Snow, snow, snow! And more Christmas sewing...

Okay. I'll admit it. The weathermen were right. Completely right and accurate. It snowed pretty much nonstop from about 3:00 or 4:00 pm yesterday afternoon well into late this morning. We have nearly 10 inches, probably. I realize I've been having a photo overload on a lot of posts lately, but here I go again.

The wind was blowing the snowflakes everywhere, so not even the Beetle Bug could escape under the shelter (that's my brother's handprint and writing on it. He's so jealous of my car).

I love snow. I usually go out and play in it, sledding and building snowmen. But not today. I restrained myself and stayed inside, because I still had a lot of sewing to do. And I got a lot through. Now all I have left is a couple of small projects for my brother's girlfriend's gifts. Today I made gifts for two special girls. They're the daughters of a close family friend, but they live several hours away. They'll be spending Christmas with their dad and stepmom here, though, so I wanted to make them something. For those of you who aren't interested in sewing, I'm sorry that this might be boring to you. But I do this for those who do like to sew. When I visit a blog with sewing projects on it, I love to see a lot of pictures. =) So bear with me.

This one is for the oldest daughter. She's thirteen or fourteen. It's the lovely Buttercup bag pattern, which I have used numerous times. You can't really tell from the first picture, but it has a top part and five pleats across each side. It's a really cute, easy bag to make. This is enlarged, though, because the original pattern is tiny.

The inside (with a divided pocket and magnetic snap closure...yes, I realize the stripes don't line up. I'm not so good at that yet):

Matching mini wallet/pouch:

This one is for the younger daughter. She's a few years younger than her sister. Her bag is slightly smaller, because I figure she has a little less stuff to tote around. =) I wanted to put a magnetic snap in hers, too, instead of velcro, but I realized I only had one left.

I think this flowery fabric is adorable. I got it on clearance a while back in Hobby Lobby.

I'm so slow that these took most of the day. In an attempt to hurry, I actually caused a setback that took about 30 minutes to fix. What happened? I ironed a piece of interfacing to my iron. Yes, I put the glue side facing up. First time I've ever done it. Then I spend half an hour waiting for it to cool down and then scraping off the glue with a wet rag. My iron has never been so clean as it is now. But that's okay. The day was so much fun, and my iPod and the Christmas radio station kept me company. I have missed sewing so much during school. Let me go on a cheesy sewing rant for a minute, okay? I love the sound of my sewing machine. I love my purple disappearing ink marker. I love the smell of a hot iron. I love stacks of fabric and pattern pieces with pin holes punched in them. I love checking a project off my list. In short, I love sewing. Whatever did I do before I discovered it? I feel about sewing like I do about classic movies, Gene Kelly, journaling, "I Love Lucy," and Sinatra's voice...what did I ever do without them? The things that I love become so deeply embedded in my heart that I can hardly imagine my life without them.

And since church services have been canceled tomorrow due to the snow, I get to have another glorious day of sewing. =)

Until next time,
Kristin (missvintagegirl)