Nutcracker Magic: Focal and Four Tote Bag

Greetings, friends! 

I’m so happy you’re here for a visit— it's Therm O Web Blog project day! Today is my stop on the Nutcracker Tradition Blog Tour!

Christmas may still be a few months away, but it's never too early to start planning holiday sewing projects! Today I'm excited to share a festive new post that's now live on the Therm O Web Blog as part of the Nutcracker Tradition Blog Tour. This project combines my Focal and Four Tote Bag pattern, innovative products from Therm O Web, and the enchanting Nutcracker Tradition Collection by Jennifer Long of Sew A Story for Riley Blake Designs to create a bag that's filled with holiday charm and a touch of sparkle.

Sewing Up Some Nutcracker Magic

The Nutcracker Tradition collection captures all the magic of the beloved Christmas story with elegant nutcrackers, graceful ballerinas, adorable Christmas mice, beautifully wrapped packages, ornaments, stars, and coordinating seasonal prints. Rich holiday colors and storybook-inspired illustrations make every fabric in the collection a delight to sew with. Whether you're a longtime fan of The Nutcracker or simply love festive fabrics, this collection offers endless inspiration for holiday projects.

The beautiful focal prints in the collection were a perfect match for my Focal and Four Tote Bag pattern. Designed to showcase larger-scale prints while combining coordinating fabrics in a fresh and eye-catching way, the tote highlights all the wonderful details Jennifer included throughout the collection. The finished bag is both practical and beautiful, making it ideal for holiday shopping, carrying sewing projects, gift giving, or simply adding a little Christmas cheer to your everyday routine.

A Little Holiday Sparkle

Of course, no Nutcracker-inspired project would be complete without a touch of magic! For this tote, I added glittery accents to the outside pockets using the Nutcracker Tradition Sparkle Stencil and Sparkle Paste by Jennifer Long for Therm O Web. The sparkling details add just the right amount of glimmer and beautifully complement the festive fabrics. It's a simple technique that creates a big impact and makes the tote feel extra special.

To help make construction easier, I also incorporated several of my favorite Therm O Web products throughout the project. From accurate cutting with SpraynBond Pattern & Stencil Spray to adding structure and professional finishing touches, these products help create a polished tote that you'll enjoy using for years to come.

Supplies to Make Your Tote Bag Sparkle

A quick note: some of the links you’ll find here are affiliate links. If you choose to buy through them, I may earn a small commission (at no cost to you). That support helps keep this blog running and ad-free for everyone—thank you for being here!

• HeatnBond Fusible Fleece
• SpraynBond Pattern & Stencil Spray
• HeatnBond Sparkle Stencil–Nutcracker Tradition by Jennifer Long of Sew A Story
• Nutcracker Tradition Sparkle Paste Bundle by Jennifer Long of Sew A Story (or your favorite coordinating color)
• Pressing Paper Fabric and Craft Sheets
• A Selection of Fabrics from Nutcracker Tradition by Jennifer Long of Sew a Story for Riley Blake Designs (model used fat quarters, but the pattern is 10” precut friendly)
• Coordinating fabric yardage for linings, handles, and outside bag base (model used Dapple Dot from Riley Blake Designs C640-SUGARPINK)
• Focal and Four Tote Bag Pattern by Blue Ribbon Designs (available in my Etsy Shop) Digital or Paper Pattern
• Palette Knife or Craft Brush
• Basic Tools (sewing machine, coordinating sewing thread, iron, wonder clips or pins, cutting tools and rulers, etc.)
  
  

Focal and Four Tote Bag Pattern
Paper Pattern — Digital Patten

See the Blog Post

If you'd like to make your own Nutcracker-inspired tote utilizing dependable products from Therm O Web, be sure to visit the Therm O Web Blog for my helpful hints, supply list, and plenty of project photos. You'll find all the details needed to create your own version, along with tips for adding sparkle and showcasing your favorite prints from the collection.

https://www.thermoweb.com/blogs/blog/nutcracker-tradition-blog-tour-focal-and-four-tote

I had so much fun combining these beautiful fabrics with a little Sugar Plum Fairy-inspired shimmer, and I hope this project inspires some holiday sewing of your own. After all, the best time to start Christmas stitching is before the holiday rush begins!

