On hiatus

My sewing drama will be on hiatus for three weeks while I travel home to Hawaii on my way to the Philippines to celebrate my grandmama's 100th birthday.  (Can you believe it, 100!  I have some really good genes in my family.) While I'm there, I figure I'll do research for the company and scout out some inexpensive fabrics and notions.  After PI, I'll jet off to Guam to visit my bro and check out their island fashions.  Maybe I'll find a muse to take back with me to Prescott.  By the time I get back, I'll be well rested and ready to start on the second tote. I've already chosen the fabrics- a tropical blue and white pattern and yellow polka dot lining.  The green round bag will have to stay in the WIP basket for a little longer. No tears next time around, though I'm not making any promises!  

Losing my mind . . . almost

I bet you're wondering what happened to me and the bag that drove me out of my mind. No, I didn't give up. For the remainder of Friday, I tried all kinds of different combinations as to how to finish the last 20%. I worked diligently (as in pinning and unpinning, staring, sewing and ripping) from noon until W whisked me off at 6:00 for a night of bowling with friends. I figured I deserved a break. Saturday was spent just like Friday, except now, the edges of the bag were looking a bit tattered than the day before. Sunday . . . the break down. After much huffing, cursing and realizing that I had made the same mistake for the second time, I stormed into my bedroom and threw myself onto the bed with as much grace as a polar bear. I'm a bit embarrassed, but I have to admit it . . . I cried. I cried out of shear frustration! I wanted to howl away, but W was in the next room so I shoved my head under a pillow to stifle my sobs. Why can't I figure it out?! Am I that stupid?! I know I'm smart, why can't I get it?! Seriously!? These thoughts went round and round in my moment of torment. Even worse, these thoughts needled their way in. Maybe I'm not meant for this. Maybe this is a sign. Maybe I should just stop right now and look for a real job. Then, after all our hoping to make it (even just a little), I'd have to break it to Shar that I wasn't up to snuff, that I was a big phony and I didn't have an inkling of sewing talent in me. Ugh, how depressing was I? That's when I caught myself. I needed to stop this self deprecation. (After all, I'm not a girl who likes to indulge in it for any reason.) What I needed to do was step away and BREATHE! It was all I was thinking about for the last three days. So, I let the unfinished bag sit untouched for the rest of the evening. Today, I didn't even think about it. Well, maybe I did for a little, if only to resolve that I would set it aside for the time being. For now, it's the first laying in a Work In Progress basket. There's no harm in moving to another project. I think I'll do another tote, finesse my technique with that bag and build up my confidence again.

Frustrated

I'm asking myself for the gazillionth time, "Why didn't the seamstress leave instructions?!" Seriously! Seriously.  I can't figure out how to attach the stupid, stupid handles! This is deja vu.  I feel like I'm in geometry class trying to figure out a proof. I have to say, geometry was much easier than this.  I stare at the pieces and play around with them . .  no good.  Pin and unpin and pin and unpin again . . . no good.  Take a lunch break and try again with fresh eyes . . . no good.  Close my eyes and try to imagine the bag being assembled . . . NO GOOD!  No joke, I'm about to tear the sample apart.  How many times have I cursed today?  It's a good thing (or maybe a bad thing) I'm not a devote Catholic.  My Hail Mary's would be 50 and counting. I'm about ready to give up, but I refuse and I'm this close to the end! You know why? Because when all is said and done, it feels SO good to see the finished product. Now, let's do this!

My guideline

My frustration

Huh, I think the little pep talk to myself worked.  I just needed to vent!

Pockets

I learned how to make pockets!  I'm ecstatic!!!  How can something so small evoke such joy?! Just look at how my first attempt came out.  No mistakes and so very clean! 

Just the perfect size to hold little odds and ends-phone, keys, mints, pepper spray.  

I thought they would be difficult, but a short tutorial from Candi Cane Canncell of ExpertVillage.com showed me just how easy they are to make.  However, I do need to make a correction. Square pockets are easy to make.  Curved pockets, on the other hand, are a pain in the ass.

