Around Here Lately

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Life has been hectic lately with the upcoming Disney trip. I had originally planned on making a Studio Cherie duffel bag to take as a carry on (I even bought the pattern) but that didn't end up happening. I did make a few more Smash Book Fanny Packs for the shop though!



My sweet hubby got me the new Nikon CoolPix S9300 and it is amazing! I didn't want to haul around my enormous DSLR while walking around Disney World so I really had my heart set on this smaller model. Even though I couldn't get it in pink, I thought it'd be a great opportunity to have my husband actually pick up the camera and take a picture of ME for once. Always behind the lens... never in the pictures! As I predicted, he feels more comfortable with this one. I made a camera wristlet using an old Keyka Lou pattern and some Sleeping Beauty fabric by Heather Ross. I also made a matching Jane Market Tote for souvenirs.



I made a new iPad sleeve with one of my favorite Echino prints, using Amber's awesome tutorial.

And I was also dying to use these brass zippers that I got a couple of weeks ago from Zip It on Etsy. I made this quick padded zippy using another Heather Ross print to carry my camera accessories.




I read EIGHT books within the month of August, which explains my lack of presence in Blog Land, including The Darkest Powers series (great reads!!), The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (sooo good!) and the two Divergent books that are out. If you haven't read these books, I definitely recommend them if you're into dystopic literature like The Hunger Games and Unwind. They are amazing books!

I'll be back very soon with a blog facelift (yay!!) and a Halloween Swap Sign Up before I leave to Florida! Have a great long weekend and Happy Labor Day!

Tote & Book Swap Sent: Pt. 2

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My second partner Holly received her goodies a couple of days ago so now I can share more pictures from the Tote & Book Swap. After looking through Holly's Pinterest boards, I knew I wanted to use quilt blocks like I did with Tara's tote. With this tote, I started off with these colorful blocks using HSTs in contrasting dark and light fabrics to create a diamond shape.



Then I added 3 inches of Essex linen in Natural to the bottom to make it into more of a rectangular shape. The tote is huge and durable, perfect for family trips to the library. The book I sent is a timeless classic, Pride & Prejudice. It's one of my favorite books! I am totally in love with Mr. Darcy.



I also sent her some other goodies like washi tape, a stamp/ink pad, and a really cute notebook. I've already received Holly's package and I'll be sharing what I received from her and from Tara very soon! You can follow along on Instagram (@greenletterday) to see more daily photos. Have a great week!

Tote & Book Swap Sent- Pt. 1

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I organized a swap this month with a tote and book theme and, as we had an odd amount of people sign up, I got two partners. I dedicated the first part of the month to Tara. I stalked her Flickr favorites to get an understanding of what she liked and settled on a plus block pattern.


I like the idea of using quilt blocks for totes. It's like hauling a mini quilt around- it just looks comforting. Tara expressed that she liked citrus-y colors like yellow, orange and lime. I pulled out some bright fabrics in those colors and added some pink and turquoise, as well as some text prints, to ensure that no two prints of the same color were ever touching. I used this technique for the piecing, which is absolutely brilliant! Made my job a lot easier and the final result was perfection.


I also made her a little pencil pouch with the leftover cuts and threw in some goodies like highlighters, stamps, ink pad and some adorable washi tape. The book I sent was book one (City of Bones) from one of my favorite series, The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare. From what I knew about the books Tara had read, I knew she would enjoy this one. They are casting for the movie right now and it will be out next year. I'm so excited!



Cassandra Clare also has another series, also about Shadowhunters, called The Infernal Devices. This series is set in Victorian London and I just fell in love with it. I really recommend both series. If you liked Twilight and The Hunger Games, you'll love these books!


I have finished the tote for my second partner and it is going in the mail first thing tomorrow. As soon as she receives it, I will be sharing pictures with you!

On a side note- I hit 700 followers today! Yay!! I think a giveway is in order. What would you like to have a chance at winning??

Selvage Tote & Another Bella Pouch

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So I attacked my selvage (selvedge?) stack last week and whipped up this adorable tote. I've seen it spelled both ways so I don't know which way is correct.


I have expressed before that I've been wanting to try sewing with selvages but have been a little intimidated. It actually wasn't too bad. The hardest part was trying to keep them straight. But after awhile, I got the hang of it. I was going to make the entire tote out of selvages but decided to add a linen trim at the bottom.


I felt like this bag was worthy of my hoarded Echino trim. I am in love with the vibrant colors and contrasting stitches. I used the turquoise webbing for this bag. And I lined it with a Joel Dewberry print.