Thank you for stopping by today! If you make your own Focal and Four Tote Bag, I'd love to see it. Until next time, wishing you inspiration, creativity, and plenty of happy sewing!

Mushroom Blooms Fabric Tour

Happy Monday - welcome to my stop on the Mushroom Blooms Fabric Tour - thank you so much for dropping by for a visit. I am thrilled to be sharing these charming fabrics from Poppie Cotton! I have some very special projects lined up, created with the new Mushroom Blooms fabric collection designed by Jill and Rani for Poppie Cotton. I enjoyed putting on my quilt designer hat and playing with these soft and cheerful prints. This brand new fabric collection (shipping to quilt shops this month) has a warm and calming feel to me. The entire collection is filled with tiny details and the sweetest little motifs. These nature-inspired prints feature mushrooms, florals, dots, and stitchy stripes....even sweet, little, whimsical mushrooms with faces and clothes. The colors include soft yellows, pale pinks, creamy off whites and toned corals...along with cool teals and mint green. The fun, detailed illustrations in this collection inspired me! 

Working through my projects, I started with my band new "Focal and Four Tote Bag." I used part of a fat quarter bundle of Mushroom Blooms to create the four-patch blocks, focal blocks and pockets...and I used Country Confetti in Strawberry Lemonade Light Pink for the handles, lining, and bag base.  This large tote measures 15" W x 15 H x 5" D and has a handle drop of approximately 8-inches. I used HeatnBond Fusible Fleece from Therm O Web to make the bag soft, yet have good structure.  It's the perfect size for a stack of cross stitch project bags, a daily tote, or a trip to the farmer's market or grocery store. The pattern contains comprehensive/detailed instructions with all sorts of color diagrams and a template for the pointed pocket. This 13-page pattern is designed to easily use your favorite fabric collection, is precut friendly, and is good for all skill levels. Visit my post from yesterday to read all about it. You can find this new design in my Etsy Shop, in both paper and digital format...

Digital Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1762267234
Paper Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1762265076

Of course, I had to create some accessories with Mushroom Blooms for my new tote! Next, I always like to have a notebook with me, especially when traveling or at classes and retreats...so I created one of my "Joyful Journal Jackets." This cover was designed to fit a standard Composition Notebook (9.75" x 7.5") which you can find at your favorite office supply store with narrow or wide lines, unlined (my favorite because I can sketch in it) or graph ruled (perfect for charting projects). I used the Tossed Floral Pink print for the bottom section of the cover and Polkie Dots Cream for the inside flaps - then, used all the different prints for  the patchwork top section of the cover...adding a coordinating rick rack between the two (Hand-Dyed Rick Rack from Lady Dot Creates). Again, I used a favorite focal print in the collection to make a Velcro tab closure. This quilting/stitching journal is the perfect complement to any retreat/class tote...or ideal to be placed at a bedside table for keeping a journal or diary. 

Digital Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/928107884
Paper Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1232489096

Finally, I created a patchwork pencil bag and large project bag. I thought a pencil bag to hold my colored pencils would work perfectly for taking along with my journal...and of course, I have to have a pretty, patchwork project bag to hold my latest cross stitch model. These delightful prints are perfect for fussy cutting and creating happy patchwork blocks. The pencil bag is 9.75" W x 4.5" H and holds all my pencils perfectly. The project bag measures 12" x 10", so I can hold a pattern, fabric, threads and tools.

I hope you have enjoyed this stop on the fabric tour and are feeling inspired - thank you for visiting with me today. For more creative projects using the Mushroom Blooms fabric collection, visit the Poppie Cotton Blog. If you love this fabric collection, be sure to check out your favorite quilt shop and request it - Mushroom Blooms is shipping this month.

I already have my projects completed for the next Poppie Cotton Fabric Tour, later this month - my day is August 28th. This tour will be showcasing the "Market Day" fabric collection (click to see a preview)....I will be releasing a brand new quilt pattern for this collection. Plus, I will have a new project tutorial posted on the Therm O Web Blog tomorrow (Tuesday, August 13th)…so, be sure to stop back here on Wednesday, August 14th, for more details...

