Ocean Wave Clutch Tutorial from mahlicadesigns

I’ve been playing with pleats and tucks again and wrote up a tutorial for you over at On the Cutting Floor.

Take a visit for the full tutorial.

Twisted Tuck Wristlet tutorial by mahlicadesigns

For the September Sew With Me challenge on facebook, I needed to make an accessory. After being stumped a while, I came up with an idea for an accessory that I actually needed; a small purse with a handle. I drafted my own pattern, so I wanted to do a practice run before working with a faux leather for my final version. The first version out of quilting cottons was made up for my So Sew Easy Sewing Swap partner. I hope she likes it.

Since I put in some effort to draft my pattern and work out the twisted tucks detail, I wanted to share a tutorial so you can make one too.

You’ll need:

Twisted Tuck Wristlet template, 4.5in X 14in rectangle for twisted tuck detail, 3in X 11in piece for strap, 11in X 8in for interior pocket (optional), fusible fleece or heavy weight fusible stabilizer, 9in zipper.

Cut Exterior Fabric: 1 main body, 2 front side pieces, 1 tuck piece, 1 strap piece

Cut Interior Fabric: 2 main body, 1 pocket.

Cut fusible fleece: 2 main body (hint: trim away about 1/2in from edges to reduce bulk in your seams, especially at the top edge)

First we’ll make the twisted tucks insert.

1. Grab your 4.5 x 14 inch piece. Mark one of the shorter ends on the wrong side as the Top. Make your first fold, wrong sides together, 2in down from the Top edge. Press. Sew 3/4in away from and parallel to your folded edge.**
2. Make your next fold, wrong sides together,  1 5/8in down from the stitching line you made in step #1. Press and sew 3/4in from your folded edge. Repeat until you have a total of five tucks.
3. Press tucks down. Baste tucks down on one edge using 3/8in seam allowance. Fold and pin tucks up on other side. The edges will not line up squarely, that’s ok, its more important to keep the piece squared up. Baste in place using a 3/8in seam allowance. You should have 1/2in of fabric above your top tuck and more below your bottom tuck.
4. Using a 1/2in seam allowance, attach the side pieces to the tucks insert, lining the pieces up at the top. Press. The insert should be a little longer than the side pieces, trim away any excess after the side pieces are attached.

Next, we finish getting our pieces ready.

5. Trim 1/2in away from the top, flat edge of the fleece if you haven’t done that already. Apply the fusible fleece to the wrong sides of the two exterior pieces.

6. Press the pocket piece in half lengthwise, wrong sides together. Center the pocket on top of one of the lining pieces, right sides up. The lower raw edge of the pocket should line up with the lower edge of the lining piece. Bits of the pocket will hang over. To make a 3in card slot, I mark the center of the pocket, then measure and mark 1.5in out each side of center. Stitch along the marked lines, backstitching at the top to reinforce. You can divide the remaining pocket area as desired or leave them alone.  Tip:  1.75in to 2in width is good for a lipstick slot. Trim off any overhanging parts of the pocket.7. Press the strap in half lengthwise wrong sides facing. Open up, fold long edges in to meet at the center, press, and fold again. Same as if you’re making a double fold binding. Stitch 1/8in from the folded edges to close the strap. Place one of the exterior pieces right side up. Position the strap 1in down from top edge and with raw edges facing out. Baste in place.

Assembly:

8. Mark a line 1/8in down from top edge on right side of a Lining piece.** Position the zipper right side up along this line, making sure the top zipper stop is about 3/8in in from the side. Pin in place. Position one of the Exterior pieces on top, right side down. The zipper is sandwiched between the layers. Using a zipper foot, stitch 1/2in from edge. Repeat with the second lining and exterior pieces.

9. Open out the layers so zipper is in the center. Press and topstich about 1/8in away from exposed zipper tape.

10. With needle & thread, make a new zipper stop about 3/8in from edge. Trim away excess length of the zipper. Open zipper by about 3/4s.

11. Fold one exterior piece over onto the other exterior piece, right sides together. Line up exterior and lining pieces, making sure open edges of zipper are lined up. Pin as needed.

12. Leave a 3in opening at the bottom edge of the lining pieces. About 1.5in from center bottom of lining, start stitching with a 5/8in seam allowance, as you sew around the curve gradually change your seam allowance to 1/2in. before you reach the zipper. Sew slowly as you go over the zipper. As you come back around to the lining, increase your seam allowance to 5/8in after the curve.

13. Carefully trim excess bulk from the zipper corners. Clip the curves and trim seam allowance around the bottom edge of the lining by about half.

14. Pull the wristlet right side out through the opening in the lining. Hand stitch the lining closed. Use a turning tool to push out the corners at the top and smooth out the lining and curves.

Zip it up and your done!

** This sentence edited after publishing to be more clear.

Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Purple Polka Dot Bag-ini

I think the Itsy Bitsy part is apparent. The finished bag is about 5.5in X 6in.

When I first saw this tutorial for the Day Out Purse I barely gave it a look, but returned to it as a good option for an upcoming trip.

