hi, i'm wondering if anyone has ever attended any good knitting classes around here.  i know the big craft stores (joann's, michaels) offer things like that but i don't know what they're like.  i used to knit when i was little (like 8 years old), my grandmother taught me.  yesterday i decided to pick up some new needles and give it a go again.  i can crochet pretty well, and since i'd done this before i expected to pick it up pretty quickly.  well let me tell you, i spent many many hours yesterday casting on, knitting a few rows, then ripping it out because something somewhere was going wrong.  i've searched the internet high and low and just can't find a solution to my problem. my poor grandmother's eyesight is going (she's 95 years old!) so she doesn't craft all that much anymore, but i'm hoping i can find someone to help me in person and show me where i'm going wrong.  thanks if you've read this far.... i guess, like i said, i'm just wondering if anyone knows of any good (preferably free, or cheap) knitting classes in the area.  thanks!!

so i saw this recipe in last year's christmas edition of martha stewart living, and me being a sucker for anything penguin immediately thought i had to make it.  my boyfriend kind of laughed at me, as if i couldn't do it.  so i, of course, had to prove him wrong for his birthday.  this was about 10 months ago but i thought i'd post here anyway.

here's the original:
http://www.marthastewart.com/favorite-igloo-cake?autonomy_kw=penguin%20cake&rsc=image_1

and my take on it:


close ups of penguins:



i gave up on the whole "basketweave" part of the icing.. i tried but it just wasn't working for me.  so instead i just frosted the whole cake, and then made the ice block marks in it with a butterknife.  i made separate orange beaks for the penguins instead of making it as part of the head like martha did.  i sprinkled splenda over the whole thing, i think it has a nice snowy look to it.  my favorite part is the little guy who's sliding down the side of the cake.   

comments welcome!

ok so i just wanted to try out some quilting techniques and see if i could actually do it.  i had a great fat eighth bundle from joann and thought i should give it a go.  i don't have the patience for doing anything by hand so i did this all on my machine.  the finished product is just over 15" x 15".  not sure what i'll do with it now, it might become a cat bed, although they never lay on the things you WANT them to lay on!  lol.  anyway... i did this in just about two hours, not bad i'd say.

here is the front.  sorry it's so dark, it's the best pic i could get. 


here is the back.  much better pic.  i just used black because it's all i had handy.  had this been a real quilt i probably would have used red.


a close up of some of the fabrics.  again, sorry it's dark.


i just have one question.  is there a way to keep the fabric from pulling like that on the back?  like how you can tell i went in different directions because the fabric is slightly wrinkled in that direction.  or will this go away after it is washed/used?

any comments/feedback are very welcome!  thanks for looking.

ok so i've been drooling over this bag for months now... i just love the patchwork and the colors and the shape of it.  i'm not much of a leather person and don't really care about labels (couldn't afford it anyway), so i'm not really looking to make a knockoff, maybe not even patchwork, but i really adore the shape of this.  i found it when i was looking at amy butler stuff, it was apparently featured in a magazine next to her:

this one shows a good view of the side:


and here it is from the front:
http://www.pursepage.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/coach-ergo-patchwork-large-designer-tote.jpg

i guess my major issue is with the sides, how it has separate pieces.  the only bags i've sewn have just the front and the back, not a panel on the sides.  the shape of the front would be easy to figure out, and i can tell that there are little seams in the corners on the front (and back i assume) but just not sure how it would all go together.  does anyone know of any similar tutorials or patterns?  thanks for your help!

well hello craftsters.  i've been coming here for a while but this is my first purse and the first project i've put a lot of effort into.  it's also the first time i've used stripes, because they always scared me before.  inspiration and directions from these tutes and projects:

the jordy bag tute from (of course) thejordy
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=32204.0

aline jordy with flap tute from second-hand-smoke
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=3105.0

zipper tute from sewing stars
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=8541.0

idea for fabric covered buttons and buttons on the strap from maggiedotcom
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=205945

aaand here are my pics (this is my first post so i can't post the pics right here).  the color is a little washed out in these, but i think you can get the basic idea:

http://www.lindseycore.com/core/purse/purse1.jpg
the whole thing.

http://www.lindseycore.com/core/purse/purse2.jpg
close-up of the button on the front, covered in the lining material

http://www.lindseycore.com/core/purse/purse3.jpg
the side, with a cute little green button that matches the stitching even though the stitching doesn't show up much.  you can see my tiny little imperfect seam right under the strap.  it's like that on each side.   

http://www.lindseycore.com/core/purse/purse4.jpg
flap up, so you can see the lining.

http://www.lindseycore.com/core/purse/purse5.jpg
and the inside.  i know it's not the best pic.  i am so proud of my zipper though!  and on the right hand side (you can just barely see the end of it in the pic) i put a little loop to hold my keys, since i am always fishing around in my purse for them.

other than the small blemishes under the straps on each side i'm very happy with the way it turned out.  i do have one question... what is the best method for turning straps inside out?  i had a bear of a time with this one, the finished handle was actually my third attempt as i made it a little wider each time.  i interfaced both sides and the fabric itself was a little thick, which made it very hard to do.  i ended up sitting down in front of the tv with a wooden spoon with a long handle and verrrry slowly coaxing the thing to turn.

any comments or feedback are very welcome!  thanks for looking!!