About Jan

Musician and geek and Juris Doctor; lover of fine art and fine craft; mother and grandmother and significant other and friend. Passionate about sewing.

Mask Matching

Sara Lawson, of Sew Sweetness Patterns, introduced a new bag, called the Rockstar Bag, about two months ago. Frequently, Michele Graham, who is one of the moderators on Sara’s fans group on Facebook and a super sewist in her own right, will host a sew-along when a new bag comes out. I’m participating in the Rockstar Bag sew-along, but am lagging behind the group because of musical obligations and mask-making needs. The sew-along lasts about six weeks, and I made it through the fourth week. One of the optional assignments in the fourth week was to make a coordinating pouch … Continue reading

Two More Kitty Packing Cubes

I forgot to add the other components of the three-cube set. (Click any photo to enlarge.) The first packing cube you saw was the large. Then I purchased the blue colorway and made the medium. And finally I got my hands on the pink colorway and decided on a black and white polka dot for the lining. I LOVE that combination! Those fabrics became the small packing cube, which is just as cute as it can be! Now if we can just get a COVID-19 vaccine, get the entire world innoculated, and plan some travel again. #sweetdreams

A Pattern I Love to Love

I don’t remember when or where I first saw this fabric, but I absolutely fell in love at first sight. I’m a cat person from birth to now. I lost my last good cat around four years ago. If he had been my only cat at that time, I would have gotten another cat. But there was Angel, who was not an angel. When we finally had Angel put to sleep, the vet said, “You’re doing him a favor. He’s never been a happy cat.” I’m pretty sure if I examine my arms closely enough, I can still find the … Continue reading

Take A Stand!

Every so often I just have to take a break from making masks and do some fun sewing. This week’s break involved the Take A Stand tote in size Small, from byAnnie patterns. This zippered tote has exterior zippered pockets and interior mesh pockets. It’s ideal for carrying sewing supplies to a class or keeping them organized in your sewing space. I actually think my Spousal Equivalent would like one in a denim or heavy duty fabric to hold some of the tools from his workbench for when he goes to do handyman tasks for friends. The zipper used to … Continue reading

So Sew Easy Carry All Bag

Way back when Craftsy was Craftsy, long before it became Bluprint, then was sold, and now will become Craftsy again with all their databases of classes we’ve purchased intact, I saw a bag kit that I thought was very pretty. I bought the kit – the beautiful Modern Meadow line from Joel Dewberry with his Dogwood Bloom modern print on an aqua (“Pond”) background, lining fabric in the Herringbone print in Pond, and accents from the Herringbone print in navy (“Lake”). The pattern was the So Sew Easy “Carry All Bag,” a free pattern. Because of the Craftsy/Bluprint debacle, I … Continue reading

A Fishy Sleepshirt For Me

Finally! A break for a few hours in all my mask making to sew something fun, something I’ve been thinking about sewing for several years. There are a lot of independent (“indie”) pattern designers nowadays, and more popping up each month. There’s a t-shirt/dress pattern I’ve been looking at for several years. It’s called the Laundry Day Tee and it comes from Love Notions Sewing Patterns, LLC. Love Notions is Tami Meyer and I am now her newest instant fan. The Laundry Day Tee was first released in 2015 as a t-shirt. It quickly became a favorite pattern for everyone … Continue reading

Masks and a Pouch for Storage

One of my lovely accompanees asked if I could make a couple of masks for her. After showing her the fabric choices, I made three masks. Then I ended the day by making a little pouch so she could store the clean masks safely in her bag or backpack. The pouch is from Sew Sweetness—the Hexi Zipper Pouch. This is a free pattern, a quick sew, a multi-purpose pouch. The pattern specifies foam interfacing, but you could just as easily make it with fusible fleece or even just Pellon’s Shape-Flex interfacing. I find if a bag has curves, it’s harder … Continue reading

Remembering Travel

Now that we’re five months into staying at home because of COVID-19, any memory of travel is precious. We don’t want to get on a plane or walk through an airport or even travel by car longer than two hours (y’know, because of the need for bathroom stops). In mid-May, the travel trailer rental site RVshare had reported a 1,000% increase in travel trailer bookings since April, as cited by the Boston Globe. I have to admit that my idea of roughing it involves a Marriott hotel, any Marriott hotel. I’ve tented before. I’ve camped in a pop-up trailer before. … Continue reading