Still SEWING. Tote Bags and Cuddlie Bunny.

This week I have had my granddaughters and I have been sewing. Don't think I cooked much outside of a few sandwiches that didn't amount to much.

So anyway I finished two "Potato Bags" for my best friend Diane for her two kids. She loves the way the potato fluffs and is so much better than the traditional microwaved potato. So, there is one on the way for Jennie and one for Daniel and Meredeth.

Charlie, a good friend of my husband's has a little girl and he promised them one of the super soft and cuddly bunnies I make out of his old long johns. He tears them out under the arms and you can only fix them so many times and there is nothing left to catch on to anymore. They have by that time been washed so many times they achieve a wonderful softness that really is nice for cuddle toys.

What is really fun on the bunny's is to use a little piece of white fur and sew it on the bunny bottom for his cute little bunny tail!!

I just get my scissors and away they go!! Before you know it a new bunny is born.

Then I got busy on a tote bag. I am having so much fun doing the quilting myself by machine. The first one I ever made 18 years ago was like that but then I had some pre-quilted fabric pieces I used for the next several dozen I made. So it is fun all over again to quilt a bit.

This one is very spring like. The exterior is a blue background with crisp white flowers and yellow centers. I used blue grosgrain ribbon and sewed a narrower bright butter yellow grosgrain ribbon in the center of the blue for the handle straps. Then I used a very soft light blue tiny plaid as the backing and interior of the bag and just channel quilted it at 2" intervals. It was indeed fun.

More Stitches, Tea Cozy, Stuffed Mice, & Cuddle Bunnies.

Gees......I have had to keep myself entertained with all the snow and cold or else I would just go nuts or get down in the dumps about some something that I can't quite put my finger on.

So I have taken up felting and thus far have only used the wool sweater in warm soapy water method. I visited a local second hand shop and found several 80% + wool sweaters at $2.00 each so it was an inexpensive trial and it worked well. Just threw them in the washer on warm wash cold rinse with a bit of laundry detergent and ran them through the cycle. I partially dried them in the dryer then let them finish air drying. I had wool felt and could proceed. I made the tea cozy and mice. It works well and was lots easier than quilted cozies I have previously made. Mice are CUTE!!

While at the second hand store I also purchased wool skirts and blazers and did the same process. It isn't felted but I like the idea of making stuffed animals out of the menswear type of fabric and the price is right.

So brown bunny's with fuzzy white fur tails were born!!

While I am playing around with my critters my husband sees an opportunity to get his long johns mended. Thus some are way too far gone and they too became bunny's. REALLY SOFT and cuddly bunny's!!

They do have the look though of Lamb Chop a lamb Sherri Lewis used in her act when I was a girl.....It was a fun week and I have found more free patterns online so I am sure there will be more to come. There are quite a few on Martha Stewart's website. Others you have to look a bit harder for.

I know my granddaughters will want bunny's too but I am thinking they need to a bit more "GIRLIE".

I see another trip to the second hand store!!