SSSSSsssssss.............

I NEVER thought I would like a snakeskin bag. But I do. I really, really do.

The VBH Python Clutch with Crystal Detail. I'd link to the website....but they are so snooty they don't have one.

Success!

Thanks so much to those of you who were able to participate in the auction for Kori! Shannon says we were able to raise over $1700!

************************************

In between trips to school (I am SUCH a nerd!!) I have been working on some crafty stuff....

I made a purse for a friend of mine named Amanda.....she is into music and chose the lining herself. The shell is made out of polyester shantung, and I love the way it looks....very luxurious

In fact, I like it so much that I might make another one with the same kind of fabric shell.

I also made a messenger bag for my hairdresser Yvette. I was using the butter colored one the last time I got my hair cut and she ordered one on the spot. She wanted dark blue corduroy and it is SUCH a dark blue that it actually ended up being somewhat difficult to match. It is the same pattern as the previous messenger bag, and the same material as the custom laptop bag I made during my Selfish Sewing Week. The color is so dark blue that the most complimentary color is actually orange, but she hates orange, and her favorite colors are pink, blue, and brown. She also wanted something that was similar to the lining of the bag I had on me that day, which was kind of a stylized Hawaiian print. So I looked and looked and looked, and finally found the most beautiful fabric at Fabric Depot in Portland. I like it so much I got enough extra to make something for myself, even though I normally do NOT like pink and blue together and am not a huge fan of pink.I'm pretty happy with it, and can't wait to deliver it next week! There are only a few days left of summer before school starts on September 2, so I am working on sewing a few more things for myself before school starts.

Purse Lovin'

Despite the fact that I love making purses, I am not actually that familiar with big-name purse designers. There are lots of reasons for this, but I have recently discovered a couple of blogs that I am sure EVERYONE else knows about and have begun my education.

Purseblog.com and the bagcraze blog are both great, and have given me some insight into more of the big designers. I tend not to like really, ridiculously expensive purses and don't EVEN get me started on Coach purses (whatever genius was able to convince millions of American women to pay Coach thousands of dollars to advertise for them is BRILLIANT - but I HATE those purses).

However, I L.O.V.E. these. If I had millions of extra dollars, I would spend some of them on these. The first one is by Jimmy Choo and retails for a cool $1500. This bag makes me shivery and happy all over

This one is by Louis Vuitton and it can be yours for merely $900. I love, LOVE this shade of blue in almost everything, and while I don't normally like enormous gold baubles on my purses, I really like this so very, very much that I want to keep a picture in my candy jar and just look at it instead of eating candy. Which might be the Best Diet Ever.

I have a thing for clutches...which is weird, since I normally don't carry them. Or go out.

Meanwhile, I have been working on a few things for other people...a John Deere bag for a friend's son, a messenger bag for my hairdresser, a black gathered clutch for a recently engaged friend, and of course, school is starting soon and I will need my own school bag. August looks like it's going to be fun!!

Apples and Cantaloupes

I recently got some free fabric, and wrapped up in the midst of some not so great stuff, was this amazingly perfect scraps of cantaloupe colored twill and coordinating apple print. I fell head over heels in love and have been salivating over it for a few weeks now, waiting for the perfect project.

I think this might be it.

I used one of my favorite tutorials from Lisa Lam.

And I still have some more fabric - I'm thinking minilicious pouch for the summer etsy update.

In the Clutch

Yesterday and today I made my very first clutch purse. I do not carry clutches because, let's face it, I will almost invariably leave it somewhere. I mostly staple my purse to my shoulder before leaving the house, and a clutch would cause another unwanted and unsightly bulge were I to staple it to my body. But one of my BFs is a clutch fan, so in my mission to make all the Christmas presents this year, I made a clutch. I like it. I am proud of it, and I think I did a decent job.

I used this book, the ONLY purse book available at the library...grrrr....

This is what it looks like finished...the fabric underneath will be a shirt for me, hopefully tomorrow.

The end of the purse. I had to handsew almost everything because of some odd angles. The only machine stitched stuff is the top-stitching.

Lined with black silk and I included magnetic closures, which were a bit tricky as I did not have a good plan on where to put them. The pattern called for velcro. (!!!)

The fabric is from my stash, bought over a year ago, and the only thing I would change is that I did not quite center the fabric. It's off by about an inch. OOPS. Next time. =)

ONE MORE DAY OF FREEDOM....then 2 weeks until Thanksgiving. Thank goodness for that!