Seaside Oliver + S Messenger Bag

When it comes to darling fabric, Tasha Noel knocks it out of the park every time. Her newest line, Seaside, is no different. It just tugs at my nautical loving heart! I've been anticipating this collection since I saw it debut at quilt market! So, when Riley Blake asked me if I wanted to play with the collection and make something, I jumped at the chance.

If you've followed my blog for a while, you've probably noticed that I love to make bags.... and when I find a pattern that I like, I make it over and over again. I've made the Oliver + S Messenger Bag over 10 times now.  The pattern can be found in the Oliver + S Little Things to Sew book. I definitely recommend the book- even if its just for this pattern alone- but I've also made the Little Red Riding Hood and Tutu, and the Explorer Vest from the book as well.

I have two girls, so of course I had to make two bags. In the past, I made the small version of the pattern (for when they were 3 & 4 years old), so this time I opted to make the large size. One of the things I love most about this pattern is the gusseted pockets on the front of the bag when you lift the main flap up. Another unique thing is that the bag is edged in bias tape, so its just as cute as can be and very well constructed.

I used the Seaside Border print in Red for the exterior of the first bag. I love using panels for this pattern, because it really just gives the bag a custom look. I had planned to use one of the coordinating prints from the collection for the bias tape that edges the bag, but I had some navy floral from Tasha's previous collection A Little Sweetness, and I just couldn't resist from using the dainty floral to compliment the Seaside fabrics.

For the second bag, my oldest daughter wanted to have a little more say in the design of the bag. She picked out her favorite prints from the collection and asked for "patches" on the front of her bag. I used a quilt as you method (like I did for my weekender bags) for the main flap panel. She loved how it turned out and almost snatched the bag to use before I could snap a picture of it. (Big no no! ahhh... life of a blogger's kid. haha)

I think one of the cutest little details on the bags are the darling woven handmade tags on the strap of the bag that Tasha designed. I mean... come on! These little labels are just too cute to not sew them onto EVERYTHING I make now. ;)

PS- Be sure to hop over to my friend Amy's blog (Diary of a Quilter) and check out the darling Seaside Star Spangled Banner Quilt that she made.  I am so in love with anything Amy makes, and this patriotic + nautical beauty is just the cutest!

Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo, Ashley

Anchor Chardon Skirt

I have been on the hunt for the perfect pleated skirt for about 2 years now.  I came across this fabulous pattern by a darling French pattern designer named Eleonore. She runs a shop called Deer and Doe and I love her designs. This skirt is called the Chardon Skirt and it is such a great pattern! I ordered it straight from France and the pattern arrived in less than a week... I was so impressed with the turn around! 

I picked out some fabric and got to cutting out my pattern. (I used Anchor Chambray for the main part of the skirt, Clown Stripe in Limeade for the accent. I am not certain the info on the bias tape, but I picked it up from Sew to Speak and it matched perfectly with the stripe.)

*Side note: Have you ever measured yourself for a pattern and thought "I'm gonna go with the smaller size because I know I am going to drop some of the extra pounds I put on over the winter."

- Me too! I'm so glad I am not the only one! ;)

 So I went for the smaller size and got to sewing. The pattern was so easy to follow and very straight forward (it came with instructions in English and French- in case you were wondering).

Well as I was sewing, I was thinking to myself... "Oh man...Not sure if this is gonna fit!" 

Sure enough- when I finished, I tried the skirt and I could zip it up but it definitely looked like it was a size too small. Bummer! I knew that with a summer of being active outside it would probably fit perfect in a month or two, but I had another idea....

My younger sister Heidi is the "pre- having two kids" version of me. I knew the skirt would fit her great. So I packed up this happy little skirt and shipped it to her! 

Doesn't it she look darling?

She is a missionary for our Church, serving in Tampa, Florida so she wears skirts everyday and was so happy to have a fun new skirt to wear! I just love her and am so proud of all of the good she is doing in Tampa. And I am so excited because she will be returning home in July and I will get to see her again! (Girl missionaries serve for 18 months away from family and loved ones. They get to call home on Christmas and Mother's Day and email once a week- but she is one of my very best friends so I feel like I haven't seen her in FOR-EVER!)

Ok... back to the skirt... a couple of my favorite things about the pattern is that there are pockets in the skirt (something I had never done before, but  was surprisingly easy), the pleats, the ties on the back of the skirt (optional), and the bottom of the skirt is hemmed with bias tape for a nice clean finish. I was very happy with the way it turned out!

I definitely recommend this pattern to anyone! Beginner or experienced seamstress! 

