Winner

Congratulations, Andrea!  Please email me your complete name and postal address so I can ship the fabric to you. (By the way, I recently found a brown fat quarter in my stash suitable to use for the wallet lining, so I will be sending that to you as well.) I will also email you the Travel Wallet eBook as soon as I hear from you, ok?  Have fun with the pattern!

Thank you to everyone who participated.  Hope you all get to your dream destinations very soon!

It's GIVEAWAY time!

Yes!!! The "How to Make a Travel Wallet/Organizer" eBook has been finalized and is now available here and here.  This is, I think, the most well-written set of instructions I have ever made.  The eBook is 38 pages in total and when I say, "step-by-step", I really do mean it!

Once again, I would like to thank the two ladies who so kindly offered to test out the pattern for me and whose valuable comments and suggestions are most appreciated. Here are their versions of the travel wallet.

Catherine's

Mimi's

They did a great job, didn't they?

Because I am so glad this eBook is finally completed, I am giving you, my dear readers, a chance to win a FREE copy!  Aside from the eBook, I am also sending the lucky winner a fat quarter of this travel-themed fabric from David Textiles so she (or he) can get to work on her (or his) wallet straightaway.

Interested much?  To join, please share with me (in the comments section) which place you would most want to visit and why.  Maybe you will even give me travel ideas in the process.  Me?  I would love to go to the Holy Land.  I know it will be a deep spiritual experience for me.  My daughter has promised me she will take me when she's older (and when she has the money).  Hopefully, I would still be strong enough to travel when the time comes! 

You have until next Sunday, the 26th.  And yeah, don't forget to leave your name and email address, of course.  (Any 'Anonymous' comments left will not be considered, sorry!)  I will use the random number generator to determine the winner.  Please, please, please join!  It's no fun when there are only a handful of people to choose from...

Ok, before I go, let me just show off some of my baked goodies of the past week.  Here are the Lalaloopsy-inspired vanilla cupcakes I mentioned in my previous post.

Have never really heard of Lalaloopsies till I was asked to make these decorations.  I think these characters are cute...but at the same time, quite creepy-looking?!  They remind me so much of the movie, Coraline.  You know, the button eyes?

And here's another one....a unicorn cake!  I really had great fun making the topper. I just love a good challenge.

So that's it for now.  Have a great week ahead.  And please don't forget about the giveaway.  Hope to hear from all of you soon!

T.G.I.S.

Thank God it's Sunday night!  I know, I know....it's Monday tomorrow and nobody likes Monday.  But I am just relieved that the past week is nearly over.  It was one pretty busy week.

Perseverance really does pay off, doesn't it?  I am very happy to say that I am finally done with the travel wallet instructions!  It has been a long time coming. Here's the wallet I made and took step by step photos of.

What else is there to make with that fabric???

I think many people will be glad that the eBook will be available in the shop soon.  Will just need to have the pattern tested this week, fix up whatever kinks there are and then it will be ready.  I am already excited to share this!

As for my 'caking' this week, I had a full schedule as well.  Made 5 cakes and 64 cupcakes.  The first 32 cupcakes were Lego-themed and a real treat to make!

Vanilla cupcakes with gumpaste Lego block toppers.

Used a silicone mould for the Lego blocks.  Quite an expensive piece of cake decorating gadget but well worth the expense.

Modelled freehand, this gumpaste Lego minifig is the same size as the real one. Cool, yeah?

The other 32 cupcakes are for a 6-year old girl's birthday tomorrow.  She is sharing it with her class at school. I have already baked and frosted them but will put the toppers tomorrow morning.  They're Lalaloopsy-inspired!  Can't wait to show you.

Anyway, that's it for now. It's getting late.  Got to have a good night's rest as it will be another busy week ahead.  Have a good one!

Project #3: USB Flash Drive Case

I was at Officeworks the other day buying some school supplies for my kids when I saw one of these.

In case you didn't know, this is a USB flash drive case.  It is made of neoprene, has two pockets (one on each side) and a metal ring for attaching to keys, lanyards, etc.  It also comes in different colours.

I thought it was really a cool little thing because our USB flash drives get misplaced so easily.   I held one in my hand for a while and was very tempted to purchase it as it was only a little over $3, but then I realized that I can just make one myself.

When I got home, I did a search on Google to find out the dimensions of the case.  It turned out, there is another type in the same brand.

Called a USB flash drive shuttle, this one has flip pockets that close with velcro.  Also has a metal push clip.  

Opens up to reveal 2 transparent pockets to hold the USB drives

I found this a better design because it provides a safer way of carrying around the USB drives.  No danger of them accidentally slipping out as in the other case.

Anyway, as you may have predicted, just a day later, I now have this....

Closed case: 4" by 2".  I think I am on a bias binding sewing spree these days!

 This photo doesn't do my case justice because it's really much cuter in person...

Open case: safely keeps two USB flash drives

Pretty neat for such a small thing, don't you agree?  Want to make one too?  JUST LET ME KNOW!



PS.  Here's another cool little thing you might want to make.

Project #2: Travel wallet resurrected

Last week, I received a personal message from Craftster saying that my travel wallet had been included in the Purses, Bags and Wallets Featured Projects of 2011.  I consider this an honour simply because hundreds (or thousands?) of projects are posted in that board each year.

