Sidekick Suitcase: Finished!

Front

I've had my Sidekick Suitcase finished for awhile now.

The Sew Along, in fact was over before Easter and I had gotten ahead of the game with sewing (never happens)

and finished even before that.

But I did get behind on taking pictures and posting them.

So here it is!

Back

Overall, I have to say that I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out.

My goal, as I've already said, was just to push myself to try new materials and techniques.

And that's exactly what this project offered me. Success!

Inside

The few problems that I had were to be expected, I suppose.

And, I should definitely mention, had NOTHING to do with the pattern.

The pattern was great.

Clear, concise,

and as a bonus, Jodi was supplying me with tips as I went via her sew along posts.

I wrote in a previous post that I was having some problems with the piping,

and while it's not perfect, I'm happy with the end product.

The game-changer there was figuring out the right foot to use on my machine. It really made all the difference.

My only other issue was all due to my own fabric choice.

I love this corduroy. love. love.

But it was a little too thick to work with once I had to sew through multiple multiple layers.

(especially areas like the handle)

I should have considered that on my first read through of the pattern.

Had I thought that through properly, I probably would have  left the corduroy out and just used my accent fabric (the houndstooth) to do all of the accents.

The only other variance from the pattern was the addition of the appliquéd initial.

I had some extra fabric, so I added the "B" to the front.

I still have plenty of fabric left over to do something else, so I'm thinking about making a little matching luggage tag. :)

One of my favorite things about this bag is that it is just about the perfect size for an overnight or weekend trip to the grandparents' house.

And now Ben's stuff won't get lost in the abyss of everyone else's (my) crap.

If you're already sewing and want a project to push you to the next level, I highly recommend this pattern, and Jodi's blog, for that matter.

The pattern is only $10, and a steal, especially considering all the personal tips she gives.

Suitcase Update

Bottom half complete!

This is probably my last update before the big reveal of Sidekick Suitcase for Ben.

I was thinking about just waiting until I finished,

but I thought I would share my experience so far

especially in regard to my first experience with piping.

Top half complete!

In my last update, I showed you how I had made the piping.

Jodi's tips and tricks really helped in that department.

But I was still feeling overwhelmed by attaching the piping to the suitcase pieces.

Bottom half inside. My lining still makes me swoon.
LOVE this fabric.

Let me just say that it wasn't as difficult as I had originally thought.

However, I did have my fair share of frustrations.

Not with the directions/pattern, mind you.

Those were crystal clear (Thanks, Jodi!)

It was just quite a process to get through the middle steps of attaching the piping

and then sewing all of the pieces together.

Top half inside.

The biggest frustration for me was repeatedly breaking my needle trying to sew through so many layers (some of them being pretty thick fabrics).

This is, of course, my fault (it usually is).

I was rather excited to use an additional accent fabric for the corner patches and the handle,

a pretty, slate gray (thick) corduroy that I had left over from another project.

yes, THIS was the part that gave me the most trouble.
Darn corduroy. If only you weren't so great.

While I'm really happy with the way it looks,

and I did get it eventually,

as I progressed in the steps of the pattern, it became increasingly difficult to get through the layers of fabric without breaking my needle (which I should mention, drives. me. BONKERS.)

zippity zip zip zipper.

Anyway, I ended up sewing with a 120 needle (jean weight) instead of a 100 needle for the heavier parts, and that worked much better.

So there you have it.

I'm almost done... I've gotten a little bit ahead of the sew along and only have a few steps left, but I'll wait to share all of that until I have it completely finished. :)

Noteworthy Events from the Weekend

because, obviously, you were wondering...

Here are the highlights:

I went to going away party for my best friend, Sarah, who is moving across the country.

Depressing? Yes.

But it was a great party.

I went to my pottery class and make a garlic keeper.

Ha. I know, but I was so proud of myself.

I found myself swimming in fabric and yarn to keep up with the orders from my Etsy shop.

Lot and LOTS of bunny ears.

Continued gardening and prepping of seedlings for the Spring 2012 garden.

I ate a whole (large) bag of peanut M&Ms.

Made continued progress on my Sidekick Suitcase for Ben.

Watched The Descendents which was not what I was expecting, but no George Clooney movie ever is, so why was I even surprised???
This clearly says more about my expectations than it does about George Clooney, yes?

I made zucchini chips.

Delicious,

but absolutely NO substitute for potato chips, in case you were wondering.

And, last but not least, I received a gift card for my birthday which I will most likely be using to (don't hate me) purchase theeeeese.

Things I DID NOT do:
Go to the gym.

It's amazing what you can accomplish in a weekend when you aren't wasting your days and nights away anticipating a new episode Downton Abbey.



Sidekick Suitcase Sew Along- Progress Report

Well I promised to keep everyone updated on my progress

as I continue work on my first sew along.

I've just begun and already feel like I'm conquering so many firsts

which is pretty darn exciting.

I've already shown you all my materials.

I have to say, the more I work on this project, the more I love my fabric choices.

(patting myself on the back)

 

Having materials you love makes the tedious task of cutting out all of your pieces so much more bearable and even fun in this case.

Once I got over that molehill, the next step was making the piping.

I have never made piping

and I would be lying if I didn't mention that this step was more than a little horrifying to me.

But Jodi included some great tips, including this little gem of a resource that she found for turning a fat quarter into more than 5 yards of bias tape.

Turns out piping isn't difficult,

but (and this is a big but) like zippers, you'll save yourself a lot of heartache by using the correct tools,

and in this case its a zipper foot.

For some reason I have 3 zipper feet, and they're all different.

After using the foot that I normally use for zippers, my piping was a baggy, lumpy mess.

I then switched to a smaller zipper foot, moved my needle all the way to the left, and I ran the piping through my sewing machine again.

This did the trick, and I now have much nicer, more tailored piping.

So you can see in my picture (above) that I have two seam lines, but they'll be hidden anyway,

so no big whoop. thank goodness.

Next step was the lining. I got to play with my awesome houndstooth fabric again. love it.

 

Then, I had a little extra time (and thought I should take advantage of it) and I got a head start on my accents.

I decided to add an initial to my Ben's suitcase, so I found a font I liked...

blew up a 'B'

and cut it out to use as a stencil for my accent fabric and some heat-n-bond.

 

iron on

zig zag around...

 

cut around my second layer...

iron on

zig zag around...

and done.

Instead of using my houndstooth for the corner patches, I had just enough corduroy to use for the 8 of those. perfect. love it.

 

So that's it! So far, so good!

More to come so stay tuned.

My First Sew Along!

That's disceiving...

I'm not conducting the sew along.

I'm participating.

And I. am. AMPED.

My virtual and real friend, Jodi, of Sew Fearless is doing the real work,

or has done.

She has some great patterns, including the Pajama Eaters that took over this Christmas underneath our tree.

So great! Right?

Now she has a new pattern for these adorable kids' suitcases.

It really was love at first sight.

I now have the pattern in my possession, and I've gathered all of my materials to make one for Ben.

My supplies. "Is that houndstooth?" you ask. "Yes. Yes it is."

I'm not sure whether I should be embarrassed or proud that I had almost all of the materials already on hand. I'm gonna go with proud for the moment.
I just had to run to Joann's (darn) to get the right sized zippers.

This is big for me because it will mark a number of firsts.

First time making piping.
First time using stabilizer.

First time using plastic canvas.

and lots of other things that I'll be sharing along the way...

Jodi has just posted the very very beginning of printing the pattern and gathering materials, so it's not too late to join in the fun.

I'll be posting my progress (the good, the bad, and the ugly) as I go. :)