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Topics - Marniesews

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I started this last October towards the end of a 3-month sewing gap (first Covid infection) when I had the odd good day to plan and draw out the pattern. Another first was quilting faux leather which might have been over ambitious for my first all faux leather bag but it was really fun as this lovely Rex soft faux by Emmaline stitched up very nicely.

I finished it just in time for our great niece's 21st birthday and genuinely seemed to delight her.





The lining is a Liberty lawn whose name I can't remember most annoyingly. It depicts a repeated miniature pattern of beach and seaside life. In the pic you can also see the secret zip pocket nestled facing the base of the flap lining. It's invisible unless the flap is folded right back to reveal it. Not my original idea, inspired by something similar I saw last year in a backpack.

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Access All Accessories / I've made a few more bags...
« on: June 20, 2023, 23:25:11 PM »
I've been away for so long I should apologise. I've just realised my last bag post was in April 2022 so I'll try to catch up with some new posts...there's a few to catch up with.

This is was made in June last year I think. It's in quilting cotton with Crackers 76F interfacing. It fused on well and by stuffing and steaming the bag after it was made up I got a lovely shape. I left it like that for two days and it's well and truly set in that shape now. The zip required lots of fussing to avoid the dreaded lumpy zip on a concave shape but that's stood the test of time too.

The pattern is a free YouTube one - some are great, others not but I heartily recommend Miko Crafts who does superb patterns including some lookalikes for famous Designer bags. This pattern is his bag inspired by Prada's Re-Edition bag. I made the version without removable strap.




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Dolls and Toys / Finally Dolly is done
« on: June 20, 2023, 22:40:15 PM »
Shamefully this doll has been in the works for about a year but the first one was scrapped and a new pattern chosen. Anyway, it ended up being for her 3rd birthday which is just as well as I'd probably  have been rehooking the hair through the wig cap before now if she'd had it for her 2nd birthday!

The cuddly couple was named Baxter and Ted-ted by their owner.




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I thought I'd tried out the reverse after pulling out the 201k a couple of days ago but perhaps not.

We cleaned and oiled it pretty thoroughly after DH added a motor onto the handcrank machine but, sitting down to start on a project this evening, I've realised despite the bobbin tension being lovely going forward, in reverse it drops to next to nothing with the top thread lying on top of the fabric. Switch back to forwards again and all is well.

I've googled it but only general tension issues or taking the tension unit apart seems to come up. Well, I did find a couple of questions about this specific problem but the commenters didn't seem to pick up that it was perfectly fine going forwards so the advice focused on the standard procedure for setting tension with the tension dial.

Any advice please?

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At long last my Singer 201k is going to get all the use it deserves as a bag making machine after years at the bottom of the stash. Hand crank off (yes, will keep it safe), new motor bolted on so time for cleaning and oiling...

Any advice on the best stuff to clean up the metal bobbins? Most are just a bit dull and dark but a few have some marks.

[/url]Class 66 bobbins need a clean/img]

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Tech Know How / My theme keeps reverting to the default
« on: April 21, 2022, 21:43:47 PM »
I know how to reset it so no issue there but I thought it might be worth letting you know that this is at least the third if not fourth time it's defaulted back to Reseller. Certainly after each maintenance session.

I much prefer the Curve theme on my laptop - more efficient use of space, so I just reset it each time.

@Mr Twingo  ... imi xxx

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Access All Accessories / A bag not for pickpockets!
« on: April 06, 2022, 23:23:52 PM »
It's the Guardian backpack by Linds Handmade Designs which keeps the pickpockets at bay by having the only opening on the side that sits against the wearer's back. My SIL has long been looking for this type in a modest size but most RTW seem to be on the big side.

Finally, it's not in that purple fabric unlike my previous 4 bags! This one is in a polyester (?) knit furnishing fabric (hurrah for Immanuel's again) with quilting cotton front & back while the lining is actually cotton with a bit of stretch that's been tamed with woven interfacing.

