More leather, one zipper, another pouch and a lesson in frustration...

Some days ago, I posted about making my first pouch, with a zipper!!!  I am pretty satisfied with it because it's functional, different and really cute.  However, one new pouch was not enough to hold everything that fit in my old pouch, so I had to make another one.

Even though I absolute love the first pouch I made, I wanted to try something different and decided to visit Sew Mama Sew's page; they have bunches and bunches of tutorials, and I found the instructions to make this cosmetic case under their "Bags" tab. If you visit this original post, you can also obtain a free PDF file with the instructions.

Anyway, back to the Hill...  I prepared the fabric and followed the instructions to the T:

And this is something I made different. You can actually use a regular glue stick to hold your zipper and fabric in place before you sew.  It is washable, won't stain the fabric and is a whole lot easier to use.  It makes the process way easier and faster.

 

Everything was going well, until I was like... UH?  How am I supposed to do that? It was the moment where I was supposed to sew around the four pieces of fabric to form the inner and outer pouches, forming a sort of trapezoid... This was supposed to make the pouch a little wider; I wanted this extra width so that I could fit more stuff in it. Everything else seemed to be OK, but I just couldn't get my head around the next part of the instructions...

This was pretty much the point where I got kind of lost...Now, remember that I'd never tried a pouch like this before this one, so I can take the fact that my cluelessness could (but just could... lol) be due to my amateurishness in these matters.  I just didn't get it...  :(

I decided I was not about to let my frustration get the best of me, and I turned to YouTube and ended up watching Melanie's video.

Woohoo!  That was the charm!  I did notice that Melanie said that she's not an expert, and that this technique was so easy...  Trying not to fume about myself and my inability to get this zippered pouch stuff, I just kept on trying and was able to deal with that confusing step!  YAY!

I went on to box the corners...

... turning everything the right side...

... and here it is!  My second leather zippered pouch, ready to hold a bunch of those little things that generally get lost in the Bermuda Triangle hidden inside my purse, lol!

Oh my! I was so thankful for having finished it and having made something that works. I've learned that my creative plateaus are actually a major learning opportunity that will allow me not only to feed my crafty bone, but also teach me about dealing with situations and getting things done!  From frustrating to rewarding... Now I have another reason to like my new leatherette pouch!  

How about you?  Have you ever made a pouch?  How do you keep things from getting lost in your purse?

Drop me a note and I hope you have fun making something today!  :)

Just moments

Yes, I know... Soooorrryyyy!!  I have sort of abandoned my blog for a while; this thing of keeping a full-time job along with house chores, crafty bone that is drying up and last-minute weekend getaways (Yay!  Happy 4th Anniversary Mr. Fuzz!!!) do not provide any constructive written paragraphs in the blog land of The Hill... (Sighing) However, ideas keep on cascading unrestrained, and I can only wonder how plentiful this blog would be if I had a laptop with an internet connection each time my mind starts concocting words and thinking about putting things together to make new ones...  But I was not about to take a rain check from the chance of spending a weekend with my husband away from the routine and treasure every moment of it.

I would not want to loose the chance to marvel at the changing colors of the sunset and having the assurance that God made it possible for me to enjoy it.

It was not whether we were able to visit this or that place, buy stuff or whatever; it was about just sharing moments together, whether it is standing on the balcony of our hotel room or knowing that my husband is patiently waiting for me outside the shop while I go on a fabric hunt...

   

We didn't get to do a bunch of the things we wanted to do, but taking a moment to turn and enjoy the beautiful sunset, even though I got to the craft store ten minutes after they closed was ever more meaningful when I realized he is by my side just looking and me and enjoying my taking pictures (this was of course, on the day before the actual fabric hunt happened, lol).

Or what about the moment I look over the hill and see the theater where we went to see a play together for the first time, or even deciding where to eat and realize that he prefers to order the same dish we shared during our honeymoon.

It was about seeing my husband rolling his eyes, but lovingly smiling at me when I told him that I wanted to take a picture of the carpet in the lobby of the hotel, because it can be turned into a free-motion quilting pattern.

In other words... Yes, I've missed preparing blog posts, but I decided to set them aside not for the usual reasons, but just to share moments with my wonderful husband, who loves me in his quiet and supporting way and who makes life goofy every minute!  :)

All those little moments are now part of our history together, little treasures to cherish and thank God for.

Heaven? Really?

Have you ever found yourself wondering about heaven?  Is it for real?  Is it really out there?  Am I going there? Does it really look like the prettiest flower garden? Or maybe like the most gorgeous sunset you've ever seen? How do I get there anyway?

