Zakka Style - Book Review

A month or so ago I received the book Zakka Style by Rashida Coleman-Hale in the mail. There are 24 projects in the book. The projects are inspired by the Japanese "Zakka" style and they use linen as a jumping off point for every single project. They range from bookmarks to bags, from pot holders to nesting boxes. 

Vor einem Monat oder so habe ich in der Post das Buch Zakka Style von Rashida Coleman-Hale bekommen. Es sind 24 Projekte in dem Buch die weit gehendst mit Leinen im Japanischen Stil genäht sind. Von Lesezeichen zu Taschen, von Topflappen zu Schachtelkästen.

Here are some pictures of the projects in the book to help you decide if the book could be useful to you:

Hier sind einige Bilder von den Projekten in dem Buch um dir zu helfen zu entscheiden wie nützlich dieses Buch dir sein könnte:

I have made several of the projects here and here already and a couple more are in different stages of completion (think Easter and B-day presents)! The instructions so far were spot on and easy to understand! I think you could use most projects to reduce your scrap stash :-) You also don't have to use linen. I have substituted regular cotton prints (I don't have much linen on hand!) and the projects turned out just as cute! 

The book is definitely worth the $11 and a really good addition to anyone's sewing library.

Ich habe schon mehrere Projekte hier und hier gemacht und ein paar sind in verschiedenen Stadien von "Fertig" (denke an Ostern und Geburtstagsgeschenke)! Die Anleitungen waren so weit ohne Fehler und sehr leicht zu verstehen! Ich denke das man Reste sehr gut für die meisten Projekte benutzen kann :-) Man muss auch kann Leinen benutzen. Ich habe es einfach mit normalen Baumwollstoff ausgetauscht (Ich habe nicht viel Leinen zuhaue!) und die Projekte wurden genauso hübsch! 

Das Buch ist definitiv sein Geld wert und eine gute Zugabe für jede Nähbücherei.

What do you think of the shown projects?

Was haelt's du von den gezeigten Projekten?

Take care,

Me

Scrap Project # 3 - Pencil Case

A few days ago I told you about the book Zakka Style by Rashida Coleman-Hale. Here is my second scrap project out of it. It's the Patchwork pencil case.

Ich habe dir vor ein paar Tagen von dem Buch Zakka Style von Rashida Coleman-Hale. Hier ist nun mein zweites Projekt aus diesem Buch. Ein Patchwork Stiftemaeppchen.

It's absolutely darling. Again I didn't have linen on hand so I substituted it with cotton fabric. I also stitched a little flower instead of the monogram. Overall I am really really pleased with how it turned out! The instructions were really great. I also learned something new... a new way of how to sew the lining and the outside fabric together!

Es ist wirklich suess. Natuerlich hatte ich wieder kein Leinen zur Hand und habe es deswegen mit Baumwollstoffen genaeht. Ich habe auch eine kleine Blume gestickt statt des Monogramms. Im grossen und ganzen bin ich wirklich damit zufrieden. Die Anleitung war wirklich gut. Ich habe sogar etwas Neues gelernt... eine neue Art wie man das Futter und den Aussenstoff zusammen naeht!

On to the next project!

Auf zum naechsten Projekt!

Take Care,

Me

Scrap Project # 2

I have a ton of books. Why not use them to reduce my scrap pile? In fact I just got two new books that I had preordered last year! I tend to forget that I preordered certain books and when they show up in our mail box - surprise! So I have been looking through them to find scrap friendly projects.

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Ich habe jede Menge Buecher. Warum sollte ich sie nicht benutzen um meinen Resteberg zu reduzieren? Ich habe gerade erst zwei neue Buecher bekommen die ich letztes Jahr schon vorbestellt hatte! Ich habe die Tendenz meine vorbestellten Buecher zu vergessen und wenn sie dann in meinem Briefkasten auftauchen - Ueberraschung! Ich bin gerade im Begriff sie alle durchzuschauen um Restefreundliche Projekte zu finden.

