A bag for a friend.......and a bag for me

My friend, Anne's (you know......my lovely stitching friend) daughter, Trudy (who is also my friend) will celebrate her birthday in a couple of days, so I decided to fashion her a  Kim Sharman design, one-of-a-kind bag that she can sling over her shoulder when out and about town. Now.....what can I whip up?? What pretties can I unearth to create a one-of-a-kind, divine little bag that will set the streets a-buzzing??

I dived headlong into my many suitcases brimming over with ribbons, laces, buttons, doilies et cetera, et cetera, pulling out what I thought might work. Trudy loves the colour red so I decided upon a little number with oodles of red popping up here and there, oh and some black; after all red and black are best of friends.

I unearthed a remnant of charcoal grey, nubby-type fabric and a piece of grey leather which would be perfect for the bottom.

With my fabrics and a little bit of this and a whole lot of that gathered together, I began playing.

The main attraction is a needlepoint of red poppies I acquired a little while ago. Whenever I spot a needlepoint, either in a frame or as a remnant in an op shop, I always take it home with me as they can be refashioned in oh-so-many ways.

I thought a french wired ribbon cinched here and there around the needlepoint would be an excellent idea. Of course if there is a cinched ribbon, there has to be a pretty bow.

I ruched a red satin ribbon shaping a flower as I stitched and with the addition of a cute-as-cute button, I think it looks perfect. Doesn't 'she' look ravishing nestled among the ruffles of the satin ribbon. With the addition of some black, guipure lace leaves and a grey and black brooch, plus a doily, I stitched merrily away.

I found this pretty red and white vintage ribbon trim from my favourite vintage shop here in Tassie?? The teeny little flowers and the square pattern are in a red flock fabric. It really is very pretty.

The back is simple with just the vintage trim making an appearance. The lining is a cotton, red and white, floral print from my stash.

NOW.....let's chat about the cross-over-the-body bag I stitched  recently for me, myself and I. I was in need of a bag with brown tonings to team with a pair of boots. Never being a gal where one bag fits all occasions, I like to have matching bags and shoes for different outfits. My matching bag/shoe predilection harks back to the days when as a slip of a girl I worked as a general management secretary in a large insurance company, meeting and greeting and rubbing shoulders with the wheeler dealers who exist in the higher echelon of the business world. Though, if I am truthful, my shoe and bag fettish and love for fashion started well before those heady days.

Just a few books pertaining to the subject of fashion that I have acquired and have been gifted over the years. As I have already intimated, I have always been a gal who has been interested in fashion. What can I say?? I am but a shallow gal. ;)

Just a little aside, the book with the brilliant title "Women I Have Undressed" is a memoir of the Australian costumer designer, Orry-Kelly who went to Hollywood in the 1930's and designed the wardrobes of all the biggest stars, from Bette Davis to Marilyn Monroe. He won three Oscars for his costume design. It is a fascinating read as I both love movies from the Golden Years of Hollywood, the stars and those exquisite sets and costume design. Orry-Kelly's take on Hollywood in those days is a delightful read.

These days of course, living in this far rural outpost, I can count on one hand the pretty shoes or boots that sit in the wardrobe. These days my oft-worn pair of footwear seems to be a floral-covered pair of gumboots. No, no.....not standard black issue gumboots for me. My gumboots, though so faded that one can hardly distinguish the bright pink flowers anymore, are mandatory around these parts. Walking around the paddocks and garden, one never quite knows what one's clod hoppers will step in.

BUT.......I digress yet again........so sorry! One of these days I will stick to the topic at hand! Without further ado, my little brown bag that I conjured up late one night. Again I used ruched ribbons (of course), a doily, fringing, brooches, a lovely floral upholstery fabric, and leathers and suedes.

Mmm.....so happy with my little bag. It teams perfectly with my brown boots  and remember that op shop jacket I tarted up a few moons ago???? My little bag kinda looks spiffy with that, too.

