Wordless Wednesday

My daughter came to visit bearing gifts from her garden!

Happy Wednesday!

xo Annette xo

In The Sewing Room

I've been in the sewing room, but I can't show you yet what I've made.  This is just some of the fabric I used to make gifts and I'm really happy with how everything is turning out.  I will definitely show you after Christmas what this fabric turned in to!

Are you making or have you made any gifts this Christmas?

Happy Friday!

xo Annette xo

A Pink Sachet

As you may know, I've been working on three sachets my sister asked me to make.  The white one is here and the red one is here.  I've finished the third one and it's pink.

Just as with the other two, I used the corner of a vintage hankie.  I used vintage mother of pearl buttons, rick rack, lacy trim, decorative machine stitching, hand stitching, french knots, seed beads, and a gossamer bow.  It is stuffed full of lavender and smells divine!

My sister will be giving these as gifts and I hope her friends like them.  The next project is gift card holders that my daughter requested.  I'll show you those when they're finished.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Repurposing A Shirt and A Pair Of Jeans

A couple of weeks ago was my husband's birthday.  I don't know what it's like for you, but for me, I never know what to get him for a gift.  This year was no exception!  I just could not think of anything to get him and he wasn't giving any hints.

Then I thought about the shirts and pants he had given me when he cleaned out his closet.  I was looking through them all and remembered how he likes to have a laundry bag with him when he travels.  And he does do a lot of traveling for work.  So I picked a shirt and a pair of jeans and and came up with a laundry bag.

I cut the shirt straight across right under the arms and straight across at the bottom to cut off the shirt tails.  I left the buttons buttoned and sewed the shirt closed down each side of the buttons.  Next, I cut the legs off the jeans and got out the seam ripper to open the inseam seam.  Using the widest part of both legs, I cut pieces for the top and bottom of the bag.  The last step was to make a casing and insert the cording for the drawstring top.

The best part is he was surprised and very happy with it.  Not only did I come up with the perfect gift, but it didn't cost anything!

I've been forgetting to leave you with a sewing tip at the end of each post to celebrate National Sewing Month.  I remembered today though, so here it is:  If your project requires a lot of cutting straight lines, it is easier to use a rotary cutter and quilters ruler on a self healing mat than it is to use scissors.  The cut is cleaner and straighter doing it that way.  It's also much quicker.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!