U-handblog

Spaghetti book

Hi, hope you're you're all okey cokey. 

I'm just getting on with writing (hence the absence on me blog). I have to write a book chapter and make up two bags by early September.  The publisher is then going to take my chapter, make it look preddy and then turn it into a mock up of a chapter - sort of a sales pamphlet for the book.  Then the publisher is going to take this pamphlet (along with others they have created) to a trade show where the buyers are the book seller folks (least I think that's what happens).  Hopefully it'll sell like cakes that are hot.  Anyways the selling stuff is out of my hands.  The publisher I'm working with is great so I'm sure they'll do a good job, that is, if I also do a good job...  

I've moved my book writing activities from my workroom to our kitchen.  Because the kitchen is roomy, sunny, and importantly there's no dis-trac-ternet in the kitchen thus making me far more productive.  At the moment my kitchen table looks like a crafter's naughty dream. It's covered with heaps of droolsome fabrics; tweed wools, quilt weights, home decs, leather, suede, and faux leather. I have new and funky interfacing to experiment with.  I also have some bag making tools, groovy metal bits, and magpie pretty trims, ribbons and corsages.  On the kitchen work surface (opposite the kitchen table) I am drafting the bag patterns, so there is my big gridded cutting mat, my lucky sketching pencil, ruler, compass, calculator, protractor, loads of tissue paper, and my scrawly inspiration note book.  The creative mess makes (tidy freak) Al's eyes water, but he knows I have a watertight case for turning our kitchen into a crafter's tip.  Hopefully the bags won't end up smelling like curries and Chinese food (which we both love).

But please don't be envious of my stash (mwah ha ha!) because I've had a devil of a time trying to balance out different colours, textures, techniques, and bag features across the book.  And I'm sure some of you will know that sewing for yourself is one thing whereas, sewing for teaching is something else.  Of course I can make what I want, but at the same time I need to ensure that what I like, is what readers are going to hopefully going to like/find interesting/and find helpful.  At first trying to get the balance right was like lots of spaghetti in my head, but these last few weeks it has been getting easier to unravel and smooth out, phew!  So far it's been a really interesting and fun challenge.

Someone else who had spaghetti in his head; Picasso - who designed this wonderful beech wood bench.  I'd love to see the flat-pack instructions for it, ha ha!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend (enjoy the Bank Hol if you're in the UK).  I'll be here in my kitchen writing...

Some of my fave sewing notions and gadgets

Hope you had a fab weekend everyone.  My weekend was quiet, I was tappitty tap at my computer writing the book nearly the whole time.  And that's pretty much how all of my weekends are gonna look until I hand the manuscript in...

Thought you might like to have a peek inside my Bag Book tools and gadgets kit.  Here is a selection of bag making / sewing gear that I have lusted after for years or I save for best (and writing a bag making book constitutes one of those 'best' situations methinks).  I'll add to the list when Mr Postie delivers more of it to my door.  This post is a Clover love-in.   Thanks Clover - you rock!

Flower head pins are also fab for quilters or anyone who likes to get layer-tastic with their work.  They look pretty, you can iron over them (with fabric on top), and they are easy to stitch over.

Bias tape makers help take the dreariness of making your own bias tape. In fact I'd go as far as saying that these tape make bias tape making quite satisfying.  I wouldn't tackle Amy Butler's Weekender or Sophia bags without one. 

Finger presser sounds potentially daft, but it's really handy little gadget.  Far more effective then pinching the heck out your fabric with your fingers and more appealing than the whole rigmarole of getting your iron and ironing board out - urgh!  Works in the same way as a Hera marker.

Disappearing marker, so handy for making last minute markings, and has a finer tip than my blunt lump of chalk.  As it disappears, all 'my working outs' vanish too.

Bodkins makes turning out straps RSO and threading elastic or cord far less swear-worthy.  Also great for poking out corners when turning your work RSO.

60mm Rotary cutter, bag makers tend to feast big on fabric layers. So, to help show them who's boss  it's handy to have a large sharp rotary cutter.  Larger cutters also cut faster. Be careful with your digits!

