forever, so I dunno if that already counts? LOL
And re: your Mom -- in all honesty I really DID think "why doesn't she sell these on Etsy" while I was reading this post. These are really awesome bags & if your Mom enjoys it so much (Hi, she took it upon herself to make additional bags for the shower and then made more for fam.- haha, so cute how excited she is!) why not continue doing what you love AND make some extra money on the side with it?? I can't sew a button back onto a shirt, otherwise I'd love to make stuff like this!
whoah - do I LOSE points for my comment being too long? LOL ;) Sorry.
PS I tweeted to you too but I think my tweets are protected to add me "Dancyny"
I would love this tote bag, because well lets face it, I am a girl and I am obsessed with bags! Your mom should definitely open her own shop on Etsy! I am actually looking for tote bags/matching make up bags at a reasonable price as gifts for my attendants. If they were hand made by your Mom, I would feel so much better about buying them off of Etsy!
I follow your blog!
I follow you on twitter!
I tweeted about your giveaway! http://twitter.com/#!/mdvervaecke/status/106412622659854336
That is amazing!!! OMG she should totally open a shop.
I LOVE these bags and they are the perfect color for our wedding. I think that your mom MUSTopen a shop sos that the non-crafty type can have bags to give their girls. My girls are getting homemade things cause my mom are quilters and crafters...
Happy Birthday to Chris. This bag would have been great to carry all my books around at Wagner. This is an awesome bag and YES, your mom needs to open an Etsy shop.
I follow your blog!
those tote bags are beautiful!!!
i neeeed this bag! first off, the tutorial was great :) i wish i knew how to sew (and/or) was crafty! you should definitely open an etsy shop. ps, i love that you called laura "the boss". i died laughing!
i follow you! :)
of course i follow you on twitter :) i love reading your tweets!
http://twitter.com/#!/mathewsbambina/status/106548228169809921 tweeted!
oh btw, this isnt another entry, but i feel like your mom needs to follow my blog hahaha. i love seeing her comments at the end of your posts every day :)
Yay, these are beautiful. Go momma!!! I'm following
Follower on twitter! @kj2380
Retweeted too @kj2380
I Just read your moms post about wanting to be like Oprah, could she be anymore cuter??
I love the makeup bag, and just so happens Im in need of a new one..lol. WOW moms got talent, those are all adorable!!!
I am a follower of your amazing blog! Oh and Happy B-day to the hubbs!
I now follow you on twitter!
Oh, and I already follow your awesome blog :)
Go Mom!
Tweeted about this great giveaway! Check it out - @07Dreamer :)
Can I just borrow your mom? Seriously your mom should make her own shop, they are so cute and its so sweet of your mom to make them!
I actually stumbled upon your blog today, and I am a new follower!
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