Happy Sewing!

xoxo, Ashley

Nautical Weekender Bag

 There is some sort of weird phenomenon that I have encountered while making the Amy Butler Weekender Bag. It has happened to me each of the three times I have made it now. I go from thinking one moment- "Why in the world did I start making this bag... I feel like chucking it across the room!!" to the next moment when I am all finished, thinking- "Oh, I love it so much that I want to make another!". Don't get me wrong... I am totally in love with this pattern! It is very well written and produces the the most awesome bag ever (in my opinion), but there are just a couple steps to making this bag that are tricky and at times frustrating that cause the near "tossing it across the room" feeling.

After making my second weekender as a gift for my mom in law's birthday (and getting that crazy impulse I mentioned to make another), I knew that I wanted to make one for my mom's birthday... annnd... their birthdays happen to be only 10 days apart. So after the madness of putting one together in 2 days, I took a more leisurely pace and made the third bag in 4 days. (can you hear/read my sarcasm?! What in the world was I thinking making these bags with such a short time frame?! Stressful!) Luckily my husband was super dad for about a week and made dinners, cleaned up the house, and put kids to bed- all while doing his normal husbandly duties so that I could sew for all hours of the night to make the bags. Being the awesome guy he is, he did everything with a smile and was totally happy to help out so that we could give our moms something that they really loved this year. What a guy... always reminding me of just how lucky I am to be married to him!

Alright... back to the bag.... :)

 Without further adieu... Meet my mom's weekender bag. I am kind of smitten with it. My true love for my mom was tested when I put this baby in the mail and said "Bon Voyage" without a second glance. Ok... let's be honest... there may have been a second glance. It's my favorite weekender I have made thus far, but the true daughterly love won out and off it sailed to Utah and it's happy new owner.

It couldn't have gone to a better home. Like I, my mom has a huge love for navy + white and all things nautical. She absolutely loved it! Score! It's always nice after spending a large chunk of time on a handmade gift to see that it is appreciated.

 I really love how all the fabrics came together! I used Premier Prints Anchor Slub in Navy for the main panels of the bag and Premier Prints Stripe Slub in Navy for the top and base panels. 
For the patchwork portion of the bag I used a combo of a few prints- some of my favorites are: Anchors away in Navy, Anchors Indigo Chambray, Ships Indigo Chanbray, Bridgetown in Navy, and some navy and white stripes and polkadot fabric I had in my stash.

 I started out with the plan of using strictly navy and white for the bag... but after a quick poll on instagram, I decided to use some Free Spirit Tango solid for a pop of color with the piping and Red and Yellow Moda Crossweave for the handles (it's slightly heavier weight and worked well- plus the color was almost and exact match to the tango solid).

One of the biggest changes I made with this bag that was different from Bag #1 and Bag #2 is that I went with a plastic zipper as opposed to the metal upholstery zippers I used on the first two. Oh my goodness... I love the plastic zipper so much! (I had a bit of scare on bag #2 and put the zipper in only to find out that it was not working the greatest! Biggest bummer ever! Waxed the zipper which helped but still not the ease I was hoping for). 

I ordered this plastic zipper and plan on using plastic on any future weekenders (again... they have some sort of spell over me!). The only downfall to the plastic is that it IS separating so I had to make a slight adjustment and stitch it closed  which was a bit different than my other bags- but no biggie and totally worth the trouble because it slides open and shut like a dream!

 While I was hand stitching the lining into this third weekender, I told my husband that I was "not making another weekender for a very very long time- if ever!" 
2 weekenders in a week and a half was a bit much for myself and the family- but you do what you gotta do in a time crunch, right?

But do ya wanna hear the crazy thing?! I just started a 4th weekender. 

I know- I know... someone needs to admit me to a  Weekender Bags anonymous support group! 

Don't worry though... No more 2 day (or even 4 day) weekender bag projects for me! I am taking my sweet time on this one and things are back to normal with my household- thank goodness!

Anyone else have the Weekender Bug? We can all thank Elizabeth of Oh, Fransson! for introducing us to her amazing weekender and starting the QAYG Weekender craze! Check out these beauties in the Flickr group. ;)

Happy Sewing! 

xoxo, Ashley

Going Coastal Quilt

As soon as I learned to quilt I knew that I wanted to make a quilt for each of my brothers and sisters. This beach quilt was the last of the quilts I finished for my siblings. 

(I made these quilts for my other siblings: Hello Luscious Quilt, Scrappy Spools Quilt, and Hot Wheels Pow-Wow Quilt)

My little brother lives in Hawaii so I figured it was only fitting that he have a beach quilt. When I saw this fabric I thought it would be perfect. I used a handful of prints from the Going Coastal Collection and tossed in some orange and red Marmalade stripes and a couple other prints I had lying around in my stash.

I find it really hard to make a quilt for an adult guy... I have made 2 attempts so far (this one and the hot wheels quilt I made for my other brother) and I am in the process of making my hubby a Buckeye quilt (his favorite college team). 

