Number three!!

Did you hand or machine stitch...  also, are the stitches actually through the paper, or are the birds stitched and then pasted on?

p.s.  Looks great!

I needed a bag big enough to carry all my stuff to and from work, as well as be large enough to handle a few groceries when I have to stop at the store last minute without my reusable bags.  This pattern is Simplicity 4535 view D, with a magnetic snap instead of velcro and I added a piece of plastic in the base for stability.  It turned out larger than I anticipated, but I am so glad!  I am carrying it everyday now and I am working on making a vinyl lined lunch box to match. 

Any recommendations on a lunch box pattern?  I'm kind of making it up as I go along.  Can't be too tricky to make a box, right??  (Famous last words...)

Here is my new bag!!

I came really close to getting the stripes lined up.  The pocket flap is what threw me off.  I had it on the pieces when I was cutting the pattern but once I started assembly, the flap wouldn't line up properly...  argh!


Please excuse the few stray strings... I was so excited to take pictures I didn't finish snipping them...



Please ignore the garbage bags in the background...as you can see finishing my bag was more important than finishing my cleaning!  Oh well!
Thank you for looking!

Gorgeous!!! Where did you find those placemats?

I found the placemats on clearance last year at Dee's Arts & Crafts.  My fabric stash is full of bargains I find and say "Hmm... I can make something with this!"  I question if it's crazy, but then a year later this set becomes a purse!!  Hooray for impulse buys!

Once again, I didn't think of taking a picture of the original state of the fabric until it was too late, so picture four round placemats...

Using Simplicity 4535 I ended up with this little bag. 



It is smaller than I usually carry, but it was the only pattern that would utilize only the fabric from the placemats.  I had a bit left over so I made the matching wallet using this pattern
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=190408.msg2000253#msg2000253



I highly recommend using placemats for purses!  It was great!  I found colors and patterns I liked last summer on clearance 90% off.  Ended up paying no more than 25 cents a piece.  I ripped the seams and had outer fabric with interfacing already attached and a lining perfectly matched.  Couldn't be more fun!

Thanks for looking!

The eyes are just stunning!!

I would definitely like to see a tut!  I have been wanting to make some bags like that!  Nice Job!

and it looks like your child is in a sling style seat - so you could even take that seat OFF and use it as a real template so you will have a real perfect fit. . ..

Thank you all for your comments!  Using the seat itself as a template to adjust the pattern is fantastic!  Thank you for the tip!

My sis lives in Manhattan without a car, and keeping a blanket on a two year old in a stroller has proven difficult.  She asked me to make her a stroller cozy, since she doesn't want to pay $80-$100 for one.  The only request she had was that it not be bubblegum pink, or have flowers and butterflies.  I took care of that for her!  I whipped up this bad boy for her while they were in town for the holidays and now my sweet little niece is the hottest kid in town!



Here it is unzipped.... She's sleepy....



It's super warm...  I used the back of an old wool coat that doesn't fit anymore inside the front panel, so it's nice and heavy.  I made the mistake of using the Simplicity 3712 pattern, which is "one size," however it is sized for an infant.  Instead of having the shoulder straps go through the back, they are over the top of the back so her legs have enough room.  It still works, but doesn't sinch around her head like it is supposed to.

 Does anyone know who makes a pattern for a toddler sized cozy?  I am thinking about making an extension using the double separating zippers that are already there, but I haven't experimented with it yet.

Thanks for looking! 

So how big is it and how big is each square?

That is so neat, I really want to try that some day, but I wouldn't even know where to start. Also, how did you knit that yellow border around it?

Well, the squares were about 8"x8" if I remember right, and there were 63 squares.  It ended up about 4'x6' give or take a few inches with the border.  All of the squares were just simply garter stitch, and the border was a row of about maybe 10-15 stitches of garter with a whole bunch of rows!  It was a great project to take on the go, since the squares were all knit individually and then sewn together after I had all the squares.  I would defintely recommend trying it!  It was fun and super easy, but had a great "Wow" effect as a gift!