This project suffered from my attention being divided between another project and a disruption in the family routine. I Do Not multi-task well. Trying to steal a couple minutes at a time often meant the tablet with the instructions was elsewhere, I goofed on the placement of the magnetic clasp, and I cut the pocket piece incorrectly. Nothing fatal though. I was able to improvise solutions and looking at the instructions got me on track.

Pattern Comments: The instructions have you make a 30in strap, I needed 50in to make it an over the shoulder bag. This bag is SMALL, but easily modified to be larger. The card pockets are awesome but the large pocket takes up too much real estate in this small purse.

The end result is a streamlined bag that is just right for my Day Out plans on vacation.

No new fabric was cut in the making of this project. I used up two pieces of my fat quarter collection from my former quilting days. About a hundred to go.

This project should take you a couple hours.

The Wasp Bag

My latest project is the Wasp Bag pattern by machen/machen.

I  had enough remaining fabric from the two year camera bag to make my sister another bag and she chose this really cute one.

The pattern instructions were pretty easy for the most part, though the pocket opening ended up with an exposed seam. With a little reworking I got the pocket corrected and this bag was done up in a snap.

I found the process for pressing and pinning to match up the tear drop shape on the handle pieces very tedious and inaccurate. I would recommend that you just sew that portion, turn, and then line up the straight edges of the handles for topstitching following her instructions. I think you would get a much nicer finish to that part of the bag.

Court House Steps cell phone case

I worked up this take on a Court House Steps block to make a cell phone case as a stocking stuffer for my mother-in-law.

I continued the color theme in the wrapping. I covered a jewelry box in paper and added a few strands of ebroidery floss.

The two year camera bag

I see it as a gift to be able to use my skills on behalf of my family and friends. Often though, I have to take full advantage of the grace that flows between family members. My sister asked for this bag well over two years ago; before pregnancy, a newborn now a toddler, and a move. She has graciously waited.

Now that I’m finding a little more time to pursue my creative interests again, I’m feeling really good about getting some neglected projects done.

This camera bag was inspired by a bag my sister found on etsy but could not afford. I worked out the pattern and instructions myself, though I would tweak it a bit if I make another one.

Plum Blossom crocheted brooch

I really enjoyed making a crocheted brooch as a gift this Christmas.

This was the perfect project to work on during baby’s nap time.

Do you have any go to projects for short bursts of free time?

Tre Fiori Broach

Recently my sister-in-law came home with a dress that was just the right price, but needed a little something extra.

I worked up the Tre Fiori Broach by starting with a couple of flowers that I had made in the past, felted a third flower, and created a new assemblage.

Let’s see if she likes it.

Fennel In The Garden cuff by mahlicadesigns

I’ve worked up another version of a wrist cuff using some of my oatmeal colored linen. I was inspired by the umbrel shaped flowers and the lovely yellow of fennel.

I’ll be adding this one to my etsy store.

And this one too…

Here I used some dark denim from a slit front skirt I’m working on. ( I’m almost done with the skirt and its on the way to the blog)

Hand Made Baby Booties

One of the great parts of handmade is making something special for others. With babies in the near future for two friends, I knew I definitely wanted to make their gifts. Quilts are always such an appealing idea to me for baby gifts, but with my tendencies towards procrastination, not a good option. Instead, I’ve been keeping my eyes out for handmade shoe patterns for baby.

I made a set of slip-on baby booties for each mom to be, using the template and directions from Fleeting Thing.com.

I added a short elastic band as I sewed the top and bottom pieces together so I would not have to hand stitch in the elastic after the fact.

Aren’t these so cute?

The Water’s Edge cuff by mahlicadesigns

I can’t bear to toss my scraps, I’ve said this before, and as evidence you’ll find several projects on my blog that use left over fabric from other projects.

I’ve worked up another version of a wrist cuff using some oatmeal colored linen and embroidery floss, this time experimenting with some stitching lines.

I’m thinking of using this type of accent stitching at the bottom hem line of a curved front wrap skirt.

And look, I’ve already used some of my newly found buttons.

I’ll be adding these to my etsy store.

The H-I Def Cuff by mahlicadesigns

I can’t bear to toss my scraps, so I’m constantly on the look out for ideas to use them up. I really like the idea of making cuffs to use up small pieces and experiment with new techniques. In my first go at making a cuff I used Leigh Ann Tennant’s Alter Ego cuff pattern to combine the H and I shapes to interlink into an interesting under over effect.

After sewing and turning each piece, I top stitched the “H” shape. I then layered the pieces and top stitched the “I” piece attaching it to the “H” piece at the corners at the same time. This took a little maneuvering to hold the “H” piece out of the way as I top stitched the middle portions of the “I”.

Finally, I attached two snaps for closures. You can see in this pic how the topstitching of the “I” piece caught the “H” piece at the corners.

  I’ll be adding the H-I Def cuff to my Esty store.

Chunky Knit Scarflette

I hand knitted this little charming piece without my usual over thinking and meticulous planning.

I love the soft feel and the contrast of the tabs.

This one is available in several colors as a custom order in my esty store.