Little Backpacks

A few months ago, my daughter (the middle one) asked me to make her a little doll-size backpack. She drew me a picture to explain her specifications.

It took me a while to get to this project but she persevered all along, reminding me of the promise that I would make it "some day, soon". Impressed by her tenacity,  I finally made the four-inch backpacks. Notice the plural, as her youger sister has to have everything that she has. Also, I made three as the prototype needed a few improvements.

Here are all three backpacks, complete with zippers, glue on pearls and all. The green prototype was gifted to a friend while my girls claimed the other two.

By the time of this post, it has been several weeks since the completion of the backpacks and the girls have moved onto newer toys. But they had a good run and are still intact, just hibernating for now. 

Sewing: Multi-zippered Bag

Recently, at our home, there arose a need for a particular type of bag, with a good number of pockets. This was the perfect chance for me to pursue my ever-expanding pinterest board for sewn bags. After successfully  gleaning inspiration from there, I set forth to sew this bag.

 Sewing was simple enough,  except for the fact that I broke three needles in the process. That was mostly due to my trying to rush the sewing machine through thick wads of fabric and zipper. I learnt after many tries, to tread more gently. The fabric was some leftover bed linen.

Anyhow, the bag beautifully fits the role intended for it, and has gone into regular use. It is so useful, I think I just might make some more of these at some point in the future.

Sewing: Clothespin Bag

After completing my last project, which was that pair of upcycled gloves, I promptly started another knitting project _ another sweater for my son. This one is far simpler than the cabled one I finished at the start of this year, and I have made considerable progress. However, all this time, I had been having a craving for a quick sewing project, some sort of bag. Finally, I got out my supplies and sewed up this clothespin bag.

It was done in two sittings. First I selected the design (from this tutorial ) and drafted the pattern. The next morning, I did the actual sewing.

 All the fabrics came from my scrap bin. It was my first time doing an appliqué and I quite enjoyed it.  And it makes a nifty home for my clothespin, which were earlier housed in a makeshift pillow-case.

Masa Bag

 

This large, rectangle, crocheted piece which I also showed in the last post, got all folded and stitched together into this:

 Of course, it also got a handle added to it, and a lining with a zipper. The pattern basically explains the folding technique that turns a rectangle (3:1) into a bag form.

 

I used a larger hook and a longer foundation chain to make a bigger bag. And in doing so, I successfully used up one of the two 12 oz (552 m) balls of Sugar'n Cream Naturals that had been languishing in my stash for the last five years. Hopefully, I will find a way to use up the remaining ball in a suitable way, sooner than the next five years.

As for the bag, I think it is nicely sized, sturdy and useful bag. Nothing spectacular but quite practical.

A little Quilting/Sewing Project

 I needed a pouch for my smartphone in the likely case it slipped out of my hands and fell to the ground. I found this nice pouch via Pinterest that really fit the bill. So I got out my cottons and got to working. My quilting and sewing skills are still not upto the mark and putting in the zipper led to a bit of the puckering. But on the whole, I am happy that this butterfingers' smartphone is finally well-cushioned.

Summer Crochet Bag

Not so long ago, I saw this lovely bag on Pinterest. It looked like a great accessory for the Summer. And I had just the right cotton thread at hand to crochet it. The pattern is in Russian but there are some charts too. So armed with a Google translation and the charts, I set about making one for myself. There were a few ambiguous areas where I had to improvise and try out various options, until I got the right results, but it was totally doable.

 I used white cotton thread size 8, held doubled, on an unknown hook size. Again, our thread balls do not have yardage printed, but I used about 12 balls of local Coats Anchor Cotton Thread balls.

I did not have large enough beads for the handles, so I only dangled some smaller ones at the sides.

The lining is double, solid white cotton, with interfacing with a magnetic closure.

Thus, my quest for the right bag is finally over. I love this bag and can't wait to use it!

What's Up

I am done with the crochet part of the second bag in the last one month. I am pleased to report that this bag is turning out much closer to my expectations than the last one. I am working on the lining now and should have photos of the finished bag in a few days. Meanwhile, I am having a mild flare-up of an old eye inflammation. That means headaches if I do a lot of near work, causing me to slow down with my crafting activities. I also have a building pile of books I want to read. And rest of my summer sewing is also on the hold. Hopefully, I will be back in the thick of things in a few days, inshaAllah. For now, I have some free time to plan ahead for my future projects.

Rose Garden Tote

I do not know why I picked out this pattern. Maybe because it was crochet and felted, both techniques that I had not done in a long while. Or maybe it were the roses, which I love. Anyway, I was quite excited when I started and it being crochet, worked fast through the project. But around completion, doubts began to creep in. Nice though it maybe, it was not quite something that would suit me. My husband confirmed these doubts, but it was quite late in the day, so I went ahead and felted it anyway. And hoping to make it grow on me, I took it on my last shopping trip. I can't say it worked though, it has taken me a whole week to get the courage to blog about it. 

before felting

after felting

And in my determination to get a right kind of crochet bag, I have started another one. I am hoping this one will work for me, inshaAllah.

