Author Archives: Jan

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.

A Granddaughter Pouch

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My younger DGD said to her mom the other day that she needed another “JanBag.” So I decided this ByAnnie Clam Up zippered pouch I made before heading out on vacation on January 1st will become a new JanBag for her. I love this bag pattern. The pattern gives five sizes and I made the size Large. The fabric I used was from Tula Pink’s “Evergreen” collection. Again, I used the “Good Hair Day” print, only this time in the color Karma. For the lining, I used the same Neon Tent Stripe in Spirit that I used on Harper’s Packing … Continue reading →

Vacation Packing Cubes for Two Sweet Little Girls

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In late November, my talked to my sister, who lives in Mt. Pleasant, SC, about my flying over to spend a few days with her as soon as I was done with my final Christmas show. She told me about her plans, and who all would be coming to visit her, and the fact that her granddaughter, Casey—whose family started the move of the extended family to South Carolina—and her two young daughters would be flying to Boston to visit friends from their time living there before the move. She also mentioned that this would be the first airplane rise … Continue reading →

The Longest Commission in History

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Setting the Stage: I have a cousin on my mother’s side whom I like very much. He has a lovely wife whom I also like very much, and with whom I share a love of theatre—she has had a long and successful career in theatre education and production; I am a collaborative pianist who works as a rehearsal accompanist for theatre productions at my local university. She texted me over two years ago saying she had found some remnants of two pieces of cotton fabric that she and her parents bought when traveling in Egypt in the 1960s. She wondered … Continue reading →

Two Bags, Same Fabric

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I love wearing twin sets, although in clothing, a twin set means a matching tank top and cardigan. This is my bag version of a twin set, both using a black Richloom vinyl (Pattern: Sunrise; Color: Onyx) and a canvas print that I love.love.love. (Rifle Paper Co.; Print: Bon Voyage.) Link to the fabric collection. Travel and I are dear friends, but you already knew that. <Sidenote On> If you really love this print and would like an item using it, here are some goodies you might like. Rifle Paper Co. <Sidenote Off> The back story is twofold: I’ve been … Continue reading →

My Best Laid Plan

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I have been using this little Lodis zippered bag for several years. I put all my IDs and debit cards in the front slip pocket, and my credit cards in the back slip wallet, then my folded bills in the zippered pocket. It was the ideal little bag to switch from one purse to another, or tuck into my pocket when running to the grocery store or going out to dinner. I had a favorite small Groom crossbody bag that it fit perfectly into, next to my phone and proof of covid vax. Then, within one week, two things happened: … Continue reading →

The Third Cousin-Bag

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Two years ago, my mother’s eldest nephew’s wife (i.e., my cousin) texted and asked if I’d make some bags for her and her two sisters out of vintage fabric she purchased years ago on a trip to Egypt. (I may have gotten some or all of the facts wrong, but two years is a long time during a pandemic.) I stay busy as a collaborative pianist at Youngstown State University, and have to make time to sew. And I had to choose a pattern. So I spent the entire summer of 2022 auditioning bag patterns. For the camel fabric, I … Continue reading →

Brushing Up

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How awful is it that I haven’t posted a new make in almost six months?! That’s just terrible! Well, in my defense, there was a bit of a sandstorm in my basement sewing room that coated every surface with concrete dust. I’ve gotten half the room cleaned up, but there are still a lot of surfaces that need to be cleaned and fabric that will have to be washed. If you look at the pictures on this page, you’ll get an idea of what happened. But I needed a mental break and was able to grab an hour (or maybe … Continue reading →

Two Bags Delivered

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The whole time I’ve been testing crossbody bag patterns, I was thinking about the circus fabric my cousin gave me. I knew I wanted to make tote bags out of the elephant fabric, as there was much less of that fabric, and I needed to stretch it to make three bags. Hmmm, now that I’m looking at these two fabrics again, I don’t even know why I have envisioned it as circus fabric in my head. I don’t even know what to call it, but I sure love those colors! Anyway, I used the Tourist Tote Bag pattern from Sew … Continue reading →