What do YOU think of when you think of heaven anyway?  This is the question I'm asking!!  :)

Yep! That's the question!  Now, why I am asking it is the matter of the rest of this post...  :)

You probably already know that I review books for Tyndale House Publishers.  The last book I worked on is "Appointments with Heaven."  It is about a Doctor that grows up with a precious faith and wonderful Christian examples.  However, tragedy turns everything upside down and he decides to turn his back on God.  The most interesting thing is that, when he thought that by studying Medicine and understanding science would confirm the unexistance of God; he actually starts catching these little glimpses of heaven when treating his patients, and his world is turned upside down all over again!!!  A wonderful read that I would say should become a must-have for all Christians.

Check what Dr. Anderson has to say about it in his YouTube video  that for some reason Blogger is not finding and I cannot embed in this post...  :(  

(Sigh.) These marvels of technology...

Now, some extracts of this book were taken out and put together in a 30-day devotional... AND IT CAN BE YOURS FOR FREE!!!  That's right, I'm hosting my first giveaway, thanks to Tyndale's generosity.  

All you have to do is leave a comment and tell everyone out there what YOU think of when you think of heaven.In return, I will send you via e-mail a free devotional based on "Appointments with Heaven" that will be a sure little blessing for you!  :)

Keep in mind that if your comment is "private," I won't be able to send you the devotional because I won't see your e-mail.  You can try following the blog and I'll be able to use Google gizmos to send you your devotional.  

So, are you ready to go to heaven?  :)

Appointments with Heaven, by Reggie Anderson

Dr. Anderson shares his Powerful story of faith and awareness of the real, constant and marvelous companionship of heaven; throughout his experience as a family physician, he shares evidence of how this life is more a sort of parenthesis that opens when we are born and closes when we pass away and go back home.

Raised by strong Christians, Dr. Anderson’s childhood was wrapped in a precious trusting faith.  However, tragedy made him wander away from God, to the point of denying him during his early college years. It was medicine itself that sparked his return; in this sense, “Appointments with Heaven” is also a first-row seat to the connection of science and God.  Dr. Anderson shares how he went from thinking they were completely alien to each other to witnessing their deep, unbreakable connection. It was a blessing to read of how he usually shares this understanding with his fellow peers and making a stand for the truth and people's ultimate destination – either with or away from our Father.

The simple and trusting faith of a child made me shed tears, but it also challenged me. I ended up questioning myself and my authenticity as a Christian.  How many times do we just go on living and forget about the fact that God is right there with us ALL the time, anywhere we go?  How often do we feel completely independent and wise to make our own decisions and assume that we are entitled to every single breath, when we actually are granted the blessing of life? How often do we think of eternity as something that starts when we pass away? Most certainly, if we ever think of that moment, this thought will be accompanied with feelings like fear or anxiety, but this need not be; what we know as death is just going back home. I sometimes wonder if we even understand that eternity is already here, every minute, every second, and we are already part of it; Dr. Anderson’s book is an encouraging reminder of its constant presence. 

Problems, financial crisis, death, accidents and all sorts of difficulties have happened to Dr. Anderson and his family.  Through each of these, they have learned to look towards God, remain faithful and wait on Him... And He never lets anybody down!

This is a highly recommendable book that provides both, comfort and insight into the marvels of the world that is constantly besides us.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for an honest review. This has not influenced my opinion on the book or on the author.

Getting the Wheels rolling!

Some time ago, I saw the following fabric line and just got crazy about doing something with it... It was one of those moments when ideas start tickling in my head, and don't stop!!!  The weirdest thing is that I'm not much of a flowery kind of person, so I really don't know where all those tickles came from.  

How-e-ver... I did notice that the colors are the same ones as in "Starry Night" or in "Terasse de Cafe la Nuit," both by Vincent Van Gogh.  Who knows! Maybe those mysterious tickles have a mind of their own that knows better...  :)
Ha! Color Play in action!!

/

So, after musing, pondering and thinking of those prints, I decided I was actually going to seriously plan my next quilting project, and the quest for a meaningful block began...

And after deciding on the skill level and number of mini fabric pieces I would have to cut from yardage, the finalists are:  Dutch Rose (or "Swoon"), Star of Bethlehem and Carpenter's Wheel.

All of them are based on an 8X8 grid and share an inside line that goes around the block. I looked and looked, and most of the serious instructions I found require templates, so I ended up taking my handy sketch book in hand and figuring the blocks myself!!

The first step: grid... Check!

Second step: Figuring half-square triangles in the design... Check!

Third step: Finding out color placement...  Check!

Fourth step: Figuring the size of fabric and initial cuts...  Check!  
(Kind of...  More like: "I hope I got the figures right...")

Fifth step: Decoding the Carpenter's Wheel... Check!

 ... and color placement.

And whatever step is next: Moving to the Star of Bethlehem... Check!

