Library Tote Bags- and a new Silhouette Promotion!

Posted by Valerie Earnest
I LOVE my Silhouette!  And I love it even more now that it can cut fabric! I was graciously provided with some of Silhouette's fabric interfacing and a fabric blade to try out (along with a new cutting mat- woo-hoo!).  Let me tell you, I'm thrilled at the possibilities this opens up for me!  
Silhouette is offering a great deal on these supplies, which I'll go over at the end of my post.
I chose to use my supplies to personalize some new Library Tote Bags for my kids.

I was inspired by these tote bags my sister-in-law made, which were in turn inspired by this skirt.  I did NOT sew my own tote bags, though you certainly could.  I just bought some ready-made ones from the craft store.  I'll start off with my son's bag first.
I wanted his to have a little pocket, because little boys always have something they want to carry with them.  Now he can put it in there, along with his library card, so I don't have to throw it in my purse.  So, I sewed a little pocket out of camo fabric by ironing under the sides of a fabric rectangle and sewing it on the bag.
I cut the letters using my Silhouette.  I used the sewable interfacing for this bag, which has a lighter adhesive. I knew I would need to sew his letters on after ironing them, since he is hard on everything!
Following the directions that came with the interfacing, I ironed the interfacing onto the back side of my fabric,

positioned the fabric on my cutting mat, making sure to avoid the rollers,as you can see from my design in Studio

then cut the letters "READ".

I went with the default setting for cotton fabric with interfacing.  The top of the letters cut beautifully clean, but the bottom had quite a few places where the fabric didn't quite separate.  I went over it with an Xacto knife, but you can tell a difference if you look closely.  I knew I just needed to adjust my settings but I was being lazy and didn't want to re-cut the fabric.
Once my letters were cut, I ironed them on to the tote bag.  Then I stitched over the center of the letters, since they were really too thin to do a full zig zag stitch all the way around.
It's perfect for my son!

Now, on to my daughter's tote bag.  I pretty much followed the same steps, except I used the Clean-Cut interfacing, which is not meant for sewing machines.
I adjusted my settings, and the fabric rectangles came out perfectly clean this time.  For this bag, it was just a matter of figuring out the placement of the "books".  A strip of fabric along the bottom finishes everything up nicely.

I love how they turned out, and my kids are thrilled to have new book bags.  Their old ones have been loved and used to death!
Now for the promo: Silhouette has some great bundles.  It's a great time to purchase that machine you've been wanting.  Or, if you already have a cutter, just buy the fabric kit- it's a great tool to add to your Silhouette arsenal!  Click here to get one of these great deals- and use the code OCCASIONALLY  to get the great prices listed below:

Let me know if you have any questions!   And, I'm linking up my tote bags to some of these parties:  Connect with us! You can find us here:

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Goodie Bags

Posted by Laura McBride This month, my supply from WholePort included goodie bags and stickers that can be used for gifts and parties. It just so happens that I have my piano recital tomorrow (both Valerie and I teach piano lessons!), so these came just in time to make goodie bags for my students.

 The bags come with a strip that can be pulled off, revealing an adhesive layer to help close your bags.

These stickers are too cute!

I hope my students love them!  Be sure to check out WholePort's website for all sorts of packaging materials from stickers, to twist ties, to bags, to ribbon and more!
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Memorial Day Round Up

Posted by Valerie Earnest Memorial Day is coming up soon, and I know you're dying to deck your halls patriotic-style.  Or maybe that's just me.  Anyway, I've put together a few ideas, both from our blog and from some of our crafty friends.

First, you can't go wrong with a simple Star Banner.
  
You can also make a patriotic-themed Scrapbook Paper-Covered Star.

This Patriotic Wooden Block is simple to make and perfect for the upcoming holidays.

Of course, don't forget to check out Laura's Patriotic Wreath if you missed it this week.

And there's my Land of Liberty Framed Vinyl and Free Printable.

I love these party printables from Homespun With Love.  They really help you remember the purpose of Memorial Day.  

I love ribbon topiaries and this one from Bug Lover Cards is just beautiful!  Now I want to make another one!

Are you feeling inspired to create yet?  I know I am!  Pretty much I am just excited for Memorial Day because school will be out, and I can spend it with my kids without worrying about getting ready for school the next day.  How are you celebrating Memorial Day?  

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