Soooo many changes most noticeably by adding a pocket to the front! Other changes included using removable backstraps rather than fixed, a removable pad for the optional shoulder strap, extra stabiliser in the sides, back and front and most of all (having seen how much people struggled with those side pieces in the online tutorials) I bound all the internal seams - not just the base. Finally I added a rigid separate drop-in base so the bag wouldn't touch the ground between the feet even with a bit of weight in it.

I'm still pretty new to bag making - this is my 5th in as many months but this pattern isn't an easy sew. Certainly mine isn't perfect by a long way but I think it's presentable enough to give her and I'm sure she'll forgive the odd wobbly stitching here and there.


The Red Herring pocket – a good place for smart water perhaps?  :devil:


Couldn't get another pair of the wider snap hooks in time so ended up with unconventional D rings on the straps



May be a pain to flip the backstraps over the top every time to access that big zip opening (this is the shoulder strap in the photo) but there's great visibility of the contents when you do. And a bit of comfort for the old gals with bony shoulders... ;)


Extra rigidity added to the grab handle and below it to stop the bag slouching when lifted there and a close up of the terror of this pattern - the top of the side panels!

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Access All Accessories / Not another purple bag!!!
« on: March 07, 2022, 22:54:16 PM »
'Fraid so, but after our trip to the quilt show for more lining fabric, this will be its last outing for a little while at least. Other fabrics are queuing up now shouting "me next!". Choices! -<

This little bag was for a friend. It's the Beanie Baguette bag a brand new pattern by Spencer Ogg Patterns. Nice to sew apart from a demon curved zip. I unpicked it four times before I got the right combination of tricks and tips to get it to lie really smoothly without any waviness. If anyone fancies it, I'm happy to share them. Only problem was, after all that effort, I forgot to clip the bag curve and so it has a bit of a ripple. Fortunately, I don't think my friend will notice, she's too distracted by the Minnie Mouse zip slider and cat fabric inside. Also excellent techniques for new bag makers.

She's a big fan of Minnie. Personally, I prefer the Minions but it takes all sorts!  ;) 0_0





So pleased to have found a Minnie Mouse slider for her.  :D

The chevron striped webbing was a reasonable price and in the right width for this bag.


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Access All Accessories / My third bag with a lot of learning
« on: March 02, 2022, 01:40:30 AM »
Well this took over 2 months to make with rather a lot of time when I wasn't up to sewing but it's finally here.

It's a sling bag style (Retro Sling by Kandou Patterns) for my cat lady DGD to use at uni to carry her MS Surface, Kindle, notepad and other stuff. She likes something a bit smaller and sleeker than a full backpack and loved the pretty fabric I used for her mum's bag so hopefully those things met each other succcesfully here.

There were three distinct areas of change from the pattern which was perhaps a bit adventurous for such a complex bag (my third bag but only second pattern) so I suspect being ill and having more time to surf/ponder/plan proved very useful.

1] A fair bit extra width & height to get the mini laptop in. It changed the proportions to get the bulk of extra space in the centre and extra zip length for access but hopefully it's not lost the original vibe entirely.


2] Another clone of this style had two zipped compartments which I liked but the finish of the samples wasn't the best and I often have printing issues with non UK patterns so I decided I'd draft my own onto the simpler Retro Sling. I couldn't find any tutorials that covered the construction technique on that extra zipped compartment so I used my non-sewing time to work out the construction so the main compartment stuck with a bound finish inside (for extra support and very much easier to turn out) while the front compartments and flap were birthed through the zipper pocket.


3] The sling strap/backpack strap conversion has worked so nicely - I'm really pleased with that. I stole the idea from my lovely Italian leather mini sling/backpack which I've shamelessly used and abused and one of the main reasons I decided to take up bag making properly. I doubt I'll get to that until I've made a few more things for other people though.
   

Some pictures of the inside with a variety of pockets. The wooden block is my compact clapper just to keep the bag open while taking the shot. They'll lie flatter after the bag has been stuffed for a few days to open up the seams fully - can't do too much pressing of the outer fabric.