Retracing steps: Interchange the inner green "ring" with yellow, so that there is consistency among the three blocks.


And this is where I'm at:

OK...  At least I'm getting something done!!  

But I also must confess that in the midst of all this planning, I've been working on a tutorial that several people have requested and on a wonderful book that I recently got from Tyndale - which means that before I can get this exciting Wheels project going, a review will come first...  So many things to do in so little time!

By the way, this brings me to the fact that I will soon be hosting my first giveaway, out of Tyndale's generosity.  Stay in touch and don't miss the details!!!

Stay blessed  :)

A day full of firsts... zippers, pouches and leather!

Mr. Fuzz says that my handbag is like the Bermuda triangle... lots of stuff goes in, who knows what comes out!

I guess that my frayed, good old cosmetic, meds and whatever else pouch that I have faithfully carried around for YEARS finally gave up and decided to burst out of joy one day...  Well, well, I may have put in it one too many things  (really? does that EVER happen in a woman's bag?  lol)

Anyway, as you can see in previous posts, my crafty bone is restless and I decided to make a pouch - yes my own pouch, lined, zippered, and will a bunch of firsts for me: making a pouch itself, attaching a zipper and sewing leather!! 

And there goes another Yiya! I mean, why make first times easy if you can get a combo of super exciting who-knows-how-it-will-turn-outs...  Yep, that's me! The one that dares to choose weird things and try them for the first time; why be conventional when you can get yourself into trouble right in the middle of a project?

After looking around for a pattern I'd like, I ended up at Ayumi's blog, Pink Penguin. Ayumi is a super talented Japanese designer, and her pouches and totes are just beautiful.  You can definitely see the influence of Japanese culture in her desings, very zakka, practical and with a hint of simplicity that is a common feature in her unique execution.

So, I followed Ayumi's instructions; click on the following link to go to her tutorial: How to make a stylish Pen Case.  That said, hats off to Ayumi!!

And here is what I ended up with:

I tried to get a good angle, but I when I look at the picture, I can think of all my misses, but it's not too shabby...  Actually, I think it's kind of cute!  The best part is when I took it out at work to reach for something, and the lady that was with me just picked it up and started turning it around and admiring it...  She even asked if I would sell them... Oh well!!  When we live in a world when we don't have to work and money (for fabric and crafty stuff, of course) grow on trees, it would be a whole other ball!


Let's get the pics rolling!!  Getting things ready in pic 1...  Side note: I generally don't get a "mise-en-place;" I kindly send my thanks to Mr. Fuzz who was peacefully sleeping in the next room while Yiya woke up at 6:00 am on a Saturday...  Guess my body has to learn that it can sleep in on Saturdays!

Something that I had to do is make sure I understood Ayumi's instructions by making my own notes on the materials and the way in which all the parts came together.  Actually, this was my first step; after all, this was my very first purse and my very first zipper!! (And taking notes is quieter than my sewing machine, hehe.)

The following step is a bit different from Ayumi's instructions.  I really wanted to use some of the scraps I had, so I pieced the center part, with an extra 1/2", so that the piecing matched the original; I had to use some of the lining fabric in order to get the size I needed.  After that, I just sewed the faux leather to the sides.  (And yes, Mr. Fuzz was awake when I started sewing, lol.)

I cut the batting a bit larger because I wanted to QAYG (quilt-as-you-go) - I really liked how the extra stitching added interest and structure to the panel.  The larger size was needed because fabric often shifts with this technique, and I was not sure how the faux leather would "behave."  I'm glad I had the extra material because it DOES shift A LOT.  I actually ended up flipping the panel so that I could sew in both directions and keep the leather from skewing too much.  After this, I sewed the front panel to the lining.

In the next photo you can see how the fabric "folds" inside the seam, it all gets bulky, and it won't let flat. A little trick that I learned is to top-stitch. This means that you need to sew VERY close to the edge of the seam to set everything straight and in order!

After top-stitching, everything is straight, flat and ready for the next step!  By this point, I was just elated to work with the leather, and the next project had already started to take shape in my head...  

The next step was making the sides, that I ended up thinking of as flaps, and attaching them to the sides of the main panel.

And here I am, checking the progress with the picture that Ayumi posted on her blog. Not that bad for a first time, huh?

The next step was attaching the binder to the edge of the zipper...

 and sewing the sides around the "flaps."

The pouch was taking shape and the only step missing was attaching the zipper to the other side of the pouch.  According to Ayumi's instructions, the only step missing after that one was sewing two little ends to the tips of the zipper.

 

And here it is!  A zippered pouch, fully lined!  Woohoo!!  Soooo happy that my little black pouch decided to fray and push me into making one myself... Oh! Did I mention it has a zipper?  :)

See you next time!