I signed up for the triple zip pouch swap because I wanted to learn to sew with zippers, and expand my world of online sewing friends. Boy oh boy oh boy oh boy was that pouch a challenge for me. I ended up making three…
The first was so wretched I wasn’t sure I could face another – time consuming and the end result so crooked and weird – and I had used some of my favorite Joel Dewberry. Sigh. But the next one turned out better, and by the time I got around to making my swap pouch, I was making quite passable pouches. But they took forever, and I was fairly certain pouches weren’t for me.
And then I wanted to make some for gifts, so I faced the zipper foot and the fusible fleece again.
little Anna Maria Horner pencil pouch for my friend T, of my own design.
A boxy zip pouch for my mother-in-law inspired by the ones over at Stiched in Color…
And an absolutely charming gathered clutch (from the noodlehead tutorial) for my aunt. Love everything about this one…linen, AMH fabric and lining, so sweet and pretty.
By the time I was finished with these, I could face the sew together bag by sewdemented that I had been to scared of (with more than a little help from this tutorial). It is not perfect, but I am very impressed with myself – I am so far ahead from when I took up sewing again 6 months ago.
And now I am a little bag expert. I zipped up this little darling this afternoon (also for myself).
Here is what I have learned:
1. Make my lining 1/2 inch shorter than what pattern calls for so they aren’t all crumply inside. (not an issue with the sewtogether bag).
2. Skip the zipper foot, just use my walking foot.
3. Until I am good at top stitching (in 2040), I am just going to use invisible thread.
4. It is pretty cool to know what fusible fleece is for.
weeknight quilting 