   
Main compartment, foam padded back and laptop pocket. I hacked on a last minute little 'catcher' pocket for accidental ink marks below the pen loops. Fingers crossed it works. DH surprised me by suggesting I used the fold-over elastic from the mesh pockets for the binding when I admitted I was rather dreading it and it worked brilliantly. We'll see how it stands up to use but not too bad to replace if necessary.

   
Middle compartment, mesh pocket for Kindle opposite zipped pocket containing 6 card slots.


Front flap


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Fun with Fabric / Mind blowing fabric - has to be Japanese
« on: February 17, 2022, 15:37:35 PM »
Mother of Pearl & lapis lazuli -  :scream: (in the best possible way)! Oh my word.

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Fun with Fabric / Can you tell what it is?
« on: January 01, 2022, 04:02:16 AM »
Can you tell what it is?



Yes, a dopp kit (only came across the name about 6 months ago) but I meant the fabric. I was making it for my 15 year-old DGS so it had to be 'cool'. Definitely not from my ballroom stash nor the stuff for doll's clothes but I'll give you a clue - it's stretchy. Or it was before I interfaced the heck out of it. Probably the last thing most people would use it for...so, second clue, I bought it years ago for a mini skirt for my DGD which never got made.

I did think using this stretchy fabric might give me some problems but the truth is that was about the only thing that didn't. Only a basic item but I followed entirely the wrong YouTube tutorial. An interesting construction but really only suited for fabrics without too much depth and no interfacing. This had both plus medium woven interfacing and sew-in fleece! I just couldn't resist the pattern with one pattern piece not considering it meant there was no allowance for a tighter lining, badly needed with all that thickness.

The internal seams were bound, a new bag making experience so not spectacularly neat but acceptable. The baggy waterproof canvas lining, however, was a silent recrimination with every glimpse but the zip was an absolute nightmare and I was just glad I hadn't melted it with a home bodged adapted gadget like he did. With my luck I might have burned the house down! To add insult to injury that zip cost me £2.96 from Doughty's and was described as suitable for upholstery, duvet covers etc but it was actually fragile, scratchy and sticky with a mean temperament. I was practising how to tell him he had to press the front of the slider with his thumb, open it gently and move it slowly to stop it jamming an inch further along... but that was never going to work, was it?!

So he didn't get it for Christmas. :cry: I started to unpick it on Boxing Day and it took a long time to take it apart entirely without damage (that fabric!). I reused all the pieces except for the end tabs and that damned zip which got replaced with the only other blue one I had, a £1 #3 nylon zip from Little T's Haberdashery. Doesn't sound like a step up but it really was. Stronger, smoother and with excellent manners. I sewed it with as little waste as I could, trimmed the box corners as minimally as I could to realign them but forgot to put the pull tabs into the seams at the ends of the zip before I sewed them up. What the heck, I wasn't going back now! Instead I made a couple of handles to go from the vertical box seams still unsewn before I aligned all the internal seams of both outer and lining and overstitched them altogether. Bit of wriggle to get it turned out through the lining gap that I'd graded from 1/4" in the corners to 3/4" and back to reduce the bagginess.

   
Not too bad this time, do you know what it is yet?

Just a simple dopp kit but what a test. It's wrapped up now as well as some jumbo Biscoffs (just in case) and we're off to see them again on Sunday. Now I just have to hope that fabric is cool enough.  :\


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Access All Accessories / Christmas sewing
« on: January 01, 2022, 02:32:15 AM »
I was never going to get too much done as I'd spent some time making my first proper handbag for a friend's birthday at the end of November. Then my DD waxed so lyrical about it I wanted to make her one as I'd got enough fabric left. On principle I told myself it had to include new learning experiences so I used foam stabiliser in place of the fleece and added a back outer pocket and twin slip pockets inside. She was very surprised...while I was gratifyingly delighted.  :D

An annoying picture though...I held it high up at an odd angle to exclude my shadow (late on as my sewing photos all end up being) and then rotated it. Only just noticed as I uploaded it to Flickr that it looks ridiculously wonky at the bottom...which it really isn't!

