Crafty, crafty indeed!

I have been crafting so much this week! I think part of my mania can be attributed to the fact that the downstairs was such a pit (Caleb and Eva emptied out EVERY TOY BIN so they could play with the empty ones) and I didn't want to deal with it so I spent most of my time upstairs near my craft room. Consequently, the kids always want to play by me so some of their chaos was brought upstairs. It isn't so bad and it was definitely worth it. A quick pick up/throw out today will remedy the upstairs. A little longer pick up/throw out will be necessary for the downstairs. ANYWAY...

The first tote I made last week was from Bend the Rules Sewing. I have a love/hate relationship with this book. I don't think I know enough about sewing to totally get her "simple" instructions. I'm also not that intuitive about the construction. I'm willing to put in the practice. I know that I'm not going to be making smocked dresses anytime soon but I would like to tackle some basics. This has given me a good start.
I used some fabric that Rachel kindly gave to me when she was cleaning out her fabric stash. I used some plaid flannel inside for stability. The front, inside pocket, and small handle are made from this striped fabric. The back, inside, and long handle are made of a lighterweight blend that is navy with white dots. The tote is pretty small. You could put a couple of kids books and some other little toys in there. I totally messed up on the bottom. I was trying to figure out how to make a box bottom. Instead I ended up with nice, rounded corners. Oh, well. Practice makes perfect. I also realized I need some major help with "finishing". I have a bunch of other projects I need to work on this week so I may not get as much sewing in but I have definitely caught the bug and have found myself thinking a lot about sewing. In fact, it is really cutting into the time I spend thinking about knitting!

Crafty, crafty indeed!

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