Designing and stitching bags is always fun for me. I am so thankful that I need only step into my sunny, sewing room and unearth pretty fabric, trims and bits and bobs in the designing and stitching of my bags, or anything else for that matter. I am so very thankful I have been hoarding collecting a little bit of this and a whole lot of that for years and years. I truly have a seriously, amazing stash of pretties which would cost a small fortune if I were to purchase all the pretties today. I don't think I have purchased a bag from a store for a very, very long time; years in fact. With just a little imagination and an 'Aladdin's cave' of gorgeous pretties, one can whip up anything....well almost.

So happy with Trudy's pretty, red and black bag and so happy with my brown and black number. Fingers crossed Trudy is equally enamored with her pretty. This coming week it's back to a li'l hexie stitching for me.......the light down the QAYG hexie tunnel is shining a little brighter.

It's almost the weekend down here at the bottom of the world. Wishing all you lovelies a fabulous weekend. Until the  next time....................

A li'l chair recovering

I adore chairs. Indeed our home has probably one too many, but I try to squeeze them in wherever I can fit them. Though I would love to be able to purchase beautiful and expensive chairs, you know, the ones that have three or four zeros behind the dollar sign, alas I cannot. Sooooo.......I am always on the lookout for chairs which perhaps I can  recover, as one can usually buy once-loved chairs for a song. I actually love to  drag these "upholsterer's delights home with me with the purpose of tarting them up; to dress them in a pretty new cover. As long as the padding is in tact and there are hardly any upholstery issues, recovering a chair is usually 'child's play'!! Mmmm.....did I say child's play????

Way, way back when, I revealed a secret how I love to sit my gluteus maximus on a comfy chair. Indeed, a good part of my day is filled with moments of sitting or indeed lounging my well-padded derriere on a squishy, squashy chair; knitting, reading, stitching, participating in a little tea drinking or indeed just day dreaming. Probably too many moments if I am to be truthful!

I bought this rather cheerless looking chair a few years ago. I actually bought two of these chairs. The princely sum of $30 exchanged hands for the both. Yes indeedy, $15......fifteen smackeroos for each one!!! A BARGAIN!!! Did you notice the castor wheels on the legs? When I bought these chairs, I laughingly said to my daughter, that I need never move my gluteus maximus in my aged and infirmed years; everybody can just wheel me around from room to room!! Soooooo much more comfy than a wheelchair!!

Here is the other chair I dressed in a pretty fabric (blue of course) several years ago. It sits in the 'parlour', with my husband (when he sits...that is,) usually sitting upon it. Yes indeedy, I love this 'new' chair!

For a little while now, my rather dejected chair has been hidden under one of my hexie quilts, and though it looks tolerable enough with my pretty hexie sitting atop it, I have decided now is the time to give this chair a tarted up, new look.

I did consider taking the scissors to my hexie and cutting it to cover the chair, but I decided to do the 'Kim Sharman' thing and camouflage it with a selection of different fabrics, doilies and other treasures that I found. Besides, I don't know if I could cut into my  hexie, as this quilt is one of my all time faves. I love how it has faded with the years and is squishy, squashy. It takes forever for a quilt to become this 'loved'.

Me being me, I had to, had to, cover the wood with a lick of paint. Not white this time but a grey with the lovely name of Marina Pearl.

I wanted this chair to be funky. I used this pretty fabric with butterflies flitting here and there and then proceeded to stitch doilies and patches of fabric to the base fabric.

I found this applique flower in my stash and thought it would look wonderful on the chair. This was a leftover flower from a quilt I stitched years ago. Another much loved quilt as it was my first one I stitched. I am rather partial to old quilts. I can't wait until new quilts acquire that oft used and soft look.

I added some more doilies and thought this fabric with words would give a lovely touch. Happiness...hug....laugh....relax....life....home.....all words which in essence, maketh a home.

To keep with the funkiness of this chair, I wanted to add trims to the bottom that were different. A strip of an old crochet tablecloth, some fringing from an old Italian coverlet, a piece of lace with two love birds and some more crochet edging. I love the higgledy piggledy-ness of this look. I find this muddly look rather pleasing.