Focal and Four Tote Bag - New Quilt Pattern

Yes, you read that title correctly - I have another new quilt pattern! This is my “Focal and Four" bag - a large-sized tote made with four-patch blocks and focal fabrics (perfect for showing off a very favorite fabric!). This versatile tote has two bottom-pointed pockets on the outside (one on each side) and two large pockets inside. It measures 15" W x 15 H x 5" D and has a handle drop of approximately 8". It's the perfect size for a stack of cross stitch project bags, or as a daily tote, or a trip to the farmer's market. The pattern contains comprehensive/detailed instructions with all sorts of color diagrams and a template for the pointed pocket. This 13-page pattern is designed to easily use your favorite fabric collection, is precut friendly, and is good for all skill levels. You can find this new design in my Etsy Shop, in both paper and digital format...

I designed this tote bag several months ago and made my first sample bag with Finding Wonder by Sherri McCulley for Poppie Cotton - you got a sneak peek of this design in March on the Finding Wonder Fabric Tour.  I already have an oversized tote bag pattern (Forty-Five Tote Bag) and a medium-sized tote bag pattern (Mini-Medi Tote Bag) in my current catalog...and this one fits in-between as a large tote. It has a fun shaped pocket on the front and on the back, the perfect size for a cell phone...and has large pockets inside, both measuring 9-inches square. 

The model bag was created with Mushroom Blooms by Jill and Rani for Poppie Cotton (shipping to quilt shops this month). This fabric has a wonderful mushroom print (Shroomies Mint, Shroomies Pink, and Shroomies Yellow) that I knew would be my focal fabric for the tote. This collection also has wonderful florals, dots and stripes. Plus, I knew the color scheme would be perfect for this new bag! I had fun creating the patchwork, putting this extremely useful bag together and writing the pattern...and I hope you will add it to your design collection.

I used a fat quarter bundle to create my model, along with 1 1/4 yards of coordinating fabric for handles, pocket and bag linings, and the bag base (Country Confetti - Strawberry Lemonade Light Pink). It also uses 1 3/4 yards of HeatnBond Fusible Fleece, my favorite for a soft, but structured bag! If a fat quarter stack isn't your speed, a 10" precut stack (layer cake) gives you all the variation in fabrics. This bag also works great for scraps - I am hoping to make a scrappy version from my scrap bins soon. I really want to showcase how easy it is to create this pattern in any fabric collection (or scraps!) and how versatile it really is! 

You can still find the pattern in my Etsy Shop in both paper and digital format.
Digital: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743028230
Paper: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1762265076 

Thank you so much for visiting with me today and checking out my latest quilt pattern. I will be back tomorrow for my turn on the Mushroom Blooms Fabric Tour, where I will show of this tote bag and what I made to put inside of it! Then, stop back on Wednesday to see my latest project for Therm O Web...and it is a beauty...

For now, I am back to the studio...I am scrambling a bit right now to get things done...I have EXCITING news...I will be accompanying my parents on a trip to Paris and London in September. I just found out about the trip a week ago and I was not prepared to travel out of the country for a couple weeks (in a little over a month). I never thought in my wildest dreams I would be going on this trip and my head is swirling! I have a lot to do in a short amount of time. More all about this in a future post...

Mini-Medi Tote Bag - Cottage Charm Pattern

I thought I would stop back today and talk a bit about a new quilt pattern...which is actually a revisited quilt pattern. This is my “Mini-Medi Tote Bag" - a medium-sized tote bag made from mini charm squares. This versatile tote has two rounded pockets on the outside (one on each side) and two large pockets inside. It measures 12.5" W x 12 H x 3" D and has a handle drop of 5.5"....the perfect size for a couple cross stitch projects, or as a daily tote, or a trip to the farmer's market. The pattern contains comprehensive/detailed instructions with all sorts of diagrams and a template for the rounded pocket. This 11-page pattern is designed to easily use your favorite fabric collection, is precut friendly, and is good for all skill levels. You can find this new design in my Etsy Shop, in both paper and digital format...

When I started working with the Cottage Charm fabric collection by Kenzie Elston for Poppie Cotton months ago - I thought the prints were perfect for this pattern. I had so much fun fussy cutting some of the cottages and motifs to showcase for this design. I actually worked up this and my other projects in this new collection for Poppie Cotton to take to Quilt Market. The results looked so cute, I decided to put out a new version of my Mini-Medi Tote Bag pattern featuring this fabric and some new notes/instructions. Don't worry, if you were one of the very few that purchased the original pattern, no need to replace it - it is almost identical, minus the photos and some better wording. I just thought I would brighten it up with these gorgeous fabrics, especially for those who aren't fans of Halloween or the collection I used for the original.

