Pardon the interruption, this blue bag budged in line and is screaming for attention.

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Give that fabric a break for one day, and look what happens!

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After leaping from one backpack right into a second backpack, I decided to take a short break.  From backpacks.  I’ll finish that coral beauty soon.

I joined the Bag of the Month Club over at Sew Sweetness.  You can still get in on this cool deal, six new purse patterns, one each month, January through June.  The February pattern is by Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness.  This is called the Hyacinth Bag.

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This is the front of the bag with the flap already finished and attached.  Sara added some cool details – a coin pocket and three credit card slots.

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Hope my topstitching can hold up in the close-ups!  And it is not an optical illusion – there are two saints hovering over that zipper.  Have I mentioned that I love putting in zippers?  And how pretty is this fabric?  It’s Lady of Guadalupe by Kanvas.

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Shaka Hula Fork Dude is holding the back of the purse with a – wait for it – zipper!  That’s where I’ll keep my ginormous new phone.  And Shaka Hula Fork Dude has something he wants to say…

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Hi Linda!

OMG, you haven’t even seen the lining yet!  You’ll just have to suffer until tomorrow.

Now go make something pretty!

The pack is back! And I’m not talking about Green Bay, Bubba!

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Backpack number two, travel bag number four.  All in the New Year!

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The Shaka Hula Fork Chef wanted to get in on this one. Cheeky little guy.

To recap my obsession…I am determined to make the perfect travel bag.  One’s too small, one’s too heavy, one is ALMOST just right.  I’m living Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  Maybe this one will be Baby Bear.

The pattern is the Dawn to Dusk backpack by Chris W. Designs.  This fabric is from the Lark Collection by Amy Butler.  I redrafted the pattern to add one inch to the width, two inches to the height, and two inches to the depth.  And, by golly, my laptop will definitely fit into this one!

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I had to redraft my redraft of the water bottle pocket to make it wider, and also added an inch in height.  I put in a 2″ gusset at the bottom of this pocket, so the water bottle will sit nicely and not squirt itself out of the pocket.  At this point, I’m pretty sure I could stash a liter bottle of vodka in this bad boy.  Not that I’d want to do that, but I could.

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The snappy pocket on the other side also got a makeover.  It’s 2″ taller and 2″ wider.  I could actually put something useful in here.  Like Junior Mints and a bottle of Ambien.

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Thankfully, I didn’t have to change the curvy strappy part.  I still have to add on the buckles, then the outside will be done.  Except for the fact that I forgot to put in the webbing at the top to make the hangy-uppy loop.  Rip-a-dee-doo-dah.  And I still have to make the lining.  Wait ’til you see that!

Now you have to sit back and suffer.  I’m going to leave you hanging for a day, unlike this backpack, which does not yet have it’s hanging loop.  We’re going into town, into civilization, to shop for new phones and a new phone plan.  I fully expect this to take all day, much to my chagrin.  So no progress in my sewing room expected today, and I am not planning on posting tomorrow.  Although, maybe an intermission…

Stay crafty, my friends.

Grilled pork chops get a second chance on the table! Piggy fried noodles!

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I bought a ginormous package of thick cut port chops the other day.  Gotta love those Costco portions.  The Mr. put them in the freezer for me.  Still in the Costco package.  All three-plus pounds of them.

So…what can I do with nine huge pork chops?  All at once?  Cue up the grill.  I seasoned three of them, ate those bad boys with some fava beans and a nice chianti.  Ftftftftft…

Okay, not really.  But they were nummy.  The rest of the chops were cooked without the seasoning, and I got them off the grill while they were still pink in the middle.  So it’s time for round two.  Ding ding!

Using the admittedly scarce resources at our local market, I scrounged up the fixins for stir-fry.  Mushrooms, napa cabbage, bean sprouts, green onions, and one of those pork chops.  Oh yeah, and noodles. For the sauce, I used a combo of soy sauce and Szechuan stir-fry sauce.

