strawberry in the abstract

lately this has become more of a crafting blog than anything else. i might as well add a few more items to the mix. this will be an image obese post. you'll be able to see what occupies a majority of my time and why i haven't left the house in 4 days.

above is my latest project. the strawberry wristlet. the main accomplishment: ZIPPER installation. i've been avoiding them after a mishap i had early in my sewing career. i recycled the zipper from the previous post pillow sham, found a tutorial online on making zippered pouches and presto...cute bag! it's even lined. the zipper is a bit wavy, probably due to old age and i haven't figured out how to prevent the top edges from puckering. but other than that, i'm pretty happy with the results. i can't believe i've been avoiding zippers this long.

in may i made irina a cute reversible tote from a thrift store skirt and matching fabric from my stash. one of the ladies at her church asked where she got it, i got a call a few days later asking if i'd make one for the "church lady." we were in the process of moving and getting settled that i hadn't gotten around to making it til last week. she wanted the exact same purse i made irina. of course, that was impossible. i only had enough of the skirt for one bag. i found some retro flower fabric and used the same striped fabric i used on irina's. hopefully the lady will like it. i'm actually getting paid for this one.

since i was already sending irina the purse, she asked if i could make a few pouches to hold mp3 players. apparently at her dental office they allow patients to listen to mp3 players while getting treated. they have them sitting on the patients chest and on more than one occasion the player has crashed to the floor. she wasn't sure about size, so i tried to make them big enough to accomodate most players. again recycled fabric.

i'm currently trying to master a cell phone cozy. stupid me. last time i was home, my mom was going to buy one and i told her i could make one easy. come to find out, it's more difficult than i thought. i've trashed two already. but since i'm sending a package home with all these other projects, i have to include the one i promised her. i spent most of last night trying to decipher how to make it work. i think i may have it now. we'll see if i have anything to post tomorrow.