Rags to Riches

There was a new project I had a-brewin' behind the scenes while I was away from blog world, so don't think I was being lazy and not achieving anything! This is one of my more involved projects yet. What do you do with fabric scraps and old clothes that haven't already been donated to charity?

You cut them into long strips and crochet them into a one-of-a-kind clutch bag. This only took me about 2 evenings to do; about 4.5 hours work altogether. This clutch is made of reclaimed fabric scraps, curtains, bedsheets, a dress, a shirt, a mini skirt and a pair of shorts.

The flap and button that fasten the clutch shut were taken from a pair of brown checkered shorts I bought at an op shop in america (which i can't fit into anymore!) The shirt I'm wearing in one of the photographs is included in the clutch too! It was too long for my liking so I trimmed a hefty amount off the hem, ripped the offcut into strips and used them as my first 3 rows. Nifty.

Thankfully all my essentials fit into this clutch: wallet, phone & keys.
My lipgloss , concealer, compact mirror, pen and mini tape measure fit into the fabric pouch :-)

Sweatshopping II

Just a continuation of the photographs of items I've made for a flea market destiny. I spoke of labour of love earlier--these pouches are the epitome of that statement. Each pouch took me an hour to complete! I don't know whether it was because I'm still inexperienced with sewing or I was just handling the piece really delicately. Here the vintage fabrics make an encore and are measured accordingly to be used as the main body of the pouch. I then crochet a flap to the correct size, sew that onto the fabric, sew a button onto the fabric, then sew up the edges with some more yarn. Sounds easy but it genuinely took me quite a long time to do.

I absolutely love the quirky country gardeny vibe they give off, and how it's a little mix & match--as in, the colour schemes wouldn't necessarily work in real life, but in THIS life, they do. To me, anyway. None are exactly alike, and any minor imperfections and quirks simply reflect it's handmadedness (sp?!) So what can you use these pouches for? Phones, MP3 players, loose change, cards, gemstones, pot pourri, spices, jewelry, as gifts, decorations, etc. etc. etc.