What's that, you have more time to spend at the computer?

Here it is folks:


It's like Etsy, but out of Europe. Germany or the UK, as far as I can tell.
You can read it all in German if you like... ;)

Zippered Coin Purse

There has been a lot of blogging about zipper pouches lately, and I wanted to add my two cents about how I teach my coin purse! This is the pattern that comes with my Farmer's Market Tote Bag pattern!

I interface the fabric, to make it a bit more rigid, and I make mine about the size of my driver's license and debit card, since that's what I carry. You could make it just about any size. And if you wanted, you could fuse two fabrics together (or quilt them together) and then treat the finished fabric like one piece. Because of how I install the zipper, you have limited scraggly edges, especially if you serge the side seams!

Place the zipper face down on the fabric. The zipper should be slightly longer than the fabric is wide. Here I've used a 7" zipper and the fabric is about 5" wide. Center the zipper on the fabric, aligning the edge of the zipper tape with the raw edge of the fabric. Sew down the center of the zipper tape, using a zipper foot.

Bring the other raw edge of the fabric up to the other side of the zipper tape. The right side of the zipper should be touching the right side (not the interfaced side) of the fabric.


Sew the zipper to the fabric, again aligning the zipper tape with the raw edge of the fabric. Make sure the side seams will line up for the next step!

Here's where my zippered coin purse is different.
Instead of having the zipper at the TOP of the purse, align the side seams so that the zipper tape can be completely flat! This means the zipper will lie on the FRONT of the purse.

In the picture you can see I've already sewn one side seam. I had the zipper mostly closed to sew that side, just to make it easier.


Be sure you OPEN THE ZIPPER before you sew the second side seam!

I sew across the zipper teeth a few times, to be sure it is secure!

Once you've sewn both side seams, cut off the excess zipper tape, using sharp scissors. It's important that you've used a nylon zipper, not a metal zipper or you could really trash your scissors. In the picture I'm using applique/embroidery scissors, but only because they were closest to the sewing machine that day!

Trimming the corners before you turn the coin purse right side out removes the excess fabric (and zipper tape) that causes rounded corners.

Here it is finished!

The photos don't show the ribbon being inserted, because it is put in the side seams. But here's how to do it:

On the side with the zipper stop, take 1 1/2" ribbon and fold it in half. Tuck the ribbon under the zipper teeth, with the raw edges of the ribbon lined up with the raw edge of the fabric. At this point, the zipper tape will be extended beyond the raw edge of the fabric, thus hiding the ribbon. Pin the ribbon in place and sew the side seam.

On the side with the zipper pull, take 6" of ribbon and fold it in half. Tuck the folded ribbon under the zipper teeth with the raw edges of the ribbon lined up with the raw edge of fabric. This side is trickier, because the zipper has to be open. Pin the ribbon in place and then place each side of the zipper teeth on top of the ribbon, holding the zipper teeth as close together as possible.

With the long bit of ribbon, you can wear the purse around your wrist or you can attach it to your Farmer's Market Tote Bag! That way your money is close by and doesn't fall to the bottom of the bag!

Summer sewing

Wow. What an absence. Sorry 'bout that!
Between hosting three different sets of family this week (including dinner for 12 one night) and having the contractor no-show on us to schedule the kitchen remodel, it's been a crazy busy week!

But that's not to say I haven't been sewing and teaching!
I'm wrapping up my teaching at Jo-Ann Fabrics for now. This shirt above is from Sewing II. I'm taking a break from teaching there during the fall and winter. For the student who called the store and specifically asked for a class from me, I'm so sorry to disappoint!

This week was full of birthdays, including a dear friend of mine who got this apron. The fabric has been in my stash for a long time, and I was worried that I didn't have enough of the blue to make an apron, but with a little Amy Butler inspiration, I was off to the races!


Little feet wanted to join me on my perch on the chair for photos.

Another birthday was for a little boy and it crossed my mind to make him a little hoodie like this one. It didn't get done quite in time, and then I figured that it was too cute and too much my son's size for us to give it away.

I did a little trick with the tails of the serger threads on this. I'd serged the hood to the body of the jacket and had long serger tails at the top of the zipper. The pattern called for twill tape to cover that seam, but I figured I could just top stitch the seam down. When I did, I tucked in the serger tails. That way there aren't any scraggly edges by his face. They wouldn't have been scratchy, just unsightly. And we don't want any of that!

Keep checking in

In other news, the class schedule for September/October classes at Bolt will be ready soon! Check the Bolt website at http://boltfabricboutique.com for details. As soon as the list is finalized, I'll have my classes listed in the sidebar!

Not much

Anyone else tired of seeing the same old post?
I don't have much for you, seeing as how I've apparently forgotten how to use our camera and haven't captured much at all lately, much less something blog worthy.

But I will share this photo of my son at my brother's wedding. Pretty cute, eh? In the corner you can see I'm wearing the skirt I made for the wedding. The green shirt didn't get finished in time, and still only has one sleeve cap, but the flower skirt and the green skirt got done, along with a ton of household-y things at my parents house (where the wedding was held!)