I Have Too Many Hobbies

It's true. Way too many hobbies. I knit, sew, crochet, run, read, write, play video games and sometimes cross stitch. And there isn't enough time to devote the amount of attention I would like to each of them. So I go in phases, sometimes week by week, sometimes month by month. But in a perfect world I wouldn't need to go to work every day and I could just rotate hobbies all day long...

Anyway, here are some things I've been working on.

A teeny tiny version of the wedge bags I make for my Etsy store! Seriously adorable. I'm probably going to list them for sale soon :) I love tiny things!

I cast on a sock! They will be Hermione's Everyday Socks when they're finished. I forgot how much I enjoy sock knitting, so this one has been fun.

A new bag for my Etsy shop- this one for needles and such. And a larger size wedge bag in black. I would also like to make a needle roll, but I need to design it first. I'll get to it eventually.

I've been pretty steadily knitting this scarf. BUT THEN TRAGEDY. I can't for the life of me find the second ball of this yarn! It has disappeared completely. I know I bought two, though, because I had a specific pattern in mind when I bought it and it required two balls of yarn! So. I knit half of this and it is now set aside. I'm hoping time away from it will somehow magically make the other ball appear...

November...

November was supposed to be a better month for blogging, wasn't it? That's what I remember thinking at the beginning of November.

Then a series of THINGS happened. First, I got a promotion at work (YAY!). This, of course, is wonderful news that means a modest pay bump and an end to working Saturdays (OMG SO HAPPY ABOUT THAT). But it also meant the first two weeks or so in November were full of a mad scramble to get everything in order for my old position- training my back-up to do the work full time, making sure I wasn't leaving her with a huge mess, etc. Those were looooong days, after which I didn't want to do anything but watch Gilmore Girls and cuddle with my dogs.

Which leads me to the next THING. My silly white husky, Charles, AKA Charlie, AKA that white fuzzball who is forever photo bombing pictures for this blog, had a lump on his chest sort of near his armpit. Or legpit? I don't know what to call it on dogs since you know... they don't have arms. So that required vet trips, biopsies, lab analyses, you know. And come to find out it's a mast cell tumor and needs to be removed. So he is scheduled for surgery after the holiday. The vet is very confident that we will remove all the cancerous cells on the first run-through so I'm trying really hard not to worry. And being grateful that I have to check my dogs so regularly for tics (I swear we have super tics here that just don't care about drops or collars or any other preventive measure) because otherwise it may have gone unnoticed

THEN. This past weekend I had a family member in the hospital! Everyone is now okay, but my goodness. November has thrown me for a loop and ruined all my plans...

But you deserve something. So here is all I have managed this month.

Two cute little coin purses. Already listed on Etsy. It's not much to show for a month, is it? UGH.

But at least they're cute...

December has to be better than November, right? I have stacks of fabrics just staring me in the face every time I go into my sewing room. It's getting ridiculous. But tonight is the beginning of a looooong weekend and I intend to get a lot done. THERE WILL BE UPDATES.

How has November been for you? Ready to scarf down some turkey tomorrow? BECAUSE OH GAWD I SO AM. That is all.

Making Clutches

Hello all! How was your long weekend? Mine was filled with family and friends and food. But I also managed to get some sewing time in. I have been wanting a little clutch to take out with me so I don't have to lug my whole purse around, but still have all the essentials. I couldn't find one I liked, so I decided to design one.

This was my first attempt:

It was okay. I like the bow, but it seemed like it could be a little wider.

And for the inside, I knew I wanted card slots so I wouldn't need a wallet and a pocket for my phone so it doesn't get all scratched up by my keys. It was sort of successful. Everything worked, but the opening was too narrow to easily get the cards in and out and things were just generally a little cramped. Which led me to version 2:

Ooh, those reds look crazy, don't they? They aren't that crazy, promise. But anyway! In this version, I kept the height but widened it two inches. Then I got rid of the bow and went for patchwork instead. And added a wrist strap. I also used the tutorial by Michelle Patterns for hand finishing the zipper corners so they wouldn't look all smashed in. Kind of a pain, but really worth the result I think!

This was a much better size! It fits all my essential stuff: phone, keys, cards, maybe a hair tie and my little portable brush/mirror. The cards slide out nice and easy in this version, but don't come out while you're just walking around. It's perfect! Since it is for "just the essentials," that's what I shall call it. The Just the Essentials Clutch.

Not bad for a few hours' work!

I might have to make a couple more of these. I'm thinking maybe one for work to replace my current pouch that has no interior pockets. Such a handy little clutch!

Linking up at the very last second to Sewjo Saturday with Kim at My Go-Go Life!

New Work Pouch

Goooood evening!

You may remember that once long ago I made myself a little pouch to carry around a couple of essentials with me while I'm at work. You know, like my work phone, and a tube of chapstick. But! I got a new phone. And once I put a case on it, my little elephant pouch was just too small.

So what was a girl to do? Make a shiny new elephant pouch, of course!!

Adorable, no?

I used a tiny elephant print for the outside. Not sure what it's called, but I really love it! The blue is some quilter's linen. I love the texture. And the inside is Joel Dewberry. I love a lot of his prints for the insides of pouches and purses! And I finished it off with a little strap made of the purple ombre from Simply Color.

This fits my new phone and my work phone comfortably along with all my crazy pens. Perfect!

I'll have a very big and exciting finish to share with you later this week! :D What have you been working on?

Linking up to Show and Tell Tuesday with Randi!

Recovering!

Wow, what a crazy week! It was my first week at my new job and it was busy. Training and tours and paperwork and soooo many introductions and a bazillion other things. It was a long week. And yet, somehow, I managed to get a few little things done!

First, I made these cute new pot holders for myself. I decided to use the March Sister's Ten blocks so I would be catching up on that and making something useful. I really love how they turned out.

I used the same binding technique as my scrappy trip quilt, but I think I did much better on the quilt! I don't know why this was so much harder for me. Maybe because these were thicker than the quilt. Oh well. I still love them :) I added a pocket on the back, too. I have discovered I like that style of pot holder.

I also made this cute little zipper pouch wristlet for work! After the first two days I decided I really needed something little to carry around my phone, a pen, maybe a couple sticks of gum, and my keys while I am away from my desk. Girl pants are just not conducive to holding so much in my pockets. So I made this:

That second picture ended up really bright, huh? Oops! But it is just the right size to carry around all the little things I need from meeting to meeting without filling up my tiny pockets. It was also a very satisfying finish because it only took about an hour start to finish! I will definitely be making more of these types of things. Maybe next time I'll use an actual tutorial, though ;) I would like pointier corners.

And finally, I caught up on my bee blocks with this guy.

I just love how it turned out! So bright and happy :) I am also super proud of how pointy all my points are and how well they line up! I think this is my best bee block yet! I am definitely getting better. I will be getting this guy in the mail sometime this week.

I am still adjusting to my new schedule. Definitely not used to working full time anymore. But it has been good getting out of the house every day. And now I know I can still make time for sewing, even if it is just little things this week :) I hope to catch up on my skill builder blocks this weekend. Well, at least the March blocks. The April ones are hexies and another one that requires templates and things. I totally forgot to buy mine, so they are definitely going to be late. Oh well.

Hope you're having a fantastic weekend! I am going to go take a cake out of the oven- YUM.