A First: Sewing My Own Handbag

My family has enough to live well, and for that I am grateful! But let's just say that the budget in our household does not include enough money for me to purchase the handbag I want--a lovely leather bag made by fellow Etsian jennyndesign. So I set out to find a sewing pattern and the proper materials and here I go. There probably is a cheaper handbag out there, but I had several specific requirements. It couldn't fall apart. It had to be gray so that it could match both brown and black shoes but still be dark enough not to show dirt or dust. I got sick of shopping for something unique, so the idea of making one myself came up. I'm pretty good at sewing. Other Etsians make and sell them. I'm not going to start up a handbag shop anytime soon. But the "exterior panels" of handbag number 1. The pattern comes from Ali Foster Patterns. So here's what it's supposed to look like:

 

I chose different fabric, but by the same designer you see in the sample, Amy Butler. The outside looks like this so far:

What you can't see is that I have basted a "stiffening non-fusible interfacing" to the other side of the that piece. Here is a closeup of the fabulous covered button I made (and the button tab):

 And, of course, no sewing project of mine would be complete without some interference from Dinah, the lovely cat who loves to be at the center of everything!

She slept on the pieces I had carefully ironed and laid out on the piano bench all day long... but she's so cute! I was willing to re-iron. Those polka dots she's got her arm around are going to be the inside of the bag eventually!


That's all for today, I'm off to sew the two exterior pieces to the together and do some weird thing to the corners to "add shape."

Dinah's Friends (or not) and English Literature

Good evening everyone (well, if it is evening where you are). I've just finished sifting through email and got my first assignment for the year-- I'll be taking a class on "queer" as in "odd" communication and exploring what it means for writing (why does it make us college teachers so upset? why can't we find it more useful? when is it useful? etc.) and the assignment just happens to include some pretty intimidating work. Plato anyone? Roland Barthes? To name two of four readings to be completed during the last weeks of summer vacation. I don't want to complain, except about the Plato, I never can bring myself to enjoy Plato, because I'm one of those odd people who likes reading about writing or (duh duh duh!) THEORY as it's more commonly known.

Dinah's Friends is my creative outlet for now, since I have paralyzed myself regarding my writing. I don't have writers block, since it doesn't exist. No, I have what fellow Barnard alumna Anna Quindlen so aptly calls the fear of writing well. I suppose this is a way of overcoming that, this blog. Here's hoping. At any rate, Dinah's Friends, for those who don't know, is my little shop on Etsy, a marvelous online marketplace for things handmade or vintage or supplies for things handmade. It's named after my cat, Dinah, and I sell little sculptures made of wool as well as jewelry that features wool sculptures or designs. It's all done using a technique called needle felting that essentially involves poking a barbed needle through fluffy wool (after it's dyed, before it's spun into yarn) until it makes a shape.

I find that I need the creative outlet desperately. I do love teaching (will I still say that when I'm teaching at 8 am in two weeks?) and learning and all that, but I must must must get out of my head. What better way of getting out of my head than using my hands to poke at things with a sharp tool? Perhaps I should start grunting while working. Me poke. Me no think. Lately I've been loving the puppies:

The Corgi

The Dalmation

The Jack Russell Terrier

Actually, I even got sick of the needle felting recently, which accounts for a sort of slow-down in new items listed in my shop. It began when I quit smoking--hooray for me!--and needed something all-absorbing. So I sewed myself a dress! It's quite lovely. Vintage pattern purchased on Etsy. Vintage fabric handed down from Husband's great grandmother. She kept everything in beautiful condition. I never had the chance to meet her, but I do feel I have a sense of her having used her fabric, her wicker storage basket for my wool, her metal thimble that looks about a hundred years old. Mother-In-Law, or Ma as she likes to be called, treats me like her own daughter and gave me such a lovely tour through her grandmother's things. It's nice to feel part of that tradition as well as my own mother's family, who all sewed their own clothes, even my mom.

I recently found some wool and picked up another skill learned in childhood--I crocheted myself a hat! I found a very cool pattern (on Etsy, where else?) and now have a crocheted version of a riding had done with a big hook and very very bulky merino. I should be very warm come winter. It did feel a little silly, as it's about 90 degrees outside right now, but I won't have time when it's cold.

Finally, I need a new handbag and laptop sleeve to protect my precious MacBook called Jane (after Austen of course--I'm a geek in case you hadn't noticed already), and couldn't justify spending the money on a premade version of either. Husband was laid off, you see, and I make no money on my fellowship. So as soon as all the materials I need have been collected I'll be making an adorable little handbag as well as a padded laptop sleeve! Pictures of progress will appear here shortly.

If anyone knows of a fabric store in Queens, NY, please pass on the info, because I haven't been able to find anything but craft shops. They don't carry batting, fabric, etc, and buying everything online takes so much patience!

An Introduction

Welcome, dear readers! Perhaps you found this spot via my Etsy shop, Dinah's Friends, or on my Facebook page; well, strangers and friends, welcome to my blog. I'm a graduate student in English literature, and I have my own small business selling crafts online. I'll be writing about my studies, my teaching (I teach freshman English here in New York City), my crafting and my life in general. I can't wait to see what this space becomes over time! Thanks for reading. That's all for today!