So I thought I would share with you one of the gifts I made for my niece for her graduation gift. I made her this cover-up. I am not sure what the bathroom situation is yet, but some colleges have to walk through the halls to get to the bathroom.

I seen this on Sewing with Nancy, and decided to try it. I will be doing the next one different. But, since I waited to the last minute to make this I didn't have time to change it. I still think it turned out pretty decent.

I have been interested in Penny Rugs for quite some time now, and have not had a chance to make one yet. But, right now you can pick up a whole kit from Nancy's Notions for under $10 each. Go check them out they would also make wondeful gifts finished or unfinished.
This is my favorite one.

I found some great deals on fabric @ Wal-Mart. The purple was a remnant so it was 20% off and the others were clearance fins. Don't worry I am not planning on using them together! They look really bad all together.
I was actually the mostly excited about the white & black fabric because this weekend I found some great patterns at a garage sale for .25ea. I am planning on doing this pattern with the white & black material. It is a poly-blend so I think it should work well.


These are the other patterns I picked up.



The other fabrics will be used on aprons or quilt blocks.

If you know me then you know I LOVE FREE! I also love to do about any kind of sewing and crafting as well. So if I combine the two it is just that much better.
Recently I came across this great site called You Can Make This. This site has great freebies as well as some inexpensive e-patterns for purchase. Now they have a new You Can Make This Blog. The blog also offers free patterns and tutorials. Sign up to receive the newsletter and you'll receive some great projects as well as tips and tricks of the trade. They have also added a new sister site called You Can Quilt This .
Go check them out...even if you don't have time to sew or quilt right now you might be inspired for the future! Remember Christmas is always closer than you think.

Here is the Purse/Bag finished! This is for me....but I will be making more to sell. There are a few minor errors that I feel would not be good to do if I wanted to sell it. If I was to sell this one I would have to rip out the lining and re-position the pockets for one. But when I was putting it together I knew it was just for myself and did not take the time to position the pockets correctly!
(Sorry for the edit, but after I saw the pockets in the picture I thought I should explain.)

I have finished the other Apron I was working on and I am so happy with the way it turned out!
Do you like this one better Dad?
Dad wasn't crazy about the split legs in the other one. I however think it adds a sense of whimsy to it. I guess that is why I need to make different styles. As the saying goes "Different Strokes for Different Folks".



Then I started this purse/bag:
This is going together much faster than the aprons. I can see why people make them and sell them! They are very easy and quick!
Above the purse is the fabric I choose to line it with. There is a strap for the purse laying under the lining. When this is actually complete I will post another picture. After lining it and sewing the loops on I will be done. I want to finish this tonight, because I have to work this weekend. Also, I want to start the messenger bag which I have a feeling will take some time.


I also picked up more fabric at Joann's last night on sale for $1.99 yd, plus they always have great remnants so I like to go in and look through those as well. Morgan wants to make a Jean Skirt with fabric panel inserts. I think it will be super cute with the fabric she chose, which is orange with little white polka dots.

I finished the first apron today. I was so excited to get it done. I made Morgan model it, I purposely cut her head off because she didn't want to do it if I wouldn't chop her head out of the picture.
I have started the next one and I am learning with this one as well. It will be much different then the first one. I am still tossing around which fabrics to use as I tear out the seams and rip off the pockets.

The other day I went to Nancy's Notions (AKA: Sewing With Nancy) and ordered a sewing book. I am hoping to start sewing some items to sell on Etsy. When I order things online I always sign up to get on the e-mail list. This is always a good idea because companies will send you coupons for other things and you just never know what kind of offers you will receive.
That is just what happened to me after I ordered from Nancy's Notions. About two days later I received an e-mail to get a grab bag of goodies worth $35 for only $6.95. I usually don't like to get grab bags because I don't like being let down if I don't like what I get. However, I bought two, because I also had a code to get free shipping so I could get $70 of sewing stuff for $14! Needless to say I was NOT disappointed! I actually wish I had bought more...some of these items would be great gifts for some of my friends and family.

This is some of the stuff I got. Morgan already took one pair of the scissors and claimed them for her sewing basket. The buttons are super cute and don't really show up in the photo very well, but I will probably be using them on my new sewing items. The thread is embroidery thread and some of it is metallic.

Go here to get FREE patterns and projects from Butterick!
Also, they are offering BOGO on their patterns for 2/16-2/17 if your a non member, but if you join their club then you can get your patterns B1G2 Free! They do have some patterns at some reasonable prices and if you don't have a JoAnns close by then this would be a great alternative for inexpensive patterns.
The checkout cart will reflect your Free pattern(s).