I also got a chance to make another Bella Pouch with this gorgeous viewfinder print by Melody Miller. It matched up perfectly with the pink seeds by Denyse Schmidt. Isn't it adorable?




These two bags are now in the shop, along with the typewriter tote I sewed up awhile back. I wanted to keep it but, in all honesty, I have so many bags, I'd never use it. So why not send it off to somebody who will use it and love it?


Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for the Tote & Book Swap. I'll be assigning partners on Sunday. Also, if you've signed up already and have not given me your Flickr username, I need those too so I can invite you to the Flickr group! Thanks!

QAYG Library Tote

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I recently heard of a quilting method called "Quilt As You Go". I had never heard of it before and all of a sudden, I was seeing it everywhere. I thought it would be a cool way to try and make a tote bag.






I think you know me enough by now to know that I LOVE BOOKS! I wanted a cute book bag to take to the library or bookstore with me- with enough room to fit a ton of books. I think this bag is perfect for that. I used the same dimensions as my square patchwork tote (15" by 15") but instead of a 3" gusset, I used 3.5" on this one. I love that the QAYG technique allowed me to quilt in different directions. It was a fun way to quilt the log cabin on the front.

My sister also asked me to make her a lunch sack for school this week. She liked the drawstring bag I made using Jeni's pattern (project size) so I made her this one using some of my favorite fabrics- Flea Market Fancy, A Walk In the Woods and Scratchy Scribble.


Before I sign off, would anybody be interested in making me a new header for my blog? And maybe some buttons?? I'm kinda bored with mine and I think the blog needs a new look. I don't have a big budget for design work right now but I'd love to pay you in goodies! Email me if you're up for the job: greenletterday at yahoo dot com. Have a great week!

Patchwork Tote

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I've been sorting through all my scraps and cutting a bunch of 3.5" squares. Anything smaller got tossed in the trash, except ofcourse for the beautiful little pieces that I couldn't bring myself to part with. I thought it would be fun to make a patchwork tote using some of my blue and grey squares.


I used 25 squares for each side of the bag and sewed them together in five rows of five squares, alternating between grey and blue. Then I quilted them in straight lines before composing my tote. I boxed the corners at 2.5" and added a little lobster clasp to the lining to hang keys or coin purses from. The tote is now in the shop if anyone is interested. Have a wonderful week!

Linking up to these parties.

The Marley Bag

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Hi everyone! How was your weekend?? Mine was great. We invited my family over for a BBQ yesterday and I probably gained a good 17 pounds. I just can't seem to have any self control when there are all kinds of good food around like fajita, molleja, pico de gallo, and some "Little Bean Of Heaven" (this is a recipe that my sister and I came up with for beans and, being the cheeseballs that we are, decided to name is as such). SO GOOD! I know I've been away from my blog for a while but that doesn't mean I haven't been a busy little bee!

Presenting my newest creation, The Marley Bag.



I named this bag after my niece, Marley. I wanted a laid back, slouchy feel in this bag and I think it came out exactly as I envisioned. Marley was named after Bob Marley and that is the epitome of all that this bag is! It just screams "Don't worry, be happy".





If you're thinking that this fabric looks familiar, that's because I had used it to make my diaper bag a loooong time ago. I have been hoarding this Echino collection fabric as long as I possibly could. I am in love with any and all Japanese import fabric and I.want.more.

This slouchy lil bag is now in my shop, along with this little guy.







It's another scrappy sunglasses pouch/clutch. Lovin' the combo of fabrics on this one. I used some more of my left over "Just Wing It" by Momo for Moda and a few other selections.

I also have one more project I'm dying to share with you guys but I can't today!! I'll share it with you tomorrow though. It'll be worth the wait, I promise! Now I'm off to a graduation party (to gain another 17 lbs)!!

Linking up here.

Words With Totes

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I've been experimenting with my Silhouette machine and working on some cute totes for my shop. This is my first completed one, Live.Play.Love.



I used my tutorial for the bike with "flowers". And I used the same method I used for AJ's Dino Tee for the lettering on this bag. The bulk of the bag is unbleached cotton and I used various designer fabrics for the rest of it. It measures about 12" x 14". I lined the entire tote with batting (I love using these totes for laptops so I have to make them sturdy!).









This tote is now in my shop!!

On a sidenote, AJ has been asking for one of these lately



He's convinced daddy is going to get him one when he gets home from work. Good luck buddy! It would be nice to have one of these in this 100 degree weather though!

Linking up to these parties.