Playtime in Black & White

Over the holidays, my sewing studio got a (FABULOUS) brand new addition....an AccuQuilt Studio Fabric Cutter. I have been going crazy trying to make time to play with it - I have a bunch of BRD deadlines and a HUGE pile of design work/model stitching to accomplish, so making time to "play" has not been easy....I try to use "playtime" as a reward for accomplishing a big task on my to-do list. While I was working on my holiday gifts, I did manage to use it a couple times, using some GO! Dies and the GO! Die Adapters for the Studio - which actually worked very well...but I wanted to try an actual Studio Die. So, yesterday, after completing a pile of work, getting in a 3.25 mile walk with Simba, and getting my household chores done, I decided to do a little playing and sewing.

I used the Studio Everyday Tote Die which actually works pretty slick - it cuts a 9" x 11" boxed bottom tote bag...how you ask??...well, it only cuts the actually bag base - you cut the handles and pockets and/or embellishments separately...but it gives you a great basic bag to build upon. You decide the type of fabrics and if you want to add batting or interfacing...or if you want to quilt it or use quilted fabric....the possibilities are endless! I decided to make several pockets for my bag - two for the outside and one for the inside...and I used quilted fabric for the outside and handles and cotton fabric for the lining (just a couple pieces I had in my stash to experiment with). This die is a breeze to use (at least for me), as I have made many tote bags in my sewing career - in fact, I didn't even use the instructions except to see how to fold and line up the fabric before cutting...and the entire project took less than two hours from start to finish. The tote you are seeing in my photos is my very first one using my new fabric cutter and die...pretty basic...but I have some fabulous ideas for future bags...and several will be upcoming gifts! My next one will have a button/loop closure and slightly shorter handles....and maybe even a little applique...I am full of creative ideas on how to use this particular die! I can definitely envision piecing and quilting some cute fabrics or scraps for the outside bag, then using a cotton for the lining and handles. ...and, as I begin to collect more of the Studio Dies (right now I only have a couple), I am sure I will have more projects to share with you!

For now, it is back to stitching on my model for "Redwork Garden"...it is coming along very nicely and I have the entire floral borer stitched...I still have about a 1/3 of the design left to complete...but I am hoping to have it finished sometime in the next week....look for updates later in the month!