 

The rest include a Dopp kit (a tale of failure and redemption to come) for my DGS which he didn't get...yet. Plus various cases for sunglasses - they're quilted!!! Inside.  8)  A Golden Snitch pouch for my DD, a devoted Harry Potter fan in her mid 40s but the kids in her class seem to appreciate it as does the DGS's girlfriend who got the yellow and purple case with the little H... but at least she's only 16.

Finally a mini pouch with elastic inside to hold bottles of nail polish for the DGD who is definitely not an HP fan. However, she did become a mad cat lady early in lockdown and since starting uni in October she now has facetime calls with dear old Annie.  I swear the cat (in her 20s) is the most sane of the lot of them.

I'm now working on a sling/backpack for the DGD's birthday at the end of this month. It's lined with that cat fabric of course. Hmm, perhaps I've no room to talk either, I'm a bag lady now it seems.  :embarrassed:

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I finally got around to making a proper handbag - my friend's upcoming birthday gave me a bit of impetus but I'm already feeling a bit hooked. I used some polyester furnishing fabric from Immanuel's previously used for a doll carrying bag and some Liberty lawn print (a misprint from Standfast & Barracks at least 5 years ago). Good savings there helped to offset the cost of three different interfacings, hardware & zips and my friend will love the bag even more for the tale of its frugal fabrics. I saved on buying most of the hardware from a pet accessories company and I got away without rivets (which I don't have yet) by using the buttonhole function for a sturdy but very subtle bar tack, No problem sewing it as the fabric has a nice soft fibre :D

Anyone else have good tips for bag making on good quality components at frugal prices? Ive started a doc with details of who has what with prices, p&p etc to help in finding good value plus bundling options to avoid to many different p&p charges. I used the medium woven interfacing from Little Stitcher Sews at half the cost of Vilene G700 and I really like it. The Thermolam fleece was a good price from them too (£3 per half metre) plus no extra p&p. Their Tex 40 thread (Saba) sewed beautifully in my domestic machine and the colour match was fantastic considering it was selected on a computer screen. I'm planning to try their waterproof canvas soon to line a future bag too. It's the lighter weight so should have no problems on my machine.

Very pleased with the pattern too from Country Cow Designs in Cornwall. It's one of her beginner patterns at a low price of £2 and worth every penny. It came together so well and has some lovely details like the card slots inside the interior pocket. The sewalongs on this pattern from the designer and also SiahSwag and Jess OklaRoots meant I knew it inside out before I picked up the scissors. That made such a contrast with learning to sew for ballroom those years ago, even now there's a dearth of good quality information and free advice outside of FB groups.

I've just got some Aldi FQs of Harry Potter fabrics for some Christmas stocking gifts for my HP megafan daughter and my grandson's girlfriend. Zipped pouches, a handbag organiser insert and perhaps a quilted sunglasses case for my granddaughter's oversized sunglasses but definitely not in HP fabric for her!




Yes, the card slots!!!

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Fun with Fabric / Last minute practical kitchen makes for uni
« on: September 27, 2021, 00:48:10 AM »
We live a quiet life these days so I suppose this classes as fun.  ;)

I'm trying to drum up the enthusiasm to make a laundry bag for my granddaughter going off to uni but I got side tracked into making some gripper cloths for opening recalcitrant jars as she has quite small hands and struggles with some kitchen tools - her excuse for pinching her mum's tin opener, supposedly the only one she can use reliably.

I used some odd yellow fabric that is somewhat rough and synthetic feeling and some firmish fusible woven interfacing bought at Immanuel's last month for £1pm. I got it for bag making but this is its first outing, initial signs look good. The gripper is the rubber mesh non-slip stuff that Ikea sells and it does seem to work very well. The binding is neon orange stretch satin bias, it was still out after adding it to a net overskirt last week. At least she'll spot them stuffed down the bottom of a box when she needs one.

These were just meant to be prototypes but I decided she wasn't bothered how imperfect they were. Things must be good if this is the main thing I'm worrying she may be short of!  0_0



They might make quite a good little stocking filler to use up the odd unwanted patchwork square?

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This may not be all it seems at it was relisted after not being sold but worth closer perusal perhaps…

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