Sweetheart Rose Maker, I just love them Japanese crafty bods for thinking up this stuff!  Pop a fabric rose on a bag or clutch to give it an instant and effective lift.

Large Flower shaped yo-yo, see comment on the rose maker above.

Patchwork Ironing Board, this is 3 boards in one.  One side is for impromptu ironing (urgh), another side is a gridded cutting board, and the last side has a grippy surface that holds your fabric in place whilst you mark it (cos your hands are busy with a ruler and a marker).  Clever eh?

What other bag making gadgets do you folks love/want/can't live without?

PS: Some of you asked me to let you know when the Baguette Clutch Kit was back in stock. So now I have :)

Mark Makes Another Manbag

Nearly 3 years ago a lovely chap called Mark got in contact with me to discuss the finer details of making this Basket Style Handbag for his lady friend.  I told him it was a fab idea and that it was a sure fire way of earning muuuuchos brownie points from said lady.  Turns out that Mark is the sort of person who will give most things a try; a spot of jewellery making, a bit of baking, trekking adventure, fixing trucks, and now some bag making.  I really admire a person who'll give anything a go.

So Mark being set about making a sample bag (very intelligent, (smarter than me, I'm usually too impatient) from an 2 old T-shirts and some boxer shorts - how's that for upcyling?  If you look closely in the pic you'll see my instructions for The Basket Bag on his computer in the background :)

With the sample bag a resounding success Mark set about making the bag proper.  Ta dah!!  She LOVED it of course.  That was back in 2006...

...in 2009. (The bamboo bag handles are these ones.)   Mark sent me these fab pics of his brand new bag (love the way that it is a portrait version). I asked him to write a bit of a guest post to accompany the pics as well.  Over to you Mark...

"Hey Lisa - me again, back for Man Bag 2.0.

After the success of Man Bag 1.0   I have been hankering to find an excuse to make another one.  The opportunity came along with the wedding of a very good friend - whose fiancée is an underwear, shoes and handbag girl.  
 
A drunken night with the best man and usher resulted in a plan - to leave a bag of goodies in the wedding suite of the Bride and Groom (champagne, chocolates, whip, handcuffs etc.).  So, after an email to yourself, a box of materials arrived and with some fabric from ebay, a night was set aside to assemble the bag.
 
Following the clear instructions from U-Handbag, I finished the bag in a night.  I know Helen (the bride) will love it - for only a little effort, it sure does earn you some brownie points!!  (or in my case, a few free meals)."
 

Love that fabric - it's an Ebay purchase so I've no idea who it's by.  Mark also buys fabric stash from (the UK) FabricRehab.

What? Who is this?  It's The Stig of course - find out about who The Stig is here.  Love the luggage Mr Stig!

 
"So....what's with 'The Stig' costume?  Also, on the aforementioned drunken night out with the best man and usher, the groom's stag-do for Malcolm (the groom) was discussed.  It was decided that we would have a 'Stig-do'.  To protect my identity, I have chosen to pose with the bag fully dressed as The Stig."




The real Stig - or is it Mark?  Hard to tell isn't it?


 

What a fine figure of a Stig - ha hahahaha hilarious!


Thanks heaps Mark for the pics and funny guest post Mark. You're a good sport :)

Rugs designed by Amy Butler - WANT!

By Jimenny!  If anyone is stuck for a gift idea (for me, heh!), one of these would be most welcome.  These rugs would have me rolling around on the floor in a deliriously purring happy cat style. 

To see the rest of Amy's rugs check out this droolsome slide show.

Last weekend I was loving...

