I got a new job at a dental office near the Galleria! Well, last week during some down time, I flipped through the latest Ikea catalog and decided that I had to go check out their fabric among other things.  (Ikea is only 3 miles from work now!) Since there was nobody at the cutting table, I decided to flip through the pre-cut fabric bin, and found some cute upholstery fabric for super cheap. I found some cute cotton prints as well, and just as I was about to cut it myself, an Ikea employee showed up and did it for me.  Lucky for me, he was very generous (not like the mean guy at Jo-Ann’s that didn’t even offer me the end of the bolt…it was only 3 inches!).

Well, last month or so, I found this $10 purse at Target that looked super easy to copy:

So, I traced around the Target purse, cut into my fabric and started sewing. I even started making a tutorial, but decided it was way too easy to just use the pattern from an old purse. Upholstery fabric is great for totes and bags, because you don’t even need to use stabilizer if you don’t want.

My favorite part is that the inside is lime green!

The outcome: The Ikea purse cost a mere $3. And it’s better quality, (the inside of the Target purse ripped after a couple of days, but its nothing that can’t be repaired.) FYI, my friend said she saw the Target purse on sale for $5, so go get one and make a bunch of purses for yourself!

It took me the longest time to figure out what quilt to make with my Arcadia fabric, but in the end I decided to keep it simple and do my favorite, a simple patchwork quilt. The size is 37″ by 44″, perfect size for a crib.

Remember those hexagons I made while Fernando was gone?

I bedazzled the back by appliqueing some hexagons to add a splash of color. The idea came from Ashley from Film in the Fridge and her gorgeous hexagon pillows.

The Buttercup Bag

I ran into my friend Crystal who made me jealous by sporting a Buttercup Bag, so I decided to make one for myself.  Although I will admit that I was VERY nervous about this since it was my first bag attempt EVER! (or maybe I should say my first completed bag.  Several attempts have already been started and pushed into the corner of projects to be completed.) I stumbled upon this tutorial several weeks ago and added it to my To Do list. The Tutorial is free, thanks to the fantastic Rae by Made by Rae. The best part is that this bag can be made from a mere fat quarter (plus liner).