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Simple zipper bag: How many mistakes can one person make?

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I’m a veteran zipper bag maker. I’ve sewn and documented a total of 360 zipper pouches, and I still make mistakes now and then. In fact, I seem to be very creative when it comes to making mistakes because I’ve managed to invent at least twenty different ones. If you’ve ever wondered whether you are the only one unpicking seams from a seemingly simple project, this post is for you. 1 – The rookie mistake Whenever I make this mistake, I think that a person who has sewn so many zipper bags really should know better already. But of course I’ve made the rookie mistake and sewn around the bag and lining pieces and forgotten to open the zipper. This happened, for example, when I was making the Grandma/Mummi zipper bag, which poses here in its finished state: The only way to recover from this mistake is to say hello to the seam ripper! One must unpick enough of the stitching so that one can open the zipper at least partly – to be able to turn the bag right side out. 2 – Pin mistake Sor...
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Opera zipper bag - from start to finish

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Greetings from my quilt studio (also called "the sewing table")! This is an unusually detailed description of how one of my zipper bags - the one called Opera / Ooppera came to life. A couple of weeks ago, I was going out to an evening do and noticed – again – that neither of my two trusted small purses went well with what I was wearing. I picked up one of my zipper bags, which was an ok choice. However, I felt that I should have a more unicoloured one. Already on the next day, I went through my smaller scraps and from one container, picked up the smallest ones. I made two stacks, one for deeper, another for lighter shades of red/pink. Then I cut a few shop receipts narrower and used them as guides to sew long-ish, scrappy rectangular pieces. My original idea was to build a bag with one darker side and one lighter side. Because I found two precious, long-saved pieces of Tula Pink fabrics, I ended up having a combination of darker and lighter pieces on both side pie...
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Splendid colour tips for quilting: Turquoise in quilts

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Today’s post concentrates on turquoise colour in quilts. You will get a tip or two on what to watch out for and many examples of how to use the turquoise colour successfully. The name "turquoise" for the semi-precious stone and its colour comes from the French word "turquois," which means "Turkish". This refers to the stone’s trading origins. (Source: https://www.thefactsite.com/turquoise-facts/ ) Turquoise has an element of both blue and green, and thus it is a close relative to them both. The colour is often associated with inventiveness and creativity. What to beware when using turquoise? To many of us, turquoise brings tropical waters to mind. A bright turquoise together with other bright colours may make the quilt surface resemble a Hawaiian shirt. (Though this may be the quilter’s goal of course.) I planned to create a stunningly beautiful zipper pouch from a combination of turquoise and a lovely red, but the result stunned me in a different...
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Kaffe Fassett squares: How it started – and how it’s going.

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This latest project of mine began with a tempting charm pack and no real plan, but a lot of hope! Here’s how my Kaffe Fassett squares quilt project started – and where it is now. Fabric bundles have always tempted me because they save me a lot of selecting and buying time. When I go to a fabric shop, it is easier to pick up a bundle of fat quarters, for example, than it is to pull the fabric I would like, then have the salesperson make the cuts. A bundle will also relieve me of the decision on how much to buy. Bundles are great that way, too! I’ve rarely bought charm packs or layer cakes though, and when I have, I’ve struggled to use them. I haven’t wanted to cut them up, nor have I figured how to use them whole. Until the recent purchase of a Kaffe Fassett charm pack. I came up with an idea of sorts for using the squares as they are, in scrappy blocks. And because all my fabrics and scraps are prewashed (because the not prewashed fabrics irritate my skin), I gave the squares a ...
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