Holly : Pockets and Prepping for Assembly

Here’s how I made two pockets in my ruffled wasp bag, one open pocket and one with a zipper. For the open pocket, pin the right sides of the 8” x 6” pieces together.

Sew around the whole rectangle with a ½” seam allowance, leaving an opening for turning along the bottom. After clipping the corners and turning right side out, sew a double seam along the top.

To attach the pocket, center it within one of the purse lining panels and sew along the bottom and sides ¼” from the edge of the pocket.

For the zipper pocket, you can use this tutorial. It will make your results much prettier than mine, which I did without the tutorial. Looking back on this I definitely should have used yellow thread, but I didn’t have any and didn’t want to go buy some. Don’t make the same mistake! You can also sew in a label during this process.

When the pockets are finished, it’s time to sew the lining pieces together. Make your darts, clip the seam allowances, and press. Pin and sew the right sides of the lining together, and don’t forget to leave an opening in the bottom of the lining to turn the purse when we put it together! Press the seams open, baste in your pleats, and your lining is finished.

Finally, we need to sew the outer purse pieces together. Sew your darts and clip the seam allowance and press. These will give your bag a good base. Pin the pieces right sides together making sure your darts are aligned and sew with a 3/8” seam allowance.

Press the seams open, turn the bag, and baste in your pleats.

All that’s left to do now is assemble the bag and sew it all together!

I finally took the plunge

It's been a long time coming, but I finally bought a real sewing machine. After 2 hours at the dealer and a lot of trying out some other less expensive brands I kept on going back to the bernina. Maybe it's because my mother had a Bernina so it's what I learned on, but it just felt comfortable. I felt like I could go home and open the box and start sewing right away (which of coarse I did). So I am now the proud owner of a Bernina Activa 220. I have only had it for two days, but so far so good. It doesn't have many bells and whistles, but it is sturdy. After working on a 30 year old machine for so long I can't tell you how exciting a buttonhole function is to me. I am also looking forward to my free classes to make sure I know everything there is to know about this little beauty.

Guestblogger Holly : Straps and Ruffles

To make the handles for the ruffled wasp bag, sew the outer and inner lining fabrics of one strap right sides together with the quilted lining/interfacing on top of the two layers. I used a ½” seam allowance.

Turn the strap right side out (this part can be a little difficult) and iron the seams. Topstitch each side of the strap at a ¼” seam allowance. Repeat with the other strap.

Next, take the outer and liner top pieces of one side of the purse and pin the right sides together with the lining/interfacing on top of the outer fabric. Place the strap in between the inner and outer fabrics as shown (the outer strap should face the outer fabric of the top piece). If you want to reinforce your handles, leave 1” of the strap showing along the top on each side. Sew along the top edge using a 3/8” seam allowance.

To reinforce the handles, open the handle piece and sew a rectangle through the outer fabric, lining/interfacing, and the strap. Then sew an X in the middle of the rectangle. Repeat with the other side of the strap.

Repeat this process to attach the second strap to the other side of the top purse piece and reinforce the handle.

Next, take one of your 4.5” x 28” rectangles for the ruffles. Baste along the long edge of the fabric with your tension set to the highest setting using a 1” seam allowance. Make sure you leave long threads when starting and finishing the seam and do not backstitch. Repeat along the other long edge of the fabric. Your fabric should already be starting to ruffle due to the increased tension setting. Make more ruffles by pulling the bobbin threads on each side to gather the fabric.

When your ruffle is the same length as your top piece, pin the ruffle to the outer fabric & lining/interfacing so the top seam of the ruffle is about ½” from the seam attaching the outer fabric to the inner lining. Sew along each of the ruffle seams to attach the ruffle to the handle.

Repeat this process to make the second ruffle and attach it to the other handle.

Before sewing the two handles together, make sure to pin the ruffle on the corners in so they don’t get sewn into the seam.

Then pin your handles right sides together and sew along the short edges of each handle with a 3/8” seam allowance. Attach your snap to each side of the inner lining if you haven’t done this already and set the handle piece aside.

Next, we’ll add our pockets to the inside of the purse and then sew it all together!

And the winner is...

Suzannah! from adventures in dressmaking, who said:

"I would love to do this! Super cute belt, I would love to hang out on Presserfoot next month."

We would love for you to hang out with us too. In the mean time check out her blog and etsy shop. She has some great T-shirt remakes and craft ideas too.

Suzannah will be receiving the fabric to make this great belt with us in February and will guest blog that month as well.

Make your own Boppy

While shopping for baby items at Babies R US one day I was shocked to see that a simple (not to mention ugly) pillow was going for $30+ dollars. So, logically I decided to make my own.

I found this great pattern online for free.

I won't post a complete tutorial because this one is already so good, but I will show you a few pictures of my process and a couple of changes that I made.

This first picture is of the body of the pillow. I used a vintage sheet that I bought at a thrift store. The only change that I made was to leave the opening on the outside edge instead of the inside curve as she suggests. I thought it would be too hard to hand sew up the tight inside curve. Another suggestion is to make sure that you clip the inside curve repeatedly and reinforce stitch it or else it may rip from the tension once you try to use it.



