The Sewing Mom

My apologies for not dropping EC or returning comments over the last few days, but I got to go on a mini-vacation!

I left last Wednesday and took a couple of plane rides to get from Dallas to Paducah, Kentucky to attend the American Quilter’s Society’s 25th Anniversary Quilt Show. I met my mom and 2 sisters in Paducah, they all drove in from Indiana and Eastern KY respectively. I arrived just after 4 pm and we headed straight to Hancock’s of Paducah. This is not associated with Hancock’s Fabric stores, however, it is a fabric store. Let me just say, they are actually the largest supplier of quilt fabrics in the world (according to their information in the AQS pamphlet). It really was amazing, so much so in fact, we went twice! We found some great deals and kicked off the event in a big way.

We spent the next 4 days viewing amazing quilts and visiting over 400 vendors who were there to showcase their sewing related goods, everything from fabric to sewing machines to beads and jewelry. We also got the opportunity to meet several different ladies who are prominent in the quilting world, including, Eleanor Burns, Helen Squire and Kate Woods. We had so much fun, none of us wanted to go home yesterday!

I did in fact leave Paducah at 6:30 yesterday morning, and, 3 flights later, arrived back in Dallas. I was so exhausted that I didn’t even pick up my computer. Instead, I did a little laundry and then laid on the sofa watching t.v., like a veg! As soon as I get a few extra minutes, I will be downloading a few pictures to share (I kept forgetting that I had my camera, so I don’t have too many).

I’m still trying to catch up around the house and I did have to work today for 6 hours, but I wanted to post quickly that I am here and intend to get started returning drops and comments, hopefully this evening.

Note:  I am headed to a HUGE quilt show in Paducah, Kentucky and will not be home until Sunday afternoon.  I will not have my computer with me nor will I have time to be online.  I will however be certain to go to Hancocks of Paducah, the world’s largest supplier of quilt fabrics!  Yes, my fabric addiction is getting ready to be fed!

In the mean time, I finished my Yellow & Black Purse!

This is it, my finished purse!  I absolutely love it.  It was certainly a challenge to make, but the end result, at least in my opinion, is terrific!

Years ago, my husband and I hired a financial planner to handle our retirement accounts and life insurance.  It was during a time when my husband was self employed and I wasn’t working, so we needed professional advice on our investments and, we needed to carry our own life insurance policies which we’d always purchased through our employers in the past.  I do think it was one of the smartest decisions we’ve ever made because, when it comes to making investments, I’m very intimidated by the whole system.

I majored in finance in college, but I think when it comes to the stock market and investing, there are just so many options it can be very confusing.  I’ve looked at a variety of online trading sites over the last few years, but I’m always too nervous to commit to anything.  However, I also do believe that right now could be a very good time to get into the stock market.  There are so many good stocks available at very low, even record low, prices that it sure does make it tempting.

So, I still get emails from various sites to use them to make my investment choices, but I still haven’t gotten over my nervousness.  I hesitate, and basically talk myself out of making an online stock purchase.  I recently started looking at a new online options broker at TradeMonster.com and am seriously considering making my first online investment because TradeMonster has some very helpful educational tools to help me make a smart decision on what to do with my hard earned money. They are also know for their customer service and value pricing. After looking at their system, I think it is something that will make me feel less intimidated and more confident in investing my money for my future.

After sewing all the pieces together and attaching the strap, my next job was to then create the exterior flap which is what is used to close the purse. Once it was made, I then attached the female portion of the magnetic snap to the underside of the flap. This was a bit tricky, but I finally accomplished the task.

My next step was to create the interior pockets and sew them to the lining fabric. Each lining piece, as well as the pockets contain fusible fleece for softness and support. I then sewed the lining pieces all together and inserted it into the purse, sewing around the entire top edge. I did take a photo, but forgot to upload it and don’t want to delay this post, so you’ll have to use your imagination! After the lining was stitched together, I then inserted it into the back. And the end result is what you see in this photo.

Before stitching the last seam in the bottom of the lining, I had to insert the male portion of the magnetic snap into the front of the purse fabric.  Again, this was a bit tricky, but it was well worth it.  The magnetic snap on the flap is one of the features I like best about this purse.

Okay, so time got away from me and I missed getting the final product posted. So, I’m going to play a little bit of catch up today and tomorrow. Here we go!

This photo shows me fusing the fleece to the side/bottom piece and then sewing the side/bottom piece to the back and front pieces. The second picture shows all of those pieces together and turned right side out.

The next step was creating the strap. I did forget to take a picture before I stitched it all together, but the fabric started out 4 inches wide. I ironed the strip in half lengthwise and then fused a 1 3/4″ strip of fusible fleece to one side (on the wrong side of the fabric) and a fusible interfacing to the other side, also 1 3/4″. I pressed 1/4″ over on each side and then did 2 rows of double stitching down each side before attaching the strap to the sides of the purse.

I promise to post the finished product by Wednesday!