Zakka Style has a ton of projects in it that I have already  marked.

The first on that I sewed up was this little sewing kit.

 Zakka Style hat jede Menge an Projekten die ich schon markiert habe.

Das erste Projekt das ich genaeht habe ist das Naehkit.

I don't have any rubber stamps so I embroidered a little bird on my cushion and the front of my sewing kit. I also didn't have any linen on hand. I couldn't order any either because that would be counter productive to my New Year's resolution to reduce my scrap pile! So I just used regular cotton fabric.

Ich habe keine Stempel deswegen habe ich einen kleinen Vogel auf mein Naehkissen und vorne auf die Tasche gestickt. Ich hatte auch kein Leinen zur Hand. Ich konnte auch keines bestellen denn das wuerde ja im Gegensatz zu meinem Neujahr's Vorsatz meine Reste aufzubrauchen sein. Ich habe deswegen einfachen Baumwollstoff benutzt.

The instructions were great! I would definitely recommend this project. I am so looking forward to make some of my other marked projects from this book!

Die Anleitung war grossartig! Ich wuerde definitiv dieses Project empfehlen. Ich freue mich schon darauf die anderen markierten Projekte aus diesem Buch zu machen!]

Take Care,

Me

Topic of the Day: Mail a.k.a. Review of Fabric-by-Fabric One-Yard Wonders

 It seems like that “mail” is a wonderful thing today! Since I already showed you what I sent off in the mail today, I thought it would be fun to show you what I got in the mail today. (Talk about perfect timing!)

It’s the new Fabric-by-Fabric One –Yard Wonders! 

I am so excited by it! It is chockfull of wonderful projects! I have already marked the following as must-have's:

Retro Bag by Sue Kim; I love the clean lines and the wonderful pleats. It also looks like it can carry what I use on a daily basis. 

Personalized Garment Bag by Lisa Cox; I need to make a couple for everyone in my family! We all have seasonal clothing that needs to be stored for at least a few months each year.

Hanging Book Display by Katherine Donaldson; I love this! I always pile up my books on my night stand. So I am going to make one (maybe even two!) for myself. I think that this will be my first project that I am going to sew out of this book!

Eight-Bottle Tote by Susan Byrd; What a genius design! And so easy! At least according to the instructions! LOL  I need to make one for my mom and for myself!

Farmers’ market Tote by Michelle Fante; No special reasoning behind it except that I love it! LOL

Pajama Boots by Sue Kim; Pasha showed those type of fleece boots at a store down town. So I know she wants some. Actually if I hurry up I could make those as a stocking stuffer! If I shorten it then it might work for my mom and sisters and even me (I hate cold feet...)! Hmmm, maybe this will be my first project instead since I have fun fleece on hand!

Bunny Pillow by Marlene Gaige; It’s just too cute not to make it!

Last-Minute Tunic by Heidi Massingill; I want one but I am going to add sleeves short ones or maybe even long ones since it’s cold outside!

Speedy Ruffle Scarf by Jenna Lou Odegard; I am a scarf fanatic… enough said!

Cool Season Clutch by Leigh Ann Tennant; It’s a bag that looks pretty! I am a sucker for pretty!

Wave Illusions Pillow by Caroline Sanchez; I don’t love making pleats but I love pleats! Does that make sense?

Of course, it also had some dress up clothes for “tiny” kids. But I don’t have those at home. But I thought that you might want to see a few of them...

The book also has a bunch of things that I really don’t have a use for it right now but I would never say never!

One project that I would definitely have to revise something on though is the Organizer Wallet. One of the materials needed is a magnetic snap! I don’t think that’s very smart though. Don’t banks and other places that give you those credit cards and membership cards tell you to keep your card away from anything magnetic because it messes up the magnetic stripe on the bag? So I would probably use a regular snap or Velcro. But maybe I am wrong about that?