This second picture is of the pillow casing once done. I used some home decor weight ikea fabric. Just like the main pillow section I left the opening - zipper on the outside edge instead of the inside curve because I thought it would be too hard to sew the zipper into such a tight curve. Make sure once again to clip the inside curve really well after sewing.


Here is the finished project once the casing was put on the pillow form. I love the way it turned out.

The Ruffled Wasp Bag – Cutting the Fabrics

Here are the changes that I made to the cut fabrics for my version of the wasp bag. If you need a refresher on the changes I’m making, read this post!

I didn’t make any changes to the pattern for the bottom of the bag, but I did iron my interfacing onto a thin quilted lining to give the bag a stronger base. Make sure the lining is pretty thin or it might be hard for you to sew the bag together!

For the tops, I didn’t make any changes to the pattern, but again I cut out piece of quilted lining and interfacing and ironed them together.


For the ruffle, I cut two 4.5” x 28” pieces of corduroy. At this size, it will fully cover the top band of the bag. If you don’t want your ruffle to fray, choose a fabric that resists fraying. I applied Fray Check along all 4 sides of my pieces just to be safe. I’ll show you how to make the ruffle in another post.



I opted for plain handles without the raindrop shape that are going to be attached to the inside of the bag, rather than sewing one side of each handle on the outside. I cut 4 pieces of 3” x 24” corduroy (one for the outer fabric and one for the inner lining of each handle) along with 2 pieces of quilted lining and interfacing of the same size to give the handles some structure. I ironed the interfacing to the quilted lining just like I did for the main bag fabrics.


I mentioned that I want to add a zipper pocket and another pocket to the inside of the bag for a phone, etc, so here are the dimensions I used for those pieces.

For the zipper pocket, I cut two 7” x 6” pieces each of the pocket lining and interfacing. I ironed the interfacing to the back for the pocket lining for strength and to prevent the flower print from showing through my purse lining. I had a 7” zipper on hand that I plan to shorten to 6”, so you can buy a 6” zipper instead to save yourself a step.


For the inner pocket I cut two 8” x 6” pieces of my floral fabric and two pieces of interfacing and ironed the two together. This pocket will show when you open your purse. (The pocket pieces in the pictures are bigger than they should be, I trimmed them down to 8” x 6” later so the pocket would fit well in the bag.)


So there you have it! If you’re planning to make a ruffled wasp bag, these are all the fabric modifications you need. If you have any questions I’ll be sure to answer them in the comments. Now, get cutting if you haven’t already!

Cutting out and making changes

As mentioned before I want my wasp bag to be a diaper bag, so I decided to make it a bit bigger to accommodate all of the junk I will be storing in there. Here are the changes I made to the pattern as I cut out the front of my bag:



For the main body of the bag I made three changes.

1- I left about 3/4" in between the vertical x markers instead of matching them up. Because they were supposed to one on top of the other this should add an extra 1 1/2" to the length of the bag.

2- I also added width to the main body of the bag by adding about 3/4" to the area to the right of the center fold. Because this is placed on the fold it will also add about 1 1/2 " to the width of the bag.

3- I also cut off the triangle for the pleat on the top of the bag and moved it about 3/4" to the right. Because the bag was now going to be wider I wanted to make sure that the pleats weren't too far on the outside.

For the top placket of the bag I only made one change:

1- I added 3/4" to the inside fold just as I had for the main body (once unfolded it will add 1 1/2" to the width) of the bag so that the two will match up once sewn.

For the straps:

1- I wanted them to be thicker and longer so instead of using the pattern I just cut two strips that were 3" x 30". I will most likely make them a bit shorter later on.

2- I also decided not do the raindrop design at the end of the strap. I think I will just do a point, but am also waiting on that so we will see how it all looks.

February's Giveaway and Project

As Kelli mentioned, we are both expecting, girls in fact, which makes clothing fitting a bit of a problem. We are also assuming that everyone else isn't pregnant and therefore would not want to make maternity attire for the next several months. For this reason we are going to continue to set aside the dressforms, or absolute envy of them in my case, and work on other sewing projects on our must make list. I have been fretting over what to make next month, but thanks to my REAL SIMPLE subscription our worries are over. It was love at first sight. This belt retails at Saks Fifth Avenue for $285. Wow I have good taste. The under layer of the original is calfskin with the folded overlay in grosgrain ribbon. Baby cows fear not, our under layer will be fabric with some stiff lining, but we will stick with the grosgrain ribbon. Realize however you could make this out of any fabric you have on hand. I'll give exact details later. Wouldn't this look awesome in a bright print over a solid colored dress? Really, you are only limited my your imagination.

So, what are you waiting for? Sign up to be our guest blogger in February and winner of everything needed to replicate this fabulous belt. Sign ups start now and end next Friday the 22nd at midnight. If you know how we run our guest blogging skip the jargon below and go directly to comments, but if you are new, please see what you are signing up for first.

