Mother's Day Ditty Bags - Done

Woohoo!

   I just finished the Ditty Bags that I'm gonna give to my mother and grandmother for Mother's Day (they're still hot from the iron). :) :) :) This is the large size.

   It was a lot of work for so little time :S. There were too many pieces to cut but I found a helper on time ;). I couldn't do it during the week and since I'm not gonna be able to see my mom tomorrow I had to make the presents today. I didn't sleep at all, and won't sleep until I come back from my mom's so you can imagine the dark circles, but here is the result. I  told you in advance what the fabric combination would be for both and here they are live.

I hope they like them and I hope I don't fall asleep while driving. :)

Work Chair Update

   My back is so happy that I had to tell you, I finally got myself a new work chair. The chair I was using was from a tattoo artist friend that was moving, so she sold me her chair for $20. Bad news is that that chair was already worn from use when I got it more than 1 year ago. As you can imagine it was already falling apart, the cushioning was showing in some areas and it was wobbly as a result of something that broke in the lower area. It was almost impossible to seat straight and that is showing in the intense pain I'm feeling in my back recently.

   I started searching in the local office supplies shops a few days ago but no luck, a decent chair wouldn't go any lower than $100 which I didn't have at the moment. The answer for me was in an online service for personal ads, I found a "new" chair for $40. I say "new" because it was used but like new, no scratches, no odor, nothing, just plain delicious cushioning and lumbar support for my back. Here is the before and after:

Handmade vs. Mass Produced: Drawstring Purse

   Do you ever have the urge
to make something you saw in a store?

   I have to admit that one of my guilty pleasures is to go to places like Claire's, Icings and Exentrix and roam around to take a look at the pretty girly stuff. Sometimes what I see is so inspiring that I have to control the urge to buy something with mental images of Chinese sweatshops. A few weeks ago I saw this in the clearance area of Claire's.

   It yelled "buy me please", I LOVED it but as I said before I try not to shop in this kind of store. I had a mental trip through what I thought the construction of something like this would be like. Then said: "I can try to figure this out, but I'll need faux leather and eyelet grommets". To make this story short, I forgot about it until yesterday when I found Pixie Blossoms blog for the first time. I started to read the entries and stumbled upon this:

Pixie Blossoms publishes her awesome pictures in this Flickr

   In this entry she talked about how proud she was about this purse and how it turned out, and I must say I am too. She made this purse in 2008 (way before Claire's released its version), but never sold it and decided to keep it. It's just too pretty to be real! The nicest part is that it is handmade with love and looks professional. I must admit that the next thought in my head was: "I can try to figure this out, but I'll need faux leather and eyelet grommets".

   I only hope this time I don't forget about it.

Other things I do

   When I started this blog I told you that the main things I liked to do are sewing and crochet. I've talked about my sewing experiences a bit now, so it is time to tell you about crochet.

   I started in January of 2010 when I purchased a "teach yourself to crochet" kit. I learned to make chains, then swatches and when I got to flowers I found out that people loved them so I focused on that area. I started to research A LOT about crocheting materials, different kinds of fibers etc. I noticed that I liked materials that gave a little bit of shine to the crocheted items. I found ribbon, and it was an eye opener, I loved how it looked. That's how I decided that I would make ribbon crocheted accessories from then on, and that's how Too Cute Design was born.

   The story doesn't end there, because being the hippie tree-hugger that I am I wanted to use my craft to reduce a little bit of the waste that we produce. SO I researched again, used some "plarn" and stumbled upon VHS in a site that I would like to remember so I could link to it. This was the result:

   That's the story of my crochet beginnings and  my brand. I also wanted to tell you that I know how to make things like scarves and throws but in this tropical island people don't use such things; it's too hot :-(

   I'll continue with this story later on. Stay tuned!

Template Fitting and Dilemma

   At only 1 week old my blog is giving baby steps. I'm still playing with the look, because I want it to fit with the content and to have cohesion. So that's why I'm constantly changing the order of the stuff in the columns and the overall look . Don't worry, if you come here and see a mess; that's probably me playing behind the scenes.

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   It really bothers me when I have to squeeze my brain to be able to come up with something. A few weeks ago I purchased a kiss-lock frame (always wanted to write that) like this one:

   I find it gorgeous, but the thing is that I can't think of the right project to do with it. I've given it a lot of thought. I have it close to me every time I'm working, blogging etc. but NOTHING. :( I've searched for frame purse tutorials but I can't find something that I really like. Are you going through something like this? If you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them from you.

Shopping Spree

   You have no idea how happy I am tonight. It's been a while since the last time I ordered fabric from Etsy. I just had an enormous shopping spree and want to show you what I'm waiting for in the mail.

   These are vintage reproductions from Michael Miller and I fell in love at first sight. They look like the drawings on vintage children books that my grandma would read for me when I was a little girl; such warm memories. :D <3

   I purchased some of this Kokka fabric to make a super gigantic purse for someone. ;) There is something about big purses that tires me along the way. I think I've never finished a really big purse. This time I have to do it or else...

  I bought some Kona solid cotton for Lola's skin in Pale Flesh and Caramel to try out different skin tones.

   I got some of the Gnomeville Fabric from Michael Miller. I noticed very recently that I have something for Michael Miller prints; I pick them even without noticing. I promise it's not on purpose. The moment I saw this print I knew I wanted to purchase some. I'm a gnome freak.

   I got some of this super cute pets print from Moda called Max Whiskers Collection by Basicgrey in the brown colorway. It's just too cute to be true. I can't wait to have it.

   And last but not least I purchased some 100% wool felt for my dollies hair. I want them to be made with the best materials I can afford. I purchased some to try out before I make a bigger investment.

  Also, I want to let you know that I'm working on the pattern for a new purse that I hope I can share soon. ;)

   Is there anything that you purchased recently that you would like to share? I'd love to see.

Mother's Day Ditty Bags

   I've been thinking of what I could give to my mother and grandmother for Mother's Day. It occurred to me that I could make Ditty Bags for them.

   It's a very practical little pouch (designed by Keyka Lou) in which they can keep their make-up and ladies stuff. I already have the pattern and love it, so its a good excuse to make a couple more. I'll make the large size, so they can fit a lot of stuff.

   I was thinking on a pink and blue combination for my mother who love those colors. I want to try something like this:

   Isn't that pretty? The flower's fabric is super soft corduroy.

   Now for my grandma I'd like to use something different. I'd like to line that Carolyn Gavin print with lilac cotton. I'm sure she will like it.

   Are you planning anything to become your mom's favorite? If you are, feel free to share it, I wont tell anyone. ;-)