Knitting project pockets

I've been meaning to make something to hold my knitting projects to replace the lovely plastic grocery bags I've been carrying them around in. And now that I know how to make pretty buttonholes on my machine I was dying to put my new skill to work.

Reading about Kojo's Spring DeStash inspired me to use some of my stash to make room for some lovely new spring fabrics.




I had some hot pink cotton left in my stash that was the perfect size to cut in half to make two 12x17 pieces. I cut the same size from the brown and white polka dot fabric I had leftover from the placemat project, stitched them wrong sides together, turned right-side out, top stitched the edges in hot pink, stitched up the sides to make a pocket (leaving a few inches for a flap,) added hot pink button holes and buttons, and voila! They are the perfect width for a skein of yarn.

Sure beats plastic grocery bags and now I can toss my project in a purse or tote without it unraveling.I might make a few longer ones to accommodate longer knitting needles too.

Quilted placemats with matching napkin rings

 I have a habit of learning a new sewing skill right when I'm on a deadline to finish a gift for someone. I became obsessed with this Eiffel Tower fabric for my aunt when I first saw it and couldn't decide what to make. Cloth napkins? No, too straightforward. Simple flat placemats? Maybe...but what if they were quilted? Yeah! And I could make my own bias tape to trim them with! And then I saw this tutorial on Prudent Baby for making reversible napkin rings.

Of course I waited a little too long to start on these and had many sewing machine snafus along the way, but I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out and my aunt liked them a lot too when I delivered them to her at 9:30 p.m. on her birthday. Sewing right up until the last minute!

I love that they are reversible and I love all of the different options with the napkin rings. Prudent Baby's quilted table runner tutorial was a really good guide for making the placemats. I paired the Eiffel Tower fabric with some nursery print fabric from Jo-Ann's (brown with white dots) and I found the most beautiful sparkly pink buttons at Jo-Ann's during their BOGO button sale.

Another bonus? I learned how to make my own bias tape, use the one-step button hole function on my machine and do a little machine quilting, all in 3 days! The next set of placemats should be a breeze :)

So, I made my own bias tape...

It turned out pretty well. I used a combo of these great tutorials from MADE and Prudent Baby. I like the way Prudent Baby has you cut one continuous strip, but because I didn't measure and mark properly this may not be the best method for me, I cut a nice long continuous strip, but the width is inconsistent. MADE's method may take a little more time, sewing all of your shorter strips together, but for me and my lack of attention to detail with measuring and cutting, I think it will yield the best results. Yes, note to self...with sewing, measuring and cutting are rather important. 

I probably should've made my first attempt with practice fabric, but that's not my nature, so I made 10+ yards for a placemat project I'm working on. It was an enjoyable process and I can't wait to make more, I love bias tape and am so excited to be able to make my own!