Carefree pixies on a summer's day

This fabric should be categorized under "I can't believe I put scissors to this adorable pattern!".

Pink topstitching - simple and sweet

 This is a bright white cotton printed with cute little girls in cute little dresses wearing cute little mary jane shoes swinging on homemade swings tied to cute little pink cherry and apple trees.  They're smiling as they swing.

Regardez le petit sourire!!!

I have made a little messenger bag, perfectly sized for a little girl to use as a purse.  It's dainty, elegant, and have I said cute?

Oh, to be seven again....

It's lined with an aqua dots fabric that's just perfectly coordinated.  It's also got that hand-drawn feel to it.

Not perfect circles, but perfectly adorable!

This is one of those things where I wish I would've purchased more than 1 metre at the time since I know it's going to do very well.  Oh well, this will give me another excuse to drive down to Niagara to visit that cute little shop again!

Dragonflies are magic creatures!

A dragonfly made friends with me one muggy July afternoon at the cottage a few years back.  I was out picking wild strawberries (whipping my arms in futility at the hordes of black flies waiting to claim a piece of flesh) when a dragonfly lit on my shoulder.  And the swarming stopped.  I stood up, and nothing was buzzing at the back of my neck, no flies were whizzing by my ears, and there was just silence as this dragonfly stood guard. 

Since that day, I have had high regard for dragonflies.  When I saw this fabric, I took it as a sign:

Dragonfly pattern on natural linen

In honour of my cottage sentinels, I have made a few coin purses with this fabric.  I have kept one for myself to wrangle all of the assorted earrings, jewelry and miscellanea from rolling around the bottom of my purse.


Every time I look at this dragonfly zip, I'm reminded of their magical powers and remarkable mandibles.  Case in point:
I happened upon a HUGE blue and green dragonfly on a post in the park and took a closer look. It was perched on the post, holding a big fuzzy bumblebee in its front legs, eating it face first.  It let me get right up close to it, and I heard it eating the bumblebee, crunching it so efficiently.  Crunch, Crunch, Crunch.  There goes its head.  Crunch, Crunch, legs and body, its wings floated to the ground, Crunch, Crunch.  Maybe five minutes went by, but I was mesmerized and wanted to stay and watch as long as it would let me. 

Big enough to watch over your flip phone and loose change

These ones aren't eating bugs, but do give you a gorgeous representation of these incredible insects.

I made it through the wilderness....

Somehow I made it through-oo-ooo.....


Bears and deer and bunnies, oh my!!

Instead of letting this adorable fabric sit folded in my fabric stash - I've brought it to life! There's so much life on this print, from bunnies and bears, birch and pine trees, little tiny spotted mushrooms and little tiny snails and generally happy animals.  All on a sunny yellow background!

I made this mini messenger bag with a super soft olive corduroy lining. Even little ones can have lots of awesomeness!

What's inside? A matching coin wallet - how stylish and coordinated!

I'm sure these will be a hit, if the reaction from my almost-three-year-old is any indication.  He made the same 'oh-hoh-hoh-hoh' noise that I tend to make when presented with an ice cream cake. 

Toy Totes!

This small messenger bag is the perfect size for my little man.  He's just over 3 feet tall, (growing by the day, so it's hard to keep track), and this sits just below his hip. 

Red topstitching on this jet black soft cotton featuring (eeeee) spacemen, aliens, satellites, rockets and planets.  This is the epitome of Japanese Kawaii for boys.  The spacemen are saying "Here we go" and "Hello my friends!".   I've made a couple of these ones, and two more featuring the Sad-eyed Panda. 

This one has a yellow polka dot lining fabric.  Just in case you thought this couldn't get any cuter!!

My little guy puts his toys in there, and sometimes asks for his own set of keys... to put in his bag. 

Next project will involve this cute Canadiana fabric, and the kid-sized messenger bag.  I can't wait!!!

Moose, bunnies, deer, bears, birch and pine.

Cute zips!

I experimented with my sewing machine's zipper foot and a few scraps of fabric.

Three months later, I've probably made fifty of these little zip pouches in all kinds of patterns, sizes and colours. 

There are some cute ones for kids (or ladies who can't get enough cuteness in their lives). 

Owls, deer and tiny frogs with crowns

See the crowns on the froggies? See them?!

There are some for the more serious type (nobody I know would fit in this category).

Fits my not-so-smart phone, loose change and some credit cards

Lined with black interfacing for that serious look.

I have three of these little zips in my purse right now.  One for my change, one for random business cards, and one to collect the Tylenols, allergy pills, earrings and various other um, lady things that tend to rattle around the bottom of my purse.

These have been awesome little thank-you gifts, have been given out as I'm-thinking-of-you gifts, and have been handed out in lieu of a tip to my hairdresser, masseuse, aesthetician and manicurist.  They have ALL loved them!!! It goes a lot further than a few bucks cash, that's for sure!

These sad-eyed little pandas have been such a hit, especially with the Sad-Eyed Panda Society of Huronia. 

Yoga bags are fun to make!

If only I did yoga more than once a week, I could get away with having 2 yoga mat bags for separate occasions and to coordinate with different outfits.

Instead, I'll probably end up selling this one.  It's a different colourway than my first yoga bag in the previous post in the rust and turquoise, but nonetheless, very sweet!

Sweet boy not for sale.

Putting the OM in OMG!

My last trip to Toronto was super successful in that I got a super hot pair of Fluevogs and an amazing yard of fabric just a few blocks up from the Fluevog store. 

I didn't want it to be one of those too-cute-to-use kind of fabric that sat in my fabric bin waiting for the absolute most perfect thing... waiting for my skills to be worthy of using it... so I bought a coordinating fabric yesterday and made THIS!

My very own yoga mat bag!!!


The turquoise lining matches the turquoise blossom-buds and just so happen to match my turquoise mat!

Love that scallop stitch - just gussies up the whole thing don't it?

I like making the most of my time cutting/pressing/sewing, so I have been doubling up on projects.   This is my yoga mat's fraternal twin.  Born at the same time, but looks a lot different!

This represents the last of my Bleu Alpin fabric from Ikea. I forget the actual Ikea name, that's just what I like to call it. 

I love how there are THREE big old pockets on this thing. 1 for keys, 1 for cellphone (turned off, naturally), 1 for waterbottle or a small towel.

I went to the Open House at Sugar Ridge retreat today, and was so thrilled to check out the place.  There was something so serene about entering that space, and the yoga/meditation room took my breath away.  I have never been in a bona fide yoga studio - and you'd be hard pressed to get that kind of energy out of a gym room, plaza office space or community centre next to the arena.  The owner, Liz, was just so warm and inviting! I cannot wait to start taking classes next week.  I'll have a sweet new yoga mat bag to boot!!

Life is looking pretty darn good --- Ultimate on Mondays (who has two thumbs and always looks forward to Mondays?) and Yoga on Thursdays.