Standiford Family

I haven’t done too much sewing lately but there have been a few things that I haven’t posted yet that I wanted to.  In August I made this Mom Bag.  I also included a changing pad.  The customer said it was too pretty to use.

Sometime at the end of summer I finally got around to making Meg’s messenger bag.  She only gave me the order months ago.  I took her fabric shopping and asked her what she wanted.  I guess she is a bit like me in knowing what details she wanted the bag to have.  This was the first time I used a zipper.  I survived the process and have decided they aren’t that hard to deal with.

Next was Mattey’s scripture case.  I also took her out shopping and she decided on something and then when I was making it she didn’t want the fabric anymore.  (That’s so her.)  I think it turned out cute and she does like it, now.

Mickey’s office mate ordered a bag for his wife for their anniversary.  He knew exactly what he wanted.  I told him I had to make a few differences since all my bags are unique.  I made it better.  I quilted with blue thread and added some ribbon.  I like it better than mine.  He wanted it to be a knitting bag so I put in a few slots for needles and a flap on one of the pockets.  His wife told me it’s too pretty to use.  It’s sitting on a table so she can look at it.

And here’s my latest creation.  I’ve been seeing patchwork bags around and thought I’d give it a try.  I also wanted to try another zipper.  (That took a while to figure out since I didn’t have a pattern telling me how to do it.)  I love this fabric by Lila Tueller and had to make something for myself with it.  I made an “invisible” outside pocket and inside is a cell phone pocket.

While at my brother’s reception my mom was showing off the bag I made for her.  I walked up to say goodbye and she showed off the one I was carrying.  Then my sister-in-law came by with hers.  Needless to say I left the party with an order.  I had to rush a little since my great aunt is leaving town (going home) this weekend.  (I don’t know why but I’m having a hard time focusing on sewing with the kids home.  Can’t wait for school to start.)  Her criteria were black and white and add some red if I could.  I think I did good.  Here it is.

What do you think?  I got extra of this black and white damask to make a bag for myself.  I love it!  I’ll be using pink for the lining though.  I also found a brown damask.  I have plans to make a couple different bags with that.  I’ll be sure to post them when I’m done.  Next week I’ll be working on a scripture tote for Mat and a messenger bag for Meg.  They’ve been waiting patiently for me to get around to it.  I hope I can get both done next week.  I might have to ship them off somewhere to get some work done though.

I’ve done a few projects/orders in the past couple months.  Thought I’d share pictures.

This is the wedding invitation I made for my brother and his fiancee.  I made 80!  What was I thinking when I offered?  I don’t know but they got done and I’ve gotten a lot of compliments on them.

These are little treat bags I made for St. Patrick’s Day.  I spent a fortune on the m&ms buying the two greens separately.  Oh well.  They turned out really cute.

This Fresh bag was an order.  I think it turned out really nice.  I love that main fabric.  Sadly I can’t get anymore of it.  I had wanted to make a skirt for myself out of it.  Next time I know to buy a few yards of the fabrics I like.

These eye glass cases were a request from a former neighbor.  I had to make 10!  I think I’m going to come up with a different design that could hold a small or large pair of glasses.

That same lady wanted the scripture tote but in an X-Large size.  It ended up being about 12″ X 11″ X 3″.

This was another order.  I added the ribbon and loved the way it turned out.

The small Mom bag is popular.  My cousin ordered this one.

My brother ordered this for his fiancee.  Love the Lila Tueller fabrics, Woodland Bloom.

This was a wild Modern bag.  The inside is a very BRIGHT lime green.

I made this Mom bag for our piano teacher.  She loved it.  And she’s been showing it off and I got another order.  Thanks Shanda.

I was asked to make a little wallet/change purse.  It has two little pockets for cards and then a bigger open pocket for money.  I tried a few designs but this is the one that I got to work.  I plan to work out the kinks in the other patterns but I don’t know when I’ll get to it.

This was my most recent order.  I didn’t think black and white would really look summery but they do.  It’s lined in the yellow from the wallet above.  You can’t really see it but I used a yellow thread for the top stitching.  It looked nice.

I know these aprons needed a model or something but I was in a hurry.  I made these for bridal shower gifts.  I found a great little pattern and used up some fabric I had laying around.  Now I have to make one of these aprons for myself.  Hmm…what color do I want?  And at the shower I had a few people say they wanted one too.  I may get busy again.

I’ve been putting off this posting but I’ve had a few people asking to see what I’ve been making, so here it is.  I made a few bags for Christmas gifts and then a few after that.

This one went to my mom.  She wanted one with a flap.  (This bag doesn’t have a name yet.)  She also loves denim.  It’s not denim but it’s a close color.

This bag went to my mother-in-law.  She is all about black and red.  Her bags can usually pass for luggage (in my opinion) so she got the Big Bucket Bag with some fun lining.

This bag went to my sister-in-law.  She also likes big bags but she is very trendy so she got the Modern.

I also had an order come in at the beginning of December.  A friend wanted to surprise his wife.  She wanted the Bohemian.  It’s similar to the first one I sold.  She loved it.

