The Alexander Henry Arrived!

I ordered some fabric last week, and today it arrived. All the way from California. Oh my!



It's Wrangler by Alexander Henry, and I absolutely adore it. I had thought the cowboys would be smaller and more crowded, but I actually rather like it like this. The cowboys and trucks are kinda large, and surprisingly detailed! It's brilliant. It makes me want to not study for me exam, and just sew, sew sew!

Actually, I have drawn up a pattern for a bag, and I am going to use some of this as the lining. I think it'll be the bag with the most awesome lining ever! Well, at least the coolest lining I ever had in a bag.

I will, of course, post pictures of the finished result when I have gotten around to actually sewing it. What I imagine in my head is rather pretty, so we'll see if I can pull it off!

The Coolest Fabrics!

I was looking for fabrics today, and I have to say, the coolest fabrics I've seen have been by Alexander Henry! It's just so awesome it makes me want to order yard after yard of crazy colours!

I mean, how cool is this! I'd so love to make something out of this for either me or my favourite girlfriend. How cool would that be. A small make up bag or pencil case or something fun like that with these handsome men on top. It would be so fun to have something with this or give away something to friends! Imagine to looks we'd get during lunch break if we had these men on our purse! I found this on ahfabric.com. Everyone should go there and have a look at all the awesome that is Alexander Henry.


Now, here is a piece of fabric I have mentioned before. But guess what, I still want it! I'd want to make a bag of it, maybe even a pillow case for my sofa cushions, or something really proper like that. Not only would it look good on a cousin, it'd also look good if I made a cool bag and somehow put a leather belt with nails around it. (At least you can't blame for lacking inspiration.) This, too, is from Alexander Henry, and I found it over at Cias Palette.


And, again I found a fabric by Alexander Henry that I like. I swear, I am the kind of girl with a favourite fabric designer, and I am not ashamed of the fact! But look at the nice colours and the crazy imagery here! Isn't it just lovely! I found this one over at the Sew Mama Sew Shop! They have so many pretty fabrics, and I also love their blog. A lot. You should go there! It's inspirational and filled with useful links for us who are beginner sewers! (And I imagine it can be useful for those who are further along with their sewing, too! Take a look at it!)


Browsing through Cia's Palette, I found another fabric I really liked. It's just so fun and looks kinda old fashioned. (Keep in mind, to me anything older than ten years would go under this category.) How cool would it be to sew something for a little boy with this (it comes in multiple colours)? Or even for a brother, dad, boyfriend or even a cool chick? I really like it. It makes me think retro! It's from the Etsuko Furuya Echino Collection, and this is what we'd call ftw in netspeak language. Because it really is For The Win!

And, speaking of the Etsuko Furuya Echino Collection, here is another one of theirs. This too is from Cia's Palette. I think it looks really cool, but I'm not sure what I'd use it for. It would probably look really good in a quilt (a quilt for the boy room, anyone?), but I am not really so much into quilting, so I'll leave this one for someone else. It's really cool with the various stripes, dots and AEROPLANES it has going, though! This too could look awesome on bags and such. Or even on a crazy dress or something. Or a pillowcase. (Yes, I like simple projects! Because they are simple!)


Oh, and again with the Alexander Henry! I think they are trying to make me spend all my money on ordering stuff from thm or something! But look at these colours! I love the shapes, the colours, the contrasts, everything! It's just so bright and cheerful and lacking symmetry and I really do love it! Imagine all the things I could make with something so colourful and eye-catching!


Oh, and while we're discussing fabrics and the awesomeness of Alexander Henry and all that, isn't this just the cutest thing you've ever seen? I know I love it. It makes me want to know a kid just to make something for them out of this. (Well, it's not that bad, but it really is very cute!)

document case / laptop bag!

So, this is what my dad is getting for Christmas this year. It's a computer envelope/sleeve thingy, that can also be used as a document case.

It's made of plain black cotton fabric, and scrap fabric of various patterns for the lining and for the pocket on the front. Other details include bias tape for the edges, and strips hook-and-loop fastener for simple closing and opening.

Maybe not too fancy, but it does its job, and it suits a laptop perfectly.

I used a pattern from Living Creatively to guide me through making this thing. They have some pretty easy to follow patterns/tutorials, so I recommend everyone to take a look at their stuff. It's especially nice for beginners, as we tend to need step-by-step instructions with pictures of each step. (I know it's been very helpful for me!)

Actually, I think I shall make one of these for myself, too. Using different fabrics, of course. I am getting excited already!

Beginner sewing projects!

Beginner sewing projects turned out to be hard to find for me when I first started looking. Everything was either too complicated, or it cost a lot of money to buy it. I wanted something free, that was easy and fun. (Yeah, I'm pretty hard to please, I know!)

But, now I have been searching for a while, and I have gathered up a nice amount of links to fun, free and easy sewing projects, and I thought I'd share!

• tinyhappy's shoulderbag -my first ever project! It was so much fun, and so easy!
• u-handblog - scroll down, and on the righthand side you can see a list of tutorials. They are made up with pictures of each step, and the results are awesome!
• mackville road bag tutorial - I haven't tried this one, but it looks really cool!
• Anna Maria Horner - scroll down to you see the "Make This With Me" list on the lefthand side. I really like her instructions for the pillowcase dress!
• Casette Tape Wallet tut - this is so cool, and I am gonna try it as soon as I get my hands on a casette!