Do you see a couple of projects that you might like?

Take care,

Me

P.S. I can't say how accurate or easy-to-read the instructions are. But I'll let you know as I am sewing them up! :-)

Jennifer Paganelli – Girl’s World

Every once in a while I preorder a book without having seen it first. Sometimes it’s a great book and sometimes it’s not.  My friends love when I get one that I am not completely sold on because I pass it on to them :-)

Well, Jennifer Paganelli’s book  "Girl's World"  is one of these great books that I am glad that I preordered. It came last week and I was blown away! 

I opened the package and saw that the book was tied at the side with a pink ribbon. How cute is that!

I opened it up and fell in love! The photography, the colors, and the projects are just so beautiful! I didn’t know what to look at first. The book is divided in to 4 sections. The first one is of course the basics of sewing and the sizing. The projects are divided in to “Dress-Up”, “Accessories” and “Home”.

I didn’t spend much time in the first section except to see if the sizing runs large enough for me to make something for P. And yes it does… yippee!

P chose a couple of projects for me to make already! The banner is exactly what she wants. Well, except for the “happy birthday” on it. She wants “Peace & Happiness” instead!

She also wants the Agnes Tunic dress. But again not as a dress but as a top. That’s just too easy to accommodate.

I want the quilt!

It is a simple square quilt and should be finished within a weekend. I know I have one of the fabrics somewhere in my closet. I have to dig it out and order the rest. Yeah, I know, wasn’t there a fabric diet in effect? :-)

Here are a few more shots of the projects for you if you still need to make up your mind whether to buy it or not…

Take care,

Me

Embroidery a.k.a Not Another One!

Embroidery has been on my mind for a few months now. Not that I need something else to consume what little time I have left in the day. But yes, I seem to have picked up a new hobby. I don't even know how it happened! I saw a picture on some blog (and I can't even remember which blog...) and I clicked on a link which led me to another blog and to another. 

During that particular journey across blog land I came across Little Deer Tracks.  Her embroidery is so beautiful and inspiring. I noticed that she had a book out called "Doodle Stitching".  It is geared toward the beginner. Well, that would be me...

I got it from the library to get a closer look. There are 4 sections in this book. The first two are Embroidery Essentials and how to get started. I just copied down the essentials and bought them on my next trip to the crafts store. It wasn't expensive at all.

The next section is on embroidery projects. There are 29 of them. They range from embroidering scarfs to skirts to pillows. There is something for everyone. I started of with a simple stitch sampler. The french knots were the hardest to learn. I couldn't get them to be tight. But I beat the french knots and they are now my best friends :-)  I really like how the author describes each stitch. I felt like she was sitting right next to me guiding me through each single step. 

I have to admit that I haven't made any of the projects yet. However, I bought a wonderful pattern from the author's etsy shop. It reminded me of P. I wonder if that's how it looks like in her head when she thinks up one of her wonderful stories?

Take Care

Me 

P.S. I renewed the book three times. I tried a fourth time but someone already had a hold on it and I had to relinquish my copy. I ended up buying the book as well as Doodle Stitching The Motif Collection. Now whenever I sit in front of the tv I have some kind of embroidery project in my hands...

Livin' Large

I have a love affair with fabric. I could buy fabric like there is no tomorrow. But I do have a hard time using all that lovely fabric because I don't have the heart to cut it up. I was talking to a friend of mine about this and she recommended the book "Livin' Large" from Heather Mulder Peterson. I had to order it right away even if it was a bit on the expensive side

. 

This book is just so lovely. It has eleven projects with many variations from which to choose. I decided on the Kaleidoscope pattern to feature some beautiful Delilah fabric. The cutting information were very precise. I didn't have a lot of fabric leftovers.  I didn't use the assembly instructions because I like to put a quilt together my way. The end result is the same though. I am now in the process of pinning it and hope to have it all finished by the next weekend because I still have a ton of projects waiting for me...

Take Care

Me