This medium-sized tote bag was also created by cutting mini charm squares - hence the name. It features two pockets on the outside with round bottoms and two large pockets inside, that can be created with feature fabrics or patchwork or charm square 5" precuts. It can be made with one charm pack and one yard of any fabric you choose, but I thought it was wonderful in these charming cottage prints. The directions and diagrams in this pattern are quite thorough, so this is great project for all skill levels. I used Poppie Cotton Country Confetti Waffle Cone Yellow for the bag/pocket linings and handles.

Paper Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743026780

Digital Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743028230

The previous cover model was created with the Kitty Loves Candy fabric collection from Poppie Cotton and 1-yard Country Confetti Licorice Black from Poppie Cotton (for linings and handles) - I also did a test bag using the Renew fabric collection by Sweetwater for Moda.

I really wanted to showcase how easy it is to create this pattern in any fabric collection (or scraps!) and how versatile it really is! You can still find the original version with the Halloween fabrics in my Etsy Shop in both paper and digital format.

Thank you so much for visiting with me today and checking out one of my new/revisited quilt patterns. I will be back tomorrow to share my other newly released design - a revisited version of my "Pretty Posies Pouch." For now, I am back to the studio...I am working on my new Therm O Web project tutorial - think summer and outdoors - it is a fun one! Until we visit again, happy creating!

Cottage Charm Fabric Tour

Happy Friday - welcome to my stop on the Cottage Charm Fabric Tour - thank you so much for dropping by for a visit. I am thrilled to be sharing these charming fabrics from Poppie Cotton! I have some very special projects lined up, created with the new Cottage Charm fabric collection designed by Kenzie Elston for Poppie Cotton. I enjoyed putting on my quilt designer hat and playing with these warm, whimsical prints. This brand new fabric collection (shipping to quilt shops this month) has a truly wonderful country cottage feel. The entire collection is filled with perfect details and the sweetest little motifs! These charming prints feature cottage and garden scenes…there are adorable little bungalows, florals, butterflies, leaves and stripes…all done in a warm, welcoming color palette. The tiny, detailed illustrations in this collection truly inspired me! 

Working through my projects, I started with my "Pretty Posies Pouch" - I created a super cute mini charm zippered pouch with a boxed bottom and a wrist strap. With all the wonderful little details in each print, it was fun to use mini charm squares to focus on the special motifs in each fabric. I even rewrote my original pattern using these prints and added a few new details!

Paper Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743029512

Digital Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1757224909

Next is my "Mini-Medi Tote Bag". This another classic pattern that I have rewritten for this collection! This medium-sized tote bag was also created with mini charm squares - hence the name. It features two pockets on the outside with round bottoms and two large pockets inside. It can be made with one charm pack and one yard of any fabric you choose, but I thought it was wonderful in these charming cottage prints. The directions and diagrams in this new pattern are quite thorough, so this is great project for all skill levels. I used Poppie Cotton Country Confetti Waffle Cone Yellow for the bag/pocket linings and handles.

Paper Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743026780

Digital Pattern: https://blueribbondesigns.etsy.com/listing/1743028230

Finally, created a special mini cottage quilt. I don't have a pattern for this design - it was just me playing around in my studio. I used some wool felt for leaves, buttons for flower centers and the doorknob...along with lace and mini rick rack. I even fussy cut some of the butterflies to add to the design. It was quite fun to embellish this small quilt and play with appliqué!

I hope you have enjoyed this stop on the fabric tour and are feeling inspired - thank you for visiting with me today. For more creative projects using the Cottage Charm fabric collection, visit the Poppie Cotton Blog. If you love this fabric collection, be sure to check out your favorite quilt shop and request it - Cottage Charm is shipping this month.

I already have my projects completed for the next Poppie Cotton Fabric Tour in August - it is using the fabric collection "Market Day" (this is a wonderful collection - click to see a preview)....I will be releasing a brand new quilt pattern for this collection. Plus, I will have a new project tutorial posted on the Therm O Web Blog on July 17th…so, be sure to stop back here on July 18th for more details...