I covered the arms with a cream, blue and brown fabric that I found in my stash.

So there you have it, a once rather shabby looking chair, with a less than to be desired cover, now looking rather perky in it's pretty, new cover. I just love how my 'new' chair has come together.

Aah yes......blue and white.....just gorgeous together.

Oooh.... my pretty, new chair looks rather spiffy with my ottoman that I recovered a li'l while ago, sitting next to it.

I must say I had a lot of fun stitching this cover and yes......it really was rather like child's play. =) I can see in my crystal ball, many mornings with me and my gluteus maximus, sitting on my funky chair, with the sun streaming in through the window, perhaps enjoying a little knitting or reading a good book and of course enjoying a cup of tea.

I love my 'new' tarted up chair. And....the best thing is that I didn't have to put two or three or indeed four zeros after the dollar sign. My tarted up lovely cost me the grand sum of  fifteen dollars. The fabrics and doilies and trims came from my dowry of cloth. Now....that makes me a very happy gal!

Speaking about sitting one's gluteus maximus on a comfy chair......I think I might just go and do a bit of that right now and enjoy a spot of afternoon tea. Hope you are all enjoying a lovely weekend.

Until the next time.........


Linking up this week to
The Charm of Home - Home Sweet Home
Bernideen's, BTTCG party
Jann's Share your cup
Mimi's Five Star Frou Frou
Sweet Inspiration Link Party

I'm just an ole bag lady......

No, no......not a homeless lady who carries her worldly possessions around with her in a bag.....but one who every six months or so, seems to feel the need to fashion a new bag. Though I admit, it is as if I lug around what seems to be all my worldly possessions in my bag, because when my hand burrows deep into the cavernous depths of my carryall, I never seem to be able to find what it is I am searching for. Am I the only gal who seems to tip my bag upside down with all the contents plunging out into a disarray mess, so I can find that one thing. I have a sneaky suspicion I am not the only one.

With the idea of saving this little over the shoulder number that I fashioned last year from becoming tattered and threadbare, I wanted to stitch a new bag.  I decided to whip up a new bag, with just a few pretties embellished on it.

But...before I reveal my new bag, let me first show you all the pretties from which I fashioned it.

I bought a teal coloured (it doesn't look at all teal here, but it really is) upholstery fabric and decided to use this sweet, butterfly  needlepoint piece, I found a few years ago at a market. Isn't the butterfly pretty? Amazing that someone tossed this out! Oh well....someone's trash....my treasure!!

I then plucked out a few doilies, ribbons and other fripperies from my treasure trove to audition them with the tapestry; and  then began to play.

Although doily overkill warms the cockles of my heart, after placing a doily here and a doily there, I decided to actually not use many at all. I know, unbelievable that I should show a little restraint; to not weigh down my bag with pretty overload; but there you go.

Somehow I like this arrangement better. I pinned down a lovely, royal blue, French wired ribbon which I  scrunched here and there, cinching it at close intervals; and added a brass belt buckle, a few pretty, crochet flowers and some ribbon leaves. Mmmm....yes....for this bag I much prefer a  more pared down aesthetic. Who would have thought that me, the doyenne of all things embellishment would only adorn sparingly. I really don't quite know what has come over me!! I suppose for once, I just wanted a quick project. Everything I have fashioned of late has taken an age to complete. =)

With a stitch here and a stitch or two there, before I knew it all the embellishing was finished. Yay...didn't take long at all.

After sewing the bag together I lined it with this funky fabric. Isn't it fabulous.....sooooo 1960's! For a gal whose favourite hue is blue, this fabric truly makes me dance!

I love my new bag. The pretty butterfly can now fly free. Much, much better to be seen around about town slung over the shoulder of an ole bag lady, than sitting in the said bag lady's armoire, hidden from the world.

Until the next time, have the most wonderful weekend, everyone. 'Tis toodles from me.

Linking up to this week's parties at Stephanie's, Roses of Inspiration

Jann's, Share Your Cup Thursday

Bernideen's, BTTCG