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And here is the  finished wok-o-licious dinner.

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I’m full.  And tomorrow I’ll be back in the sewing room.  I hope somebody makes me dinner.

Bigger, better, faster, stronger. And monogrammed with a giant C.

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When last we spoke, I was contemplating the shortcoming of my gorgeous Dawn to Dusk backpack.  Just one shortcoming.  It wasn’t big enough for my laptop.

I spent the weekend drafting a larger version.  Lots of pieces to this baby, and most of them needed to be resized.  I added to all three dimensions; length, width, and height.

One of the hardest things about making a new version is the fabric choice.  I have to admit, I am in love with that Philip Jacobs Japanese Chrysanthemum fabric I used for the first one.  The good news is that I scored a gorgeous Amy Butler fabric at one of my local enablers.

I seem to spend lots of my time lately disproving my own operational tactics.  I really don’t like to make the same thing twice.  But here I go again.

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I decided it needed something.  Like a gigantic monogram.  Lucky me, my first and last names start with the same letter.  Then I went to the Urban Threads website.  They have the coolest, most unusual embroidery designs I have found.  And they are having a sale right now on alphabets!  So I bought a massive letter.

I did not want the monogram to be glaringly obvious, which is kinda counterintuitive when you are adding a humongous letter to your project.  I picked brighter versions of the colors that are in the fabric, so that it could be seen but would not overwhelm the gorgeous textile.

BTW, I also had to watch the Superbowl this weekend.  Well, at least the ads and the halftime show.  Katy Perry was awesome, especially riding in on the giant metal tiger.  With guys in black bodysuits moving the legs.  Of the tiger, not Katy Perry.  And the little lost Budweiser dog…let’s just say, tears were shed.

Now go make something pretty!

The tote board is heavy; travel bag total for January = 3

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It’s done, it’s done, the backpack is done!

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It looks smashing with wet hair, pink leopard jammies, and oversized tee shirts.

The lining went in beautifully.  Big elasticized pocket at the back for flip flops, or my Kindle, or perhaps my tiara.  Zipper pocket at the front for my earrings and mustache wax.

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Guess what doesn’t fit in my backpack.  Besides my 20 pound cat.  It’s my laptop.  There’s a helluva how-do-you-do.

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Tippy was a big help today.  While I finished the backpack, he took care of some grooming issues.

My assignment for February = travel bag/backpack in which I can carry my laptop.  Obsessed much?

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Backpack with a back, and a plea to save the crab and mac nut wontons!

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Today is a good day, my backpack has a back.

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I am so NOT a backpack kinda gal.  And the only reason I started this project, if you’re paying attention, is that I am trying to find the perfect travel bag.

Despite these disclaimers of mine, I think this thing is gorgeous, and I will carry it proudly.  I love the royal blue webbing I found for the adjustable part of the straps.

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This sly beauty still has a secret…it is naked on the inside.

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I promise I will do the lining, with it’s fabulous pockets, and get it finished.  I’ll even find some unwilling subject to model it!

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Part two of this little dissertation  doesn’t involve sewing.  Or cooking.  Pretty much just eating.  Eating this.

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Crab and mac nut wontons.  My very favorite thing to eat at Duke’s here on Kauai.  The dipping sauce is wasabi and plum.  The darling Miss O and I went there for lunch today.  Our waitress told us that our fave food is being taken off the menu.  Whaaaa?  It is the top menu item here and in Waikiki, and it is coming off the menu.  Even the koi in the pond objected, showing their displeasure by jumping out of the water and slapping their fat koi flippers on the water.

What is wrong with the world?  Dammit, Duke’s, don’t take away my inspiration!

My backpack has a secret.

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I’ve added a dandy water bottle holder onto my backpack!  You know, one of those easy-access pockets where you put the stuff that you want to gift to the TSA agents.