Basket Bag

Now that I find hard to come by some free time, crochet has renewed charm for me. A crochet project gets done so much faster. Like this bag which took me only two days to crochet and another to line and sew on the handles. This bag uses crochet in worsted acrylic yarn worked around a jute rope. I love the texture of jute and am a huge admirer of basket bags. So I am quite happy with this one and it will probably be one of those of my handmade bags which actually get used. (Yes, I have a number of rarely used bags, either because they are impractical, don't match anything in my wardrobe or because I no longer fancy them).

Month Of Sewing: Winding Up

My Month of Sewing ended yesterday. Even though I did not sew up all the stuff on my list, I got most of it. So all in all, it was very productive. For this last post, I just have a few pictures to share of some odd projects I did.
First up is this baby seat cover.

 The second project is a mere prototype. I wanted to try out a fabric covered basket with recycled cardboard walls, that was both collapsible and washable. I used some leftover fabric scraps and it turned out amazingly OK in the first attempt. I am so tempted to make some more, but my husband, probably relieved that the cardboard boxes I was hoarding, had served their purpose, threw out the rest. So, I need to get some more before I can attempt another.

The third one is a simple drawstring bag sewn in a rush, to hold my socks and other small articles of clothing. I have already done a couple of these for the kids and find them a great help in keeping the closets tidy.

Month of Sewing: Kitchen Projects

I have not been feeling so great, lately and consequently have had to slow down on my sewing. However, over the last week or so, I did manage to sew up a few things for the kitchen.
First up is a pair of potholders I made. I was in dire need of some as my older pair was thrown out during a cleaning spree. I used this easy tutorial and love how they turned out. Next to them is a plastic bags holder/dispenser. We also needed one of these, because the plastic bags were beginning to choke up our kitchen drawer. There is a tutorial for one of these at the same site but I improvised and made mine to different size and method and added a top flap with velcro closure. May I mention once again, what a great space saver it is.

 The project after that gave me a hard time. I wanted to make a toaster cover. I initially went for an all-covered, four-walled look. Took the measurements and sew one up, but it was too tight. Further tweaking loosened it up a but but it was still hard to put on and take off. So I decided to take off the sides and put is straps (with velcro-fastening, of course) instead. Works like a charm.

 And the last project, a curtain for our shabby little kitchen window. I am well pleased with this one and it does make a lot of difference to outlook.

I still have plans for coordinating kitchen towels etc, but that will have to wait till my next shopping trip.

A Bag for Interchangeable Knitting Needles

My project for today is a sewing project, a case which I made for my Knit Pick Interchangeable Needles. I used the materials at hand (and you can see that my green sewing thread does not  quite match the fabric, but it will do).  It has a row of small pockets for interchangeable needles and a row of larger pockets below,  for the cables and other accessories. I used a button to fasten it up.

   I am happy with the finished bag and feel that it will come very handy to keep my needles all tidy and organized. I may add some embroidered numbers on the pockets to mark the various sizes.

Buttercup Bag

Despite being on a project diet for the month of Ramadan, I could not resist the chance of sewing up this bag, while I had my sewing machine out for the final haul on kids' Eid clothes. I had chanced on the pattern recently and I had just the right material for it- the fabric leftover from a recent sofa upholstering at our home. Rather than following the measurements in the pattern, I freehandedly cut out my pieces, quite a bit larger. As the fabric is quite sturdy, I opted for a simple cotton lining. I used a ribbon to line the strap. For the final snazz, I used over sized buttons as embellishment on both sides.

I think it turned out pretty well and it was fast ( the real fun of sewing ), done in one sitting!

Hello Kitty Bag

I do not remember how exactly it came about but a while ago, I found myself having promised my daughter a Hello Kitty bag. With my current lengthy projects, it was time for me to take a break and I figured doing a crochet bag would not break my no-new-cast-on resolution ;)

I ran out of the cotton yarn which I was using initially so I turned to acrylic. The bag with all its finishing etc took me about a day. I did not follow any pattern for this though there are many hello kitty patterns listed on ravelry in case anyone is interested. My daughter was so excited and involved in the project, I did not have the heart to put it down. I used buttons for eyes and felt for the nose and bows. Both sides are identical. So here it is done and with its happy owner.

Potohar Felted Bag

Thus is named the bag I made last week. I have written the pattern and madeit available for free through my ravelry store. You can click on this link to download the file.

As, for the name, Potohar is the region of Pakistan, I belong to. Colors in the bag somewhat remind me of the local scenery.

