Blog

52 zippers wrap-up: The award show

May 13, 2019 | 52 zippers

So my project is finally complete! I thought it would be fun to do a little wrap-up post where I handed out awards to some of my favorite projects of the series.

52 zippers #52: Necessary clutch

Apr 29, 2019 | 52 zippers

It's the last one! I can hardly believe it! Of course the last one had to be a good one... I haven't made a wallet in this series up to this point, so I chose the Necessary Clutch wallet (with the wristlet strap add-on) that I have been seeing everywhere. I thought it might work for carrying around a small amount of EPP, but if not, it would also work for a wallet.

52 zippers #51: Appliqued and embroidered taupe zipper pouch

Apr 15, 2019 | 52 zippers

I found this pouch in a book by Yoko Saito and immediately knew I wanted to make it. I love love love this pouch, even though this is totally not my normal color palette. The instructions were in the Japanese style (almost no words—just brief illustrations, no seam allowances on pattern pieces, and all measurements in metric), so there was a bit of puzzling, but I managed to muddle through!

52 zippers #50: All bottled up boxy pouches

Apr 1, 2019 | 52 zippers

If you're new to my 52 zippers project, you can read the backstory, see all the zipper pouches, and download basic zipper pouch instructions here. When I was browsing for boxy pouches, I came across these All bottled up boxy pouches and thought they looked...

52 zippers #49: Mini HST pencil pouch

Mar 18, 2019 | 52 zippers

So I'd been admiring the Craft Passion Wide open pencil case for awhile, but the thought of doing piping on the outside of a bag around curves was making me hesitate (for good reason, apparently!). I finally decided to just try it and hope for the best!

52 zippers #48: Macaron zipper pouches

Mar 4, 2019 | 52 zippers

I've been resisting making these macaron zipper pouches I've seen all over the internet because they looked really putzy and their small size didn't look super useful. But I finally broke down (the cuteness won me over). I'm glad I did!

52 zippers #47: Devon zipper pouch

Feb 18, 2019 | 52 zippers

Ok, less than a minute after I found the Devon pouch pattern it was in my cart and on my list for this project. It just looked so stylish and well-crafted! I was so right to pull the trigger on this one—it is definitely one of my top five favorites of the whole series, and will feature in many teacher's gifts in the future.

52 zippers #46: Sotak boxy pouch

Feb 4, 2019 | 52 zippers

I've been wanting to make a little boxy pouch in this series, but I had so much trouble finding a free tutorial for one I liked and hadn't made before! Finding a good boxy pouch pattern isn't easy—so many have raw edges inside, which kind of drives me a little crazy.

52 zippers #45: LalaFab cosmetic pouch

Jan 21, 2019 | 52 zippers

I came across these little Lilly cosmetic bags by Lala Fab when browsing zipper pouch ideas and had to make them! The pattern is free, but it's in German. My German is not good and I still managed to muddle through, so if you have some experience with zippers I think you can handle it.

52 zippers #44: Open wide pouch

Jan 7, 2019 | 52 zippers

So this time I wanted to make something smaller that would both stand up on its own and open wide enough that I easily reach inside. I came across the Open Wide pouch and thought I'd give it a shot! I made the smallest size in the pattern.

52 zippers #43: Close at hand case

Dec 17, 2018 | 52 zippers

For this pouch, I wanted to make something that would be like a pencil case that would hold some pens and markers separately from a notebook or sketchbook. I came across this Close at Hand case and thought it looked super cute!

52 zippers #42: Orange sewing kit

Dec 3, 2018 | 52 zippers

Several years ago I came across a super cute pattern for this apple or orange-shaped sewing kit. I started the apple immediately but it wasn't turning out as I wanted so I abandoned it. Fast-forward to this year and I decided to give it another try, though this time I thought I'd do the orange instead of the apple.

52 zippers #41: The Tool tote

Nov 19, 2018 | 52 zippers

So I decided to make another doctor-style bag. This one is by the same designer as The Cube bag that I made earlier; it is a much larger version. The idea was that it would hold a lot of my misc. stuff for retreats and sew days as it looked pretty big!

How to sew a large hot pack that will help you feel better

Nov 8, 2018 | sewing, Tutorials

So I'm one of those people that is almost always cold. I don't know why, but it must be genetic because my mom and my daughter are too. And when I go to quilt retreats, I am extra cold (some quilters like it brisk!), which makes it hard to sew. Last year I had the...

52 zippers #40: Simple perfect size pencil pouches

Nov 5, 2018 | 52 zippers

Before I left on my big trip, I had a request from my middle son and my husband to make very simple, plain pencil pouches. I know that getting the size for these "just right" can be tricky based on previous attempts at such things--there is a pretty narrow margin of good sizes for pencil pouches!

52 zippers #39: Large Maker’s tote

Oct 22, 2018 | 52 zippers

Last year I finished the small size of Noodlehead's Maker's Tote and I totally loved it. I wanted to make one in the large size as well, for times when I needed to carry even more things!

52 zippers #38: Mini notions zipper pouches

Oct 8, 2018 | 52 zippers

If you're new to my 52 zippers project, you can read the backstory, see all the zipper pouches, and download basic zipper pouch instructions here. For retreats and such, I wanted to organize my lesser-used little tools and notions that I didn't want mixed in with my...

52 zippers #37: Large Creative Maker’s cases

Sep 24, 2018 | 52 zippers

So I've already made the Creative Maker case by Sew Sweetness in "small" and "medium" sizes. It was time to make the large! I made one large case for each of my three kids for travel.

52 zippers #36: Double zip gear bag

Sep 10, 2018 | 52 zippers

For this zipper bag, I was hoping to make a new toiletries bag for traveling. The Double zip gear bag by Annie's looked perfect and I was super excited to make it!

52 zippers #35: Zip and clip bag

Aug 15, 2018 | 52 zippers

So in the Spring and Summer, I like having a small purse that holds only my phone, wallet, keys, and a couple other small things when I need to run out for errands and such. I had a bag like this a few years ago (a Goodwill find), but it disintegrated and I hadn't managed to find one I like since.

52 zippers #34: Wool felt cat mouth zipper pouch

Apr 21, 2018 | 52 zippers

In the past year or so, I have spent a lot of time browsing different zip pouches and have seen so many creative ideas. When I came across this series of photos, I absolutely had to make it as a coin pouch for my youngest son, who is cat-crazy.

« Older Entries