What presserfoot will do:

• we will provide you with next month's pattern (unless, like next month, I will be doing the tutorial on presserfoot.com with all patterns and instructions there)
  
• we will provide you with some awesome fabric to make the pattern
• we will do a short feature on our blog about you and your blog (if you have one)

What we ask of you:

• we ask that you make the pattern in the month given with the fabric
• we ask that you be an author on our blog for that month and make at least 4 posts during the month about your experience making the pattern.
• you will need to get your own notions, interfacing etc..

Wasp bag : my fabric

I am finally getting started on my wasp bag and wanted to show you the fabric that I picked out. I bought this beautiful home decor weight fabric from ikea (I have such a hard time leaving Ikea without bolts of fabric everytime). For the inside I chose a simple red broadcloth. As you can see I also have a zipper there as I am going to try to include some pockets. The plan is to make this into a diaper bag so I will be making quite a few adjustments so stay tuned.

Old Things Made New : Tie Headbands

I found this great idea on My Kind of Wonderful. Mother and crafter Heather describes how to turn men's ties into little girl headbands. Love them! Go here for instructions

Here is another great headband craft you can find on her blog.

The Plan : Guestblogger Holly

My fabrics have arrived! The floral pattern is so pretty and modern, I love the colors! I’ve been planning how I’m going to make my wasp bag, so I thought I’d share my thoughts with you all! I’m going to modify the pattern a bit, so I’ll be posting the things that I did differently in case you want to make the modified version. Here is the plan:

I really like the shape of this bag, but after looking at additional pictures made with this pattern on the wasp bag flickr group, I realized that the top portion is actually two flaps that aren’t connected on the sides. I’m always worried about things falling out of my purse, so I’m going to close up the sides. I’m going to make the top portion and the handles out of the black corduroy for a little texture, and then add a ruffle on top because let’s face it, I’m obsessed with ruffles! The rest of the bag will be made out of the floral fabric, and the inside will be yellow.

I’m going to attach the straps on the inside rather than with a button on the outside, just because I prefer symmetry and I think it will be too much to add a button and part of the strap over the ruffle. I’m also going to add the zipper to the inner pocket and add an additional double pocket (without a zipper) inside as well to hold my phone and lip gloss. And of course a little bijou lovely label!

I’ll be using quilted lining in addition to interfacing because I want the bag to have a more structure without being too stiff. I have my matching thread and magnetic snap closure, as well as a black zipper for my inner pocket (not pictured).

Here is a (very rough) mockup I made in photoshop, just to be sure it would all look okay.

So what do you think? I’m hoping it will actually look somewhat similar to this when I finish sewing! Now that I have the plan and all of my supplies, it’s time to start cutting! I’ll post measurements for my modifications if anyone wants to make the frilly version of the wasp bag.

Meet Holly : January's Guestblogger

Hello there and welcome to 2010! My name is Holly and I am so excited to be the guest blogger this month. I'm a 20-something newlywed from the UP (that's Upper Michigan), but currently living in the Chicago suburbs. I'm a biomedical engineer that would much rather be at home sewing or crafting than designing medical devices.

While I was growing up, my mom always had the sewing machine out and she taught me some very basic skills at a young age. At that point, pillows were my strong suit. The first thing I really remember sewing is an absolutely hideous pair of striped shorts when I was in 3rd grade. After an extensive hiatus due to being a teenager and then a college student, I taught myself how to sew again this past year and realized how much I love to create things. I mainly make purses, so this month's project is right up my alley. I'm also quite proficient in sewing straight lines after making all of the table runners for my wedding this past September!

When I'm not working or sewing, I enjoy making jewelry, reading design & craft blogs, baking, helping my friends plan their weddings, and of course spending time with my husband, family, and friends. You can check out my wedding blog at a small town bride and my sewing and crafting adventures at bijou lovely.

Now, are we ready to make the wasp bag? Do you have your fabrics picked out yet?

making Maternity Jeans

Ever since getting pregnant I have dreaded shopping in the maternity section and especially shopping for maternity jeans. Even though we have come a long way in maternity wear, I still feel like it leaves a lot to be desired in the style area, not to mention the price of everything. A friend of mine suggested we make our own maternity jeans and I am SO glad that I did. Here are some pictures of the process, although I am not going to go step by step as I used someone elses tutorial which is already very thorough and easy to follow. Find the tutorial by Sew Chic here.

Materials:
1 pair of awesome dark skinny jeans from forever 21 for $12
Jean needles for my sewing machine
black jersey knit
enough wide elastic to go around your lower stomach

Here I am not being able to button my jeans:
I used a chalk pencil to mark the highest point I could zip my jeans to:

and then free handed a curved line around the hips and back of the jeans:


Cut leaving a 5/8" seam allowance:


Sew your band according to directions and encasing your elastic at the bottom:

Pin right sides together and sew to jeans:

Wear them proudly and with style:


Total cost of maternity skinny jeans - $20 and about 2 hours of my time. I call that a steal.

p.s. I made these about 2 months ago and they still fit wonderfully and have held up great. I think I am going to try the same tutorial on a black pencil skirt.