Had to stay in this weekend (except for a trip to John Lewis for fabric, see below)  I had loads of work to do and Al was a bit paddied after his first 2 weeks in hospital. So this weekend was all about enjoying the small stuff like:

1. Seeing Bean's ears bouncing up and down whilst trotting by my side on the way to the park. So cute.
2. Using a new cleaver (a gift from my folks) for the first time.  I have a thing about sharp knives in the kitchen.
3. Seeing Al working in the garden with his top off.
4. The scent of washing drying on the line.
5. A vintage episode of an Audience with Dame Edna on the telly.
6. Finally mastering a new (to me) bag zip technique (Hoo haaa! this one had me tied up in knots and now it's ass is mine!)
7. Al making his first Spaghetti Vongole - yum!  See below.
8. Going to my local John Lewis (a dept. store) to find that they had not only increased the size of the habby dept; they had moved it from a forgotten corner in the upper level AND they had placed it in premier space on the ground floor.  Yeah, this makes me very happy!  Shop space in such a store is a precious commodity so nothing is left to chance.  Some brain-box would have worked out the profit potential of each square foot of the store and they have obviously come to the conclusion that SEWING IS SEXY!!!!   But we knew that long ago didn't we :)

Al's first Spaghetti Vongole, very easy, very tasty.  Sorry Beanie, you can look as cute as you want...

My fabric purchase from John Lewis.  The next time anyone sees these fabrics they will be in my book...

I hope you all had a fab weekend too :)

Dinner with Mr & Mrs Butler

Had dinner with Amy & David Butler early this week.  I would have taken pics, but I would have looked a bit goofy.  As David was coming too I asked Al to join us (because I was a tad shy - I mean, they are the First Couple of Craft), but Al's still so new at the hospital he couldn't get away on time.

I needn't have worried. We all chatted so much that I barely touched dinner (very unusual!) David was just as excited about craft as the 2 girls around the table.  David is the chap who does all of the gorgeous photos and graphic design on Amy patterns, website and promo material (not too envious, heh!)  They are a husband a wife team who are both very talented, passionate and very particular about their work.  That said, they are both very nice, down to earth and normal.  Of course there's no reason why they wouldn't be normal, but I must have found it hard to sleep that night due to my daft girl star-struckness :)

I told Amy about my book and she is really excited about it (gosh!) I have a super-cool surprise regarding Amy and my book, but I'm going to keep schtum about it for now...  Amy has her own bag making coming out next year too (and it sounds like it's going to be gorgeous).

So, onto book stuff.  The publisher has sent me the re-worked chapter layout (so I know what the chapters are going to contain) and I have received a book layout plan too - the book layout plan tells you how many pages you have to work with and how many pages each chapter has. This is because I have a certain number of pages and photos and diagrams available to me.

I have also nearly finished designing the bags for the book and though I do say so myself I LOOOOVE them, even if it turns out that only my Mum and I love them I will be happy.  All I can say is that they are very 'me' but you won't have seen styles like these on my site and blog...ooo!

And I've been busy getting my mitts on supplies for my book.  I can't begin tell you how much fun it is to phone the marketing dept of a company or the owner of a store and start the convo with "Hello my name is blah and I am going to be writing a bag making book.  I was wondering if you would be willing to supply me with some of your products for use in the book in return for a stockist credit".  It's flipping great! 

Besides the stuff I have in my shop I still want to get my mitts on:

• Leather - mmm!  Leather that is good for use in domestic sewing machines.
• Harris tweed - because it's just gorgeous - enough said.
• A whole heap of designer fabrics - from designers you know and love.
• A whole bunch of bag making tools - I'm sooo going to have fun getting to grips with them.
• Pretty trims.

This bag supplies 'shopping' is all in the name of work...mwah ha ha hahaha!

Joking aside, I'm trying to get my hands on attractive and good quality materials and tools (that are accessible to you and are pleasant to use) and will look great featuring in the book.  Who can I call on next...?

 
Cartoon taken from Toothpaste for Dinner.

Free U-Handbag Bag Pattern: The Everyday Glam Bag

Ta dah!  Just finished a rather pretty and rather useful freebie-licious bag pattern.  I've laid out the free pattern using the same tidy format as my pay for PDF sewing patterns.  I really hope you like it :)

So, this is NOT yer 'average round handled knitting bag' jobbie.  It's still almost as quick and easy to make as yer 'average round handled knitting bag' jobbie, but inside there are big pockets, the pattern can be adapted to make a portrait or a landscape version (in other words, tall or wide version) and will you check the 'I'm a girl and proud of it' pretty dangly trim swinging at the bottom? 

