Giftwrap

It was so good to be able to gather with family last weekend and celebrate not one, but three upcoming birthdays! Some handmade giftwrapping was definitely in order.

First up was one of Jeni Baker/In Color Order's drawstring bags. I went for the Easy Going (Two Fabric) Drawstring Bag from her Lined Drawstring Bag Expansion Pattern. I used "WildField" from Wrenly, an oldie but goodie from Valori Wells, for the colorful exterior, and Cotton Couture Isle for the interior. If you've never made one of Jeni's bags, she's hosting a Lined Drawstring Bag Sew Along very soon. It would be the perfect time to try one!

Next up was a tutorial by Jeni that I had not tried before - one for Fabric Envelopes. In our family, on those occasions when a gift hasn't arrived yet or is too large to transport to the party, we've been known to make a personalized gift certificate. The larger Coupon Envelope was the perfect size for the certificate I'd printed up for hubby. I chose two coordinating Carolyn Friedlander prints, and it was super quick to sew up. Plus, choosing one of Carolyn's border fabrics added some really cool detail on the flap! 

Rather than install a snap this time, I just tied it up with a bow. Perfect.

And lastly, I used Svetlana Sotak/Sotak Handmade's Drawstring Bag tutorial, one I've used dozens of time. I found some darling sea-inspired fabric for this one from Birch Fabrics' Storybook 2 collection. I loved that the dotted print coordinated so well with the sea print, and was perfect for both the lining and casing.

So that was fun! Plus it was a nice diversion from the large quilt I've been quilting. Love those small projects for a quilt finish.

Gifting

Log Cabin Hexi Potholders, a free Craftsy pattern by SewCanShe, are one of my favorite scrappy projects, and they're perfect for a quick little gift. Come to think of it, I've gifted every set I've ever made.... hmmm. Anyway, I decided to sew up a set for mom for Mother's Day.



Per the usual for these, I used Linen Mochi Dots for the backing. That with a layer each of insul-bright and batting in the middle, makes for nice sturdy potholders.



Of course, I needed to wrap them, and adapted Jeni/In Color Order's Fabric Envelopes pattern to fit the potholder pair. (I cut my fabric and interfacing 12 1/2" wide by 24 1/2" tall.) I found the perfect-sized piece of Anna Maria Horner's Hand Drawn Garden in the stash, and fussy-cut to center the roses down the front of the envelope.



I did use SF101 Shape-Flex in place of the medium-weight interfacing suggested, basically because I plain like it, but that did result in a pretty flimsy envelope, but it worked great as a 'wrapper' and mom thought it was perfect, so there you go. Oh, and it has a snap! I'm still a 'read every line of the instructions' snap-applier, but I had great success with my SnapSetter Tool.



So that all worked out well, mom was pleased, and as usual, it was nice to have a couple of quick little finishes. Oh yeah.

Linking up with Finish It Up Friday!