"Some Bag"

So I rose to the challenge and knit up "some bag" with the Noro yarn (and some more) from the frogged glove. And now I have to admit, a bag was a much better project idea. I am in love with this one. It used two balls of Noro Kureyon, different colorways, and about 0.8 skein of Araucania Magallanes and 6.5 mm needles. It is my own design which I hope to write up and place in my ravelry shop soon, inshaAllah.

This has been so much fun. Even my resident critic a.k.a my husband declared it to be one of my "better" designs, LOL. But the downside has been that in knitting this, I totally neglected my Coatimundi KAL projects and now am lagging behind. So, I will be picking those up now and try to finish them fast.

Demise Of A WIP

NOTE: This post is not so serious or tragic as the name might imply.

How many times does it happen that in our dreams we get an idea, which seems like such a brilliant one, solution to all the evils facing us, nothing short of a Nobel prize-worthy discovery. Then we wake up and find it was all mumbo-jumbo or something really silly at best.
I think the same phenomenon occurred to me last night. However, I was not sleeping. Rather, I was trying to come up with a brilliant design in the wee hours of the night.
I had a skein of Noro Kureyon and I thought I could come up with a pair of good fingerless gloves. So, I gave it some thought and started knitting. It seemed so awesome at the time and I could not go to sleep until I had finished the first glove. So, I did just that, and it still looked very well, though my vision was a bit blurry by then as it was already Fijr (Time before dawn). That is when I hit the bed after saying my prayers.
Now, when I woke up a little later in the morning and showed it to the husband, he immediately squashed my enthusiasm, saying it was quite horrendous and came close to my second worst knitting disaster after the kitchen set I had knit a while back. ( My husband hates that dishcloth and we have already thrown out the scrubbie-required a lot of elbow grease).
Further explanation from him added insult to injury when he said he liked the yarn but the pattern was all wrong. He further suggested I knit "some bag" with it.
So discouraged, I frogged the glove and have started a bag already. But, I did take a picture before frogging. Maybe, some day, I will look back and agree that it is horrible..

The First Felt

My husband got a PSP (playstation portable) recently and I immediately offered to make a cozy for it. Apparently, DH was thinking of a safe way to carry it with him, so surprizingly enought, he accepted. While, nomally he is not thrilled with knitted items for himself.
After a great deal of pondering and looking around at patterns, I finally decided this simple, felted cozy would be best. I made many modifications.
I started out with full intention of following the pattern but had no 6.50 mm DPNs. So, instead,I worked on straight. Also, altered the number of sts and length to adapt to DH’s PSP:
I cast on 28 sts.
Row 1: (k1, sl 1 st purlwise) repeat to the end.
Repeat this row until the piece measures 11 inches.
Next row:( k1, sl next st onto a spare needle, k next st, pass the 1st st over this st)repeat to the end.
In this way, half the sts are BO. On the remaining sts, work in st st for 5 inches. BO and weave in end. No seams to sew and ready to felt.

The yarn I used was Araucania Magallanes. I really liked this yarn. This cozy used up only a small amount, maybe 50 yards. I still have the remaining skein. So maybe I can make a bag or something out of it.
Being done with the knitting, I went looking for a good felting tutorial. Then equiped with the necessary information, I went on to try for myself. And it worked. It is quite simple really. And fun!

The great thing is that the cozy turned out exactly right sizewise and more than that, DH was very pleased with it. I also lined it witha cotton fabric, to protect the PSP from any wayward wool fiber, LOL.

Garter Stripe Bag

I saw this pattern at ravelry and loved it. It is basically 22 squares in black and white garter stripes arranged and sewn in a particular shape. I used 4.00mm needles and cotton yarn. Although I love how this bag has turned out, but to be honest, it was very boring to knit. It was hard to keep motivated. Perhaps it was the garter st, cotton yarn or all the seaming which made it so hard to knit.

I lined it with a similarly striped fabric. I simply placed the knitted piece over the fabric and cut the fabric along the outline (with some seam allowance).

Then sewed it to match the seaming on the bag. I put in two pockets in coordinating fabrics, one with a zipper. And the bag itself has a magnetic closure.

Only modification I did was to use plastic purse handles rather than knitted straps. Also I crocheted along the top. I simply adore this bag and this will be my new daily use bag, inshaAllah.

Afghan Squares Bag

I had made a couple of afghan squares last year with no particular project in mind. I might have considered an afghan but did not have enough yarn or commitment. These were just lying there in my knitting closet until I started thinking of gift ideas for Eid. That is when I thought of making them into a bag. I crocheted in round to make one-piece bottom, gussets and handle. Also added a button closure and lining.

I gave it to my 11-year old niece yesterday and she was very happy with it. This encourages me to work on my other ongoing gift project... yes for cousins' baby. I have finished the jumpsuit and started the hat. I will post them together when the hat is done.