As I've mentioned here before, I have sort of abandoned my travel wallet project.  I intended to make a pattern for it last year but when I encountered problems with the pattern and with the binding, I got frustrated and set it aside.  The news from Craftster, however, has inspired me to work on this pattern again.  After all, I did have all I needed ready and I even have the most appropriate fabrics for it.

I worked on a new travel wallet yesterday and surprisingly, everything just fell easily into place...from the pattern down to the binding.  I wondered why it was so hard before!  And I must say, the resulting wallet is really one of the best things I have ever sewn!

Closed wallet.  What you think of that fabric?

Open wallet

Left side with passport and ticket pockets plus a long pocket and a pen loop

Right side with ID window and card slots plus 2 extra pockets and a luggage key holder

The cover

Filled with everything I will ever need at the airport!

I feel confident that I can finish this pattern this time around.  If you think the fabric I used is awesome, wait till I show you another fabric I bought specifically for this....

Lately, I have been enjoying my non-baking time sewing stuff.  Apart from the cosmetic bags and this travel wallet, I also made myself an apron.  I used my son's work apron as my pattern.

 I even made it reversible!

The fabrics are from David Textiles' Kiss the Cook range.

When my apron was in the wash the other day, I had to borrow my daughter's.  I could tell she didn't want me using hers.  When I told her I was making an apron, she said, "Good, so you don't have to borrow mine."  After I had sewn this, I went to her room and flaunted it in front of her.  Then she said, "Can we swap?"

Naaah.  This one's mine...but I'm letting her borrow it, of course.

Pattern testing complete!

Three out of four, at least.  I don't know what happened to the fourth tester.  After an initial email, I didn't hear from her again. Oh well.

Here are the finished bags of the ladies who so kindly volunteered for the job (and finished it!).

From Jenny

From Mimi

From Susan

Aren't those lovely?

I've already done a number of patterns/eBooks and tutorials before but this was the very first time I've had my pattern tested by someone else.  What did I learn from this experience?

First of all, the comments and suggestions from these ladies were very helpful.  There were a few steps and photos that I wouldn't have thought of fixing up had they not told me to do so.  Overall, they did find the instructions clear and detailed and the photos very useful (which is a relief for me!).  If you've ever bought any of my patterns or tried any tutorial on this site, you would surely know that I do not skimp on photos!

What I would probably try do the next time around is have a pattern tested by people I actually know.  Like my friends here perhaps, or my sister in-law (who lives in the next suburb), or mums from my kids' schools. That way, as they sew, they can ask me and show me their work personally.  It would definitely be easier to explain things especially when something is unclear or when something goes wrong.  Sometimes, it is very hard to communicate via email alone and misunderstanding results from it.

Anyway, I am just about ready to release this eBook on "How to make a Cosmetic/Make-up Bag".  This 34-page eBook includes patterns for two bag sizes and aside from instructions on how to sew the bag, I've also added instructions on how to make your own bias binding tape.  It will be available shortly in my Etsy Shop and also on Simple Things.

Thank you once again to Jenny, Mimi and Susan.  Thank you for taking time out from your busy life to help me out.  Hope you learned something from me as I have from you.

Pattern testers please!

Yesterday was a really good day.

Firstly, after a couple of months of anxiously waiting, my eldest son has been offered a place in his preferred university and at the course he really wanted.  The news came as a great sigh of relief.   The university, apart from being a reputable one, is just a 30-minute train ride from our home, making commuting super convenient. I was truly happy for my son! He is turning 18 in a few days, a milestone in itself, and this blessing is certainly a huge icing on his cake.  Yay, we now have an Accountant in the making!

During the day too, I was in the mood to sew another cosmetic bag.  Since I rarely get the urge (and the time) to sew these days, I really had to take advantage of the opportunity.  I also had that strong feeling that I could "perfect" this pattern after a third attempt so I took out our camera and decided to take photos along the way.

And I was right!  The bag turned out beautifully.  The pattern seemed flawless.  I was so satisfied with my sewing...and that doesn't happen very often!

Anyway, you know what comes with a pattern...the instructions, of course! I fixed up all my photos, typed up everything, read, reread and edited, then finally printed the whole thing as a PDF.  Even I am surprised to have come up with a new eBook in such a short time. 

Before I release the eBook, however, I do want the pattern tested.  I had some difficulty constructing my sentences so I want to make sure my instructions are ultra clear.  

Do you want to be a pattern tester?

To be considered, you must have some experience in sewing, particularly in installing zippers, bias binding, and sewing around curves.  You must also commit to:

1.  Finish the bag within a week after I email the PDF to you. (It only takes a couple of hours to make this from start to finish!)

2.  Blog about the pattern if you have a blog then email me the link so I can post it here;  or if you don't have a blog, send me a write-up with photos of your bag so I can share it here too.

Please express your interest in the comments section below.  Do not forget to leave your name and email address.

I will choose up to three (3) pattern testers.  Hopefully, there are a lot of volunteers out there so I will actually have people to choose from!

Anyone???

UPDATE (21/1/12):  PATTERN TESTERS ALREADY CHOSEN. THANKS.