Curved Zip Pouch

So I saw this tutorial for a "Two Sided Zip Pouch". Super cute! 

http://www.sewcanshe.com/blog/2014/3/22/2-sided-zips-a-handy-case-tutorial-from-sewcanshe

It's a very well written, easy to follow tutorial. 

It also gave me a chance to use some of the Cotton and Steel fat quarters that I love so much. I wanted to use the gold and peach fabric, but I only have silver fittings, so I used the pink and silver fabric. The tutorial called for fusible fleece on the exterior. I'd like to try just medium weight stabilizer on all pieces next time to see how it will turn out. 

I probably have about 100 zippers. Only 2 of them were 9 inches. One in black and one in white. I obviously went with the white one as you'll see below. I did order some cute 9" metal zippers. I'll make the peach and gold pouch with that. 

Inside:

I love the metallic fabrics. Fun and quick little project. I cut the fabric one night and sewed it up the next, but if you have a couple of free hours, it could definitely be done in a day. 

Soccer Ball Rag Quilt

Last night I cut up all of the fabric for my husband's soccer rag quilt. I had some soft minky style stuff as well as some soccer ball flannel. I cut 32 - 8  1/4" squares of each. I figure that if I sew 5 rows across and 6 rows down, it'll be a 30 block blanket and a pretty good size. I can't wait to get started on the sewing!!

Though my 'sandwiches' will only contain the topper and the backing, I will be using the sewing method demonstrated in this tutorial to make this rag quilt:
http://www.quiltingintherain.blogspot.com/2012/02/baby-boy-rag-quilt-diy.html

I don't know how people continually work with fuzzy fabric. I feel like I'm probably going to have to get my machine cleaned after I sew this guy up - which isn't a bad thing, but I just hate getting fuzzballs everywhere. I wonder if there's a secret to sewing with this stuff that I don't know. Hmm... With the four left over squares (and the fabric remnants from cutting the squares) I bet I could make him a rag pillow, too!  :)

They aren't much to look at right now. At this point, I need to sew X's on each sandwich. I'll probably do that in black thread. 

I chain stitched a diagonal line though all of the pieces, sewing the front to the back. Once done, I turned them and completed the X through the middle of all 30 blocks. 

This blue stuff was so fuzzy. Horribly fuzzy. It was a bit of a nightmare to work with. 

Next I started sewing all of the blocks together, first a row, then I sewed the rows together. To get the seams on top, I sewed them with the backs facing each other. 

Done! Here's the back. I don't know why it looks black here. 

Here's the front. I snipped the fabric (as detailed in the tutorial I linked) to make it rag up in the wash and washed it. 

I've come to the realization that if I want this blog to be easy to follow, and I do love easy to follow, that I'll need to combine my future project posts. From now on I'll simply add any work done to the relevant post like I did here. It'll make linking and following a project from beginning to end that much easier.

Table topper done for the most part

I top stitched the edge with a red thread and glued down all hexies. If I feel up to quilting one day, I'll do it. But it's done for now. 

Before gluing the hexies on:

Up close:

All done!

Hexie table runner - the hard part is done!

I finished the Y seams last night! Yay!

I placed the top on some batting and backing fabric. Crudely traced around it, leaving 1 - 2 inches extra width on the batting and backing. 

I placed the back and top right sides together with the batting on the bottom. I then stitched around the outside of the top, securing all three layers. 

After stitching, I trimmed the excess fabric and batting. I also snipped the corners to reduce bulk. I cut a 3 inch hole through the bottom and batting for turning. Once turned, I pressed the project. 

I still have the fun stuff left to do at this point. I need to top stitch the edge of the table runner and tack down and quilt the EPP hexies. 

Here are some photos. 

Done sewing all hexies together. Back and batting is actually sewn on at this point. Ready for turning. 

The batting side:

Snip! I then reached through this hole and pulled the right side out. 

I placed the EPP hexies on top so that you can see what it'll look like when it's done. I can't wait to top stitch and tack everything down! :) I plan to use the method in this wonderful tutorial to do the quilting:
http://modernhandcraft.com/2013/11/hexagon-mini-quilt-tutorial/

First table runner, then...

As you saw with last night's post, I'm working on the hexie table runner. Two more rows to sew!! :)

In this post, I'm only going to talk about plans. I have not done anything yet today to share.

After the table runner, I'm going to sew up a soccer and minky blanket for my husband. I've had the fabric for a couple of years and last night he asked if I could make him a blanket with a soccer ball on it. Why, yes I can! I don't know if I'm just going to make it simple with the soccer ball flannel on front and the soft stuff on the back, or if I'm going to quilt the soccer ball flannel with something. My best bet will be to ask him what he wants. I have a feeling he'll want something simple. Best part about his request?!? I'll have that fabric out of my sewing room! :) I'm trying to clean things up.

I also need to get back to the secret garden quilt (what I was calling cathedral window - found out that I'm making secret garden blocks) once I'm done with those two projects. I got side-tracked when I discovered the joys of English Paper Piecing.

That's all for now. I do have a much longer list of to-dos, but I need to stay focused on one or two things for the moment. I mean, I'd love to make some other little projects as well, zippered pouches (I have the cutest chevron fabric), and a folded wallet, but those will have to wait until I finish another project or two. :)