Make yourself a bag that has a touch of glam for everyday or get yourself out of a tight present giving spot for someone's birthday.  It'll take no more than an afternoon or an evening to whip up.

THE LINK TO THE PATTERN LINK IS AT BOTTOM OF THIS POST.
PS: the main pattern is a super easy rectangle - yay!

If you're wondering where to find:

• Bobble trim = try a search in google/ebay/etc. for 'bobble trim, bobble fringe or pom pom trim'.
• Beaded trim = found quite a few sellers on ebay for this stuff.  Also try curtain shops. John Lewis (in the UK).

I took her shopping yesterday lots of ladies were checking her out - not that that matters to me (heh!)  Inside you'll find 2 big pockets.  The 8" Bamboo Round Handles used in this pattern are wide enough to slip over my shoulder.

 

Yum yum!

Yes ladies with the all new iDangle™ your bag will glint in the sun and you'll be the envy of all the other girls :)

One final gratuitous shot of the iDangle™ trim.

** IF YOU'D LIKE THIS FREE EVERYDAY GLAM BAG TUTORIAL CLICK HERE**

I'd love to know what you think of it :)

Note: to view the PDF tutorial, you will need the Adobe Viewer program.  Get the latest version of the viewer absolutely free by clicking on the button below:

I hope you have fun using my tutorials, if you do we'd soooo love to see pics of your baggy handiwork in the "Bags & purses made from U-Handblog tutorials' Flickr group.  I check it out regular!

Gap in my pants

That's it!  I've had it with Gap pants (that's the knicker variety, not the trouser variety).  Not long ago I purchased 9 pairs of Gap pants (in a 3 for 2 offer) and 5 of them have gotten holes in the seams after just  a few washes.  And nope I didn't buy them a size too small...  Am I imagining it or has the quality of Gap stuff dropped in standard of late? 

Erm...I'm not one for making my own knickers, so methinks I'll stick to good ol' M&S for my workaday underwear.

Feeling very relieved because Jen (the commissioning editor at the publisher) likes the look of my proposed contents page so far.  Ace! This means that (for the mo) I can get on with a few house keeping bits and bobs for my blog.   One of those jobs is making  a new freebie pattern from the yummy stash below:

The bamboo handles are these ones.  The fabrics and scrumptious bobble trim are from my own stash.  Hopefully this quick to whip up freebie pattern will be up tomorrow. Have a lovely Frideeeee!

Hoover music

Big thanks to everyone who has purchased my new bag pattern I appreciate your support :)

So sorry to have been away for so long.
Some exciting things that have been happening (and will happen) behind the scenes:

1. Just taken on more help.  Susan starts today.  She will help out in the office and share in the tea making and playing with Beans (the office hound) duties. Like phew!  Thanks Susan :)
2. The publisher has given me a rough schedule and I have to send them a draft of what I would like in the book.  I have to send them a draft of the contents and chapters by this Friday.  Still feels very weird to be able dictate what I would like in a book...
3. I have to meet the publishing team in 2 weeks time.  So I have a heap of work to prepare for that.
4. I am meeting Amy & David Butler for lunch (or dinner) soon. Hyhyhyhyhyperventilating...I still feel this way after being email buddies for a little while, but she will always be the Rock Chick of fabric and bag design for me.  Yep, Amy is visiting London town on the 18th Aug and 19th here (scroll down).  If you're town (and you can do a sickie at work) pop in and see her.  She's awfully nice for a rock chick of fabric and bag design...
5. I have been ordering heapso new and yummy-licious stuff for fall/winter (because Summer never really arrived did it?).  There's amazing fabrics for kits on the way - (some by French General - drooooool).  There are 2 new kit designs on the drawing board - dunno when they will be finished (late fall I expect), but I'm really hoping they will knock your socks off).
6. I have a freebie bag pattern on the drawing board.
7. and sometimes when I am too busy to go for my jog in the park or there is just too much going on in my head I get out my vacuum hoover and whizz around the house (which freaks Beans out) and I play these tunes full blast....

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