After sewing for everyone else I needed to make myself a little something.  This is the Fresh Bag.  It’s similar to the Modern but it has an extra double pleat, pointed corners, and it’s smaller.  I use this one all the time because as I stated in the previous post I’m READY for Spring.

Earlier this month I had an order from my future sister-in-law.  She wanted a Mom Bag (formerly call the Diaper Bag) for her sister.  This turned out beautifully.  I’m going to have to use that center fabric and the ribbon for something for myself.  Love it!

Then I had someone ask about a scripture tote for her daughter that’s getting baptized this month.  I worked something out.  It turned out so cute.  I’m sure I’ll be getting more orders for this one, especially since it’s only $15!  There’s even a hidden pocket in the back.

I just finished a smaller version of the Mom Bag for my other sister-in-law.  I hope she doesn’t mind me posting the pictures before she sees it tomorrow.  She’s already had a sneak peek.  She requested an inside pocket with a flap so her wallet won’t fall out.

I’m taking orders.  Please contact me @ kellaford@gmail.com.

I love this little hat pattern.  (I altered it a little, adding ribbon and leaving off the flowers.)  I had to make it for a little cutie named Lily and maybe her cousin will get the second one.  I found a great new yarn at Hobby Lobby a few weeks ago when I went for another reason.  Isn’t that when you find the good stuff?  When you’re not looking for it.  The yarn is Naturally Caron Country.  This is my first time using wool.  It’s a great blend, only 25% merino and not the least bit itchy.  It has a great hand and beautiful stitch definition.  The best part is it’s machine washable.  I doubled the yarn to use the bigger needle called for in the pattern.

I just got my order for some Naturally Caron Spa which is a bamboo blend.  I have a sweater pattern all picked out.  Now I just need to make the time, meaning I’ll need to find some movies and TV shows to watch.

Today I sold my second bag!  A coworker/employee of the first buyer had to have one.  She ordered back in October knowing she wouldn’t get it for a long time.  She wanted one for her 70 year old mother who’s a little funky.  Shopping for someone I don’t know was a little bit of a challenge but I nailed it with my first choice of fabrics, also found at Hobby Lobby.  Here’s the finished product.

Mickey really liked the way this turned out.  I don’t think I’ve ever really heard him comment so much about a bag I’ve made.  Maybe I’ll have to make him something, but what?

Now that it’s gotten to where it was going I can write/brag about it.  I made a diaper bag for a friend who had her first baby.  The style was inspired by My “Bohemian Bag” and the first bag I sold.  I loved it so much it almost didn’t make it to my friend, not that I need a bag that big.

Love this fabric!

It has two stretchy outside pockets, one on each side.

And two end pockets for bottles, burp cloths, etc.  I can’t forget the great bow that can be let out if you need more room.

Five inside pockets to keep you organized.

Last week I made a new style of bag to add to my line.  I found this one and had to make my own version.  (I think I’ll have to do the handbag size too.  It’s so cute.)  It turned out a little differently but I love it.  Christmas is getting close and that means I will soon have all my Christmas projects done so I will start taking orders on the 26th.  You can e-mail me at kellaford@gmail.com.  Mickey’s also going to set up a website for me, www.kellaford.com, of course.  There’s nothing there yet but hopefully I’ll get a few hours of his time while he’s off work.

I will post another style in a few days.  It is being shipped and I don’t want the recipient to see it here first.

Here’s the new bag.  It’s called Modern right now since I haven’t come up with anything better.  If you have a suggestion for a name let me know.  The five pockets are in the middle of the bag so everything doesn’t drop to the bottom.

How smart am I?

Last Friday I sold my first bag.  A few months ago a friend of a friend, but now I consider her my friend too, asked me to make her a brown version of “My Bohemian Bag“.  It took a while to find the right fabrics but I did it.  I gave it to T. on Friday and she loved it.  She said there were at least three ladies at work that were going to try to take it from her.  I hope she can hold on to it.  Today I got an e-mail from one of her co-workers wanting to place an order.  Here we go.

It’s probably not the kind of bucket you’re thinking about.  Yesterday I finished a big black bucket bag (14″w X 12″h X 6″d).  I made it specifically for a church bag.  I have to take a lesson manual, scriptures, and things for the kids to do on top of my own personal items.  So I needed a lot of room.  I wanted something that would be durable and winter-ish.  I chose a suede cloth for the bottom and a polka dot corduroy for the top.  I saw this blue cotton and had to have it for the lining.

Here is the finished bag.  I’m sure I’m going to use it a lot.  I had some ribbon I wanted to use on the outside to make a bow but the ribbon was too thin to stand up to this huge monster bag.  Maybe I’ll get to use it some other time.

It of course has pockets.  They are BIG too.  I’ll get lots of stuff in them.

I finished a new bag on Thursday night.  I love it!  It fits me great and looks great.  It’s a bucket style. The fabric is the Stonehill Collection from JoAnn.  (I linked this in a previous post.)

It of course has pockets inside.  I don’t think I’ll ever make a bag in the future that doesn’t.  I like being organized too much.  I also used a magnetic closure.

And I used a little hardware too.  I also really like the thicker strap.  It stays put on my shoulder.