I feel like it is hard to come by masculine fabric that I think is cute at the same time- so my quilts tend to read more boy-ish but my brothers are pretty young at heart so it works for them. 

For this quilt I used 9 inch squares (not sure why the odd size) and it turned out great. It came together very quickly! My brother about 6 ft. tall so once I pieced the squares and measured, I realized that it needed to be longer so he could over up with it, so it ended up being a slightly odd shape of quilt once I added borders to the two sides. Long and skinny. I think it was roughly 55" x 84". 

I did straight line quilting with my walking foot and quilted 1/4 inch from each seam of the quilt. I was very much inspired by the quilting style of Rita @ Red Pepper Quilts. She does such a neat job and I love the simple straight lines she is famous for in her quilts.

My little brother loved the quilt. I was so glad! I am always nervous to give something I make to someone because of course I usually like the things that I make but that doesn't mean that everyone else does too- but my brother really did appreciate the birthday gift! He's the best! :)  

The Perfect Summer Bag

I really love a good, big bag for summer time. I have been on the look out for one that was just right, so when I made the Field Study Reversible Sunday Sling for my sister, I knew that with a couple changes it would be just perfect for my needs! 

I need a summer bag that has a wide opening without a closure so I can fill it to the brim with beach towels, sun screen, snacks, etc when we are headed to the pool, park, or wherever- which is why I loved this bag pattern so much. It is so easy to throw stuff in and go.

I think it is pretty safe to say I have a mild obsession with anchors and all things nautical. When I saw this anchor fabric by Premier Prints, my heart skipped a beat. I ordered 2 yards of it before you could say "Ahoy Matey" and waited with baited breath for it to arrive on my doorstep!

It did not disappoint! I LOVE it!

(I got my anchor fabric from fabric.com and with a coupon code I got it for just under $8 per yard but when they get a shipment you have to jump on it because it sells out so fast!)

I paired it with the Premier Prints Stripe in Salmon and I absolutely love it.   

I made my bag without the pockets inside the bag that it calls for and it really feels big and roomy- which is what I was hoping for. 

I absolutely love it!! It's totally the perfect summer bag!

iPad Mini Cargo Case + Tutorial

I think my iPad mini has to be one of my favorite possessions. I love it... like a lot. 

Since I got it for Christmas, I have just had a clear hard case on the back of it. The case doesn't do much to protect it except for scratches on the back, but I kinda like that it keeps it small and un-bulky (is that even a word?!). The only problem is- I like to take my ipad places and I have been cringing every time I have tossed it into a bag full of things that could scratch or damage it- so it was high time I did something about it. 

Let me introduce you to the little home I made for my mini... I think it's kinda cute, but still very functional: win-win.

When I was designing the pattern for the case, I knew that I wanted to have a simple sleeve that my mini would slide into quickly but I also wanted to have a place to store the charging cord while traveling so I decided on a little cargo pocket on the front. It turned out pretty nifty! ;)

It's padded with a layer of duck cloth and quilt batting in between the outside and inside panels of the case so it is nice and safe while stored within.

I made mine for my iPad mini, but it would be super easy to change the measurements and make it for  a regular sized iPad, kindle, tablet, etc.

Here is what you will need to make it:

-2 fat quarters

-1 package of 1/2 double fold bias tape (unless you want to make your own like I did)

-a bit of leftover quilt batting or fusible fleece

-duck cloth

-one large snap, magnetic clasp, or velcro for closure of flap

- 7.5 inches of 1/2 elastic (you could use 1/4 inch if desired as well)

-1 inch button (optional)

-light interfacing (optional: depending on weight of fabric- I used quilting cotton so I used light interfacing on the cargo pocket)

Measurements for cutting fabric:

Fabric A & B: cut one of each size per fabric-

-9 x 7.5 inch (front of case)

-12 x 7.5 inch (back of case/ top flap)

(optional: I used a bowl as a guide to slightly curve the top edge for the flap on the 12 x 7.5 panel on both fabric A & B- there is about a 2 inch overhang of the flap when closed so be sure to not round your edge further than around the 10 inch mark on your panel if that makes sense)

 - 4 x 9.5 inch

- 2 x 6.75 inch (this will be your flap for the cargo pocket- I used a bowl to slightly curve the bottom edge of these as well)

Next you will want to cut your quilt batting/fusible fleece and duck cloth panels. You will use one of the largest rounded panels and one of the 9 x 7.5 inch panel and use them as a guide to cut one panel of duck cloth exactly the same size of each. Next you will cut your batting/fusible fleece- you will want to cut your batting slightly smaller than the panel so you reduce bulk while sewing. 

When you are done you should have 2 duck cloth panels and 2 batting panels total.