Well, those are my favourite beginner projects. What's yours? It can be so daunting to start sewing, especially if there's no one there to show you how, but with these easy to follow, wonderful tutorials, everyone can sew the prettiest things!
Good luck with these projects everyone!

New bag!

New bag, using the first ever pattern I've drawn. All by myself! How cool am I?

(Well, at least I was a little bit proud of it.)
Here is a picture of the bag. It looks different from varius angles, because the print on the fabric is different all over.


I just had to use that supercool fabric with the comic-ish print on it. I've been obsessed with it since I saw it at the store. I then drew up a very basic pattern, and cut out the pieces. For the lining I simply used a plain black material. I also went all crazy and added a simple pocket to the lining inside the bag. I don't have zips, so I simply sewed on a big brass button as a closing mechanisim on top. (I attached it inside, on the lining.) All in all, I was rather happy with it. It is, after all, only my second bag.

But now I have oh so many ideas! I have a feeling many people will be getting homemade gifts from me fot christmas this year!

Shopping for fabrics!

There's so many absolutely wonderful fabrics out there, but most of them are expensive. That is why I absolutely love finding them on sale! And this week, I got myself two really cool fabrics on a seventy percent discount! I absolutely love the ones with a nice colours and shapes on them!



This one I want to make a really cool bag or something out of. It's really so colourful and full of fun stuff on it! I was toying a little bit with the idea of a dress, too, but I think that'd make me stand out like a sore thumb if I ever wore it. But for accessories this is the coolest fabric ever! It was the first thing in the store that caught my attention, so finding out it was on a sale actually made me just as happy as if I had found a nice pair of shoes on sale or something. Absolutely amazing!





Now, this one, I have no idea what I'll use it for, but I actually really liked it. And it was in the scrap basket where they sold of the last meter of fabric from the rolls for a couple of bucks. I liked the colours a lot, and I might make something for my mum using it. Or maybe I'll use it as linen for a bag. It's always nice with a bit of colourful details inside, I think.





I also got some plain black and some bright pink cotton fabric, and that can always come in handy. I am very happy with my growing collections of fabrics now. So many pretty things, to make even prettier things from!

But I really, really want this from Cia's Palette! So effing cool! *__*

Knit a tablecloth!

It is nice to make something unique, that no one else have. And when you make things yourself, you can put your own personal flair to it. Like this tablecloth I knitted in some really bright colours, and they're not matching at all. I LOVE IT!

What I did what I bought some thin wool yearn, in those un-matching colours (but of course, it would probably turn out much more classy with different colours!), and knitted it up on thick needles. Just knit back and forth, and don't care about it if a minor flaw should appear. Then, when it is done, put it in the washer and watch it shrink to half its size, and the surface of it turn all soft and pretty. (This process is also called fulling)
To make sure this happens, one needs yarn that is not super wash, so that it will actually shrink!

This is so easy to do! And one can make it in any size, shape and colourcombination one likes, add effects like fringes and stuff.
It is also easy and neat to make matching table napkins to have under the plates when you have guests over for dinner, or just for decorative purposes!

first ever handbage made!

So, I made my first ever handbag/shoulder bag this week! It was done with some fabric I already had, that I had bought cheap on Ikea. The outside, as you can see, is of a black and white pattern, and the inside is plain purple. It was actually surprisingly easy, not to mention fun, to make this. I will be making more bags, that's for sure!

To make this bag, I had actually bought a pattern from Burda, but I didn't like their instructions very well, so instead I used the pattern from them (or parts of it, anyway), and followed the instructions from tinyhappy, who posted a very easy to follow tutorial that included pictures. I absolutely love sewing tutorials with pictures. There should be more of them!


I am not sure if I will make more bags following this exact same pattern. I think I will, but I also think I will experiment. Something tells me my friends will be getting these for Christmas. And, a lady can never have to many purses and bags, right?

Hello!

I figured I should write an introduction as the first post. Then I stopped and wondered, what on earth should I write in an introduction?

Well, about me:
I am twenty-three years old, I study math and geosciences at uni, I work part time as a bouncer and a security guard, I love parties, boys and cocktails, I love fancy drinks and import beer, I like skirts and pumps and pretty dresses, I'd rather listen to hardcore heavy metal than hip hop, and I am absolutely terrified of kids, even though everyone keeps telling me I act like a mom. All in all, I am a little bit of a contradiction. But I do not think I particularly crazy.

And, about my stuff:
First of all, I am certainly not a professional! I do what I do for fun. I like to create things and to see a finished pretty result. I try and more often than not I fail. I knit, I sew, I make cards. Sometimes I draw or paint, but I find that I do not have the pateince for these things.
I usually put my own flair to thing, with colours and stuff, and it is so amazing to have something that no one else has! And, it's so great to actually make something.

I suppose my goal is to be able to actually make my own professional-looking dresses, but I am not there yet. As for now, I do easy peasy stuff. But.. just watch me! This is my blog about my way towards reaching that goal. And I'll post pictures of my creations as I go along. Who knows, I might even post pictures about how I made stuff!