  

I decided to revamp the bag a bit and add two more pockets on the outside (I'm glad they blend in).  These two buggars gave me such a headache!

I don't know how many times I had to back track.  Ugh, I need more practice with curved pieces.  I'm not as far as I'd like to be. I was hoping to be done by today, but the making of pockets sidetracked me. Tomorrow I'll sew the outer shell and put everything together.

By the way, here's my tiny sewing station-a hand painted throne and a little something dangling above my head to remind me that I'm a rock star.  Every girl needs an encouraging work environment. 

 

I also have a little company nearby.  She doesn't speak, but she's quite nice to look at!  Which reminds me, we need an updated photo of the both of us. This was taken about five years ago.

 

Circa 2004 at Fenway Park, Boston  

Project # 2

I finished the first tote yesterday and I have to admit that I'm a bit disappointed.  Not because of the finished product (the bag is great, mind you!), but because it was so anticlimactic.  I thought I'd get that whole "OMG!!! Look what I just made!!!" jubilation, buuuuut nope, not so much.  I suppose I got a bit ahead of myself and celebrated a couple of days earlier, leading to my "Hmph, ok, I'm done" feeling.  

Finished tote, minus the metal rings in the handles.  Should have added them.  Good practice, though.  Made a lot of rookie mistakes on this puppy!

Since this was strictly practice, I didn't really care if the colors matched.  I also used whatever fabric was handy ($2 remnant from Walmart) and Shar's shawl for the lining.   Originally, I cut the lining from her green prom dress, but the fabric was a horror to work with.  Stretchy green satin no bueno!  

On to Project #2: The Margarita . . . or whatever we called it. On a side note, I think we may need to rethink these names. Maybe it was our weekly meetings at Pearl Ultra Lounge that influenced us.  I can't keep them straight anymore and women might think we're lushes!  Back to the project . . . 

One of my favorites.  The ???

I needed to freehand the ruffle since the seamstress forgot to include it with the pattern before she left for Hungary.  Oh well, it gave me an excuse to use the French curves.  I knew I didn't buy them for nothing!

Celadon green shell and turquoise lining.

Yes, I know the patterns may be funky together, but trust me, the colors work!  Just one more thing to do before stitching everything together . . . attaching the interfacing.

Hello Kitty has seen better days.

This part truly sucks.  Stupid iron leaks EVERYTIME and I burnt my thumb in the process.  I'm surprised I didn't get electrocuted!  Nonetheless, this is an important step and a very crucial element to the bag. If there's anything I learned in the handbag making biz, it's that a bag needs a supporting structure and you can't skimp on interfacing/interlining.  After that whole mess, I sewed pieces of the handle and pinned the lining together.

Rattan handle ready to be attached

Where I left off last night and where I'll begin today.  

Hopefully I'll have a finished bag to show off this evening.  I'll try to hold off on early celebrations.

In the beginning

For posterity's sake (and so that Shar and I can look back upon our rookie moments and laugh), I'm going to chronicle our adventures in sewing our handbags.  With a dwindling bank account from getting this company started, it only made sense for me to give it a shot instead of hiring a seamstress.  Aaaand I have loads of time on my hands since my hubby and I moved to Arizona from Hawaii.  No job = Lots of time to sew! Project 1: tote bag.  It's much harder than I thought!  I've made many mistakes along the way . . . not using the proper fabric for lining, burning the fabric on the iron, skipping steps (though, very easy to do when the pattern doesn't come with instructions!) and the countless times I stabbed myself with the pins (when do the calluses set in?!).  I've learned from my mistakes though.  Half the fun is the journey right?  I know I'll get faster the next time.  With the first tote 95% done, I'm getting a rush of excitement just thinking about the next bag. Hmm . . . the one with the round handles or the one I saw on TV last night?  Yep, this looks like a promising beginning . . .