Step 1: Quilt your main panels. I did a very basic quilting on my 2 main panels- just a couple straight lines of stitches to hold the layers together, but you can go as crazy or conservative as you would like on this step. To start take your large curved panel pieces and create your "quilt sandwich"- you will start by putting the interior fabric wrong side up, followed by the duck cloth, followed by the batting, and ending with the exterior fabric right side up and use pins to hold the 4 layers together while quilting. You will layer the smaller 9 x 7.5 inch panel the same way and quilt both as desired. Set your two main panels aside.

Step 2: Create your cargo pocket. Take your two 4 x 9.5 inch panels and apply interfacing if desired. Then put them right sides together and sew along one of the long edges using a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Press the seams open and then fold in half with right sides facing out and press top edge again.

Step 3: Create a casing for your elastic. I used 1/2 so I created a casing that was slightly larger than 1/2 so that the elastic fit very snug.

After your casing is sewn, set your stitch length to the longest your machine allows and sew a basting stitch along the raw edge of the panel you have created. This will be for gathering the bottom of the cargo pocket. Take your 9 x 7.5 inch quilted panel and gather the bottom of your cargo pocket so that it is 7.5 inches wide and pin and baste it to the bottom of your quilt panel.

Step 4: Feed your elastic into the casing by using a small safety pin to guide it through. 

 Once you have it evenly fed through pin the side edged of the cargo pocket to the side of the main quilted panel and baste them together. Be sure when basting that you catch the elastic good and back stitch over it well to secure it so it doesn't come loose while completing the next steps.

Step 5: Take your two curved panels for the cargo pocket flap and apply interfacing if desired. Place them wrong side together and pin the bias tape along the curved edge of the interior side or "wrong side" of the flap and sew. Then fold your bias tap over to the right side and pin in place and stitch to the front side of the flap. You may need to press well afterwards to help the panel lie completely flat. 

Step 6: Apply bias tape to the top edge of the flap. Pin your bias binding to the "wrong side" of the flap but leave an inch overhang of binding on each side and sew. Next instead of folding the bias tape over to the "right side" of the flap and stitching in place, fold it over to the "right side" of the flap and then pin the flap with the overhanging edges of bias tape to the main panel just above the gathered pocket. Once you have it pinned evenly, you will stitch along the bottom edge of the bias binding to secure to the flap and main panel of the case and then you will also stitch along the top edge of the binding to secure the binding to the main panel even more. 

 Step 7:Apply bias tape to the top edge of the main panel.

*If you are using velcro or anything other than a snap as your closure, you may want to apply it to the pocketed panel you have just created so that you don't have to wrangle it once the case is all put together.*

Step 8: ( not pictured) Place the main pocket panel  on top of the quilted large panel with the curved edge on top so the the interior fabrics are facing right side together and the exterior of the case if facing out. Line up the squared edges at the base of each panel and pin along the side and bottom of the panels to hold them together. Baste along the pinned edges to secure both panels.

Step 9: Apply bias tape to the case. I pinned the bias tape to the back of the case and had the edges of my bias tape connect at the bottom of the case so that the seam wasn't as noticeable. Then fold the edges of the binding over to the front of the case and pin in place and sew. 

Step 10: Sew your closure. I chose to use a large snap, and then I added a fabric covered button on the flap just for kicks. Remove any visible basting stitches if necessary.

That's it! Pretty slick huh? 

Fabric that I used in this project: navy two inch stripe by Riley Blake, Anchors Away in navy by Sarah Jane, and Taza Stripe in Yellow by Free Spirit.

Out to Sea Quilt

One of my very favorite quilt blogs is Red Pepper Quilts. I love Rita's style and I can always count on her to inspire me daily with the things she creates! When I saw her Pieced Scrap Border quilt tutorial a couple years ago I knew that I wanted to make one very similar! 

I followed her tutorial to put together my blocks but changed up the measurements a bit- I used 2.5 inch strips instead of 1.5. I had to throw in the map in the middle because it just seemed like the perfect place for it, and also added some borders.

I absolutely love the Out to Sea line from Sarah Jane. Most of the fabrics I used in this quilt are from the line, but I did throw in a handful of other scraps I had lying around.

When I was initially gathering my fabric and planning for the quilt, I was only going to use navy blue and pink. Last minute I decided to throw in some orange to match the mermaids hair and I am so glad that I did. I love the colors and it is one of my favorite quilts I have made thus far!

I wanted this quilt to be light and easy for my daughter to drag around the house, so I backed it in minky and skipped adding batting. I love the weight of it.

I quilted straight lines diagonally creating large X's through each block. 

I used all of the leftover scraps to create a super scrappy binding... It wasn't the smoothest binding with seams every 2 inches at some points but I love how it turned out.