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I drafted the pattern for this pocket, twice actually.  The first pocket I made was alarmingly short.  I’m sure my vodka would have fallen out at an inconvenient time.

The other side has a snap pocket.

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The patten called for a magnetic snap.  I put on a real snap, a heavy-duty one, so it couldn’t just pop open and spill my worldly goods.  My small worldly goods.  You want to see the secret my backpack is concealing?

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It’s backless.  So maybe it’s not a backpack.  It’s just a pack.  TOMORROW it will be a backpack.

Look at that last picture again.  See my little kitty face?  Handmade by not me.  Clever Miss O.

The mystery is solved: I publicly admit I am sewing my third travel bag in one month

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That gorgeous fabric is becoming a backpack.

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I’m on a quest for the perfect travel bag.  During this month of January, I have already made two travel bags.  The stunning Repressed Fantasies travel bag…

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And the slightly more sedate Flocking Cardinals travel bag…

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I carried my cardinals on a weekend trip to Honolulu.  Like beta testing for a travel bag.  I found out it’s just not the right travel bag for me.  Fear not, somebody I know will be gifted with this bag, so it will not be abandoned.

I switched direction entirely on my travel bag quest, decided to try a backpack.  It would be great to travel with at least one free hand.  After way too much thought, too many Bing searches, and scouring the depths of Etsy, I chose the Dawn to Dusk backpack pattern by Chris W. Designs.

The teaser pictures I posted yesterday were of the backpack straps and the beginning of the front pocket.

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I sewed the lining for the front pocket, and it looks awesome

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Inside the front pouchy pocket is a pen pocket, which can also hold my cell phone.

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The pouchy pocket goes on next, then the front flap to make it all look tidy!

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I love the color of this zipper!  The pattern has straps with buckles over the flaps.  I decided to leave off all the pocket straps, because I’m pursuing a softer look, rather than the more utilitarian feel that I felt the straps convey.

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The lining fabric is one of my current favorite fabrics also.  I’ve used bits of it in my Millefiore Quilt.  I was struggling with what to use for lining on this project.  I was thinking of using another Philip Jacobs fabric, but it was too matchy.  A different floral with very similar colors.  It just didn’t ADD anything to this backpack.  I was trying to clear a space off of my, ahem, slightly cluttered cutting table.  As I was folding up the holey fabrics for the Millefiore Quilt, I was, like, wait a minute!  This looks awesome!  I also went and bought some more of it from my local enablers.

Could travel bag number three be THE travel bag?  The jury’s still out, but I think it’s a very good possibility.

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Now go make something pretty.  It probably won’t be as pretty as this backpack, but you can try.  😜

Last night I couldn’t get to sleep at all

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I was obsessed with giant chrysanthemums.

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I got this Philip Jacobs fabric a few weeks ago.  It’s my favorite fabric in my studio right now.  It’s been sitting on my sewing table, behind my Destiny, lurking.  Looking for a project.  Murmuring during the day, singing softly at night.

I cut it on Sunday, with a fresh rotary blade no less.  So Monday I felt like I could not slumber unless something began to take shape.  And it did.

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Any guesses what I have going on here?  I feel like being ornery and taunting you today.  You’ll have to tune in tomorrow.  All will be revealed.

And for you unruly stitchers over at the New Hexagon – Millefiore Quilt Along, yes.  I know.  This would make amazing pieces in one of the rosettes.  I fully expect Katja Marek and her charismatic crew to try and convince me to cut up all the leftover fabric into tiny little pieces.

Stay crafty, my friends.

Homemade pretzels – yeah, I said pretzels.

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Bread.  Salt.  Mmmmmmm.

Did you know you can buy pretzel mix?  Well, you can.  The ingredients are all in there, but you still get to mix, rise, divide, roll, twist, boil, salt and bake.  And it’s fun.

I dare you.

Ed. note:  no sewing machines were harmed in the making of these pretzels.