ByAnnie.com Challenge

 What's in your bag?  

For October, the Island Batik Ambassadors were challenged to choose a pattern from Byannie.com and fabrics from any of the collections currently in shops, and make a bag.  ByAnnie sent all of the supplies and the pattern, and Island Batik included fabric in our July boxes.  All products shown were provided for my role as ambassador. 

I picked from the Poetic Bouquet collection.  I used SKU 112435915 for the accent (aqua with leaves), and 112403875 for the outside, with 112406405, the pale pink/lavender for the inside lining, and 112403828 for the straps, trim, and binding.  

By Annie included the pattern, bottom support, strapping, interfacing, zippers, all the hardware, Soft and Stable foam, and mesh.  I had some purple mesh so I used that, instead.  The pink they sent was pretty, but I wanted it to be more purple.  Keep in mind these items were chosen months ago, and the fabric required for the outside, inside and accent were all the same amount, so when I actually started the bag, I may have "moved" where things went.  I decided to use the darkest for the main part of the bag, so it doesn't show dirt.  

Island Batik makes a pretty bundle for us in the boxes!  I've actually made one of these before, but wanted one in my colors, and I couldn't think of any other bags I wanted to make that I didn't already have the pattern for.  So, Round Trip Duffle #2 was completed.  

I think Heather wants to go away!  She jumped right in to the photo op, and looked like she was asking about our next adventure.  

First, a note about By Annie patterns.  

They are BRILLIANT!  The Soft and Stable help give the bag body support and stability, but it's still flexible and can be folded/smushed to go into a larger suitcase.  The way the bag is construced, with the binding and straps, gives it an "invisible" frame, if you will.  The photos are with the bag, empty.  It stays like the "cube" because of the seams and straps.  Really smart!  The directions are clear, easy to read, and contain check boxes so you can mark that you've completed something.  Plus many of the By Annie patterns have Add On Videos with detailed instructions and hints, and you can watch them over and over.  With the purchase of the patterns, you get a $5 coupon to cover the cost of the video, estentially making it free.  She gives hints on how to assemble the parts, and before you know it, you have a bag. 

First step is to read all the directions before unpacking the fabric.  That should be your first with any pattern, but here's your chance to double check you understand, and to watch the video if needed.  

Step 2 is to quilt the outer fabric and lining using Soft and Stable.  I requested a little extra fabric to make it easier to do on my Handi-Quilter Amara with Pro-Stitcher.  I picked a panto called Flower Fields for my bag.  You can easily quilt this in sections on a domestic machine, though.  Annie tells you how to prep the fabric. 

I used Aurifil 40-three in purple for the quilting.  

Then you cut out all of the sections.  There's a diagram as well as a list in the pattern.  The diagram shows best use of the fabric, and how sections should be placed.  Some things require interfacing, like the trim on the pockets.  You also make zipper pulls, so having a Clover bias tape maker is helpful.  

I wound 2 bobbins with Aurifil 40wt thread that I thought would look good, and switched my Janome 9450 to the Even Feed foot and single needle plate, and added in a size 14 Schmetz quilting needle.  I think it's one of the best options for going through the thick layers, and the walking foot was a big help, too.  Of course the Oliso Pro iron was a huge help, too.  It worked so well on the interfacing, and getting the straps and zipper pulls to look great!

Here's where I "play" a bit.  I don't always follow the directions in order.  I've sewn so many things, from pajamas to wedding gowns, plus other bags, and like to get the similar items done chain-piece style.  So, I sewed all the strap covers at once, then pressed them all, cut all the strapping web to the right sizes, used a safety pin to pull them all through, did all the edge stitching, and then added the hardware as directed in the pattern.  I was so happy that they provided the silver tone set, I think it looks awesome.  They have a few different colors of metal available, so you can give your bag a personalized look.  

You also prep the binding ahead, and add the interfacing as needed.  (This photo shows one side, with a slip pocket under the aqua with lavender trim section, which goes down to the bottom corner, and again helps to add shape to the bag, plus storage for a phone or document, plane tickets, etc.)  The swivel clip into the triangle ring is removable, so you can just use the main handles if you want, but this strap has a shoulder pad, as well.  

Adding the trim to the pockets, and then pockets to the front and back of the bag is next.  Adding the straps secures the pocket sections, and also creates the divider sections on the inner slip pocket.  

Front has a zipper pocket and a slip pocket behind it.  

Inside Front with 3 sections.

The back of the bag includes a trolly sleeve for your roller bags.  There's a slip pocket behind that.  

Are you counting?? That's 5 pockets on the outside alone.  Inside is the 3 slip, plus a zippered mesh pocket on the back side. 

The aqua at the bottom is a removable cover for the stabilizer base.  

The next step is making the zipper strip and sides/bottom for the bag, then sewing this to the front, binding the edge, and adding the back and binding.  Once that's done, the last step is to press it, add the zipper pulls and celebrate!  

Large clips help hold the sections together.  I highly recommend them, because pins will not be efficient here.  

2 way zipper at the top, and the zip opens a few inches past each corner, so you can easily see inside the bag.  It's about 12 by 19 1/2 by 7 1/2" deep, so a great size for a weekend trip, or as your carry on if you have other luggage.  

Please check out the other Island Batik Ambassadors to see their bags this month.  By Annie has something for everyone, including some free patterns, so you can download something and see what I mean about the quality of the patterns, and learn steps that Annie uses to make her bags.  

Have fun, and thanks for stopping by!  

Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs

Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting

Megan Best ~ BestQuilter

Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts

Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts Studio

Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany

Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts

Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts

Jane Hauprich ~ Stitch by Stitch Custom Quilting

Kim Jamieson-Hirst ~ Chatterbox Quilts

Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You

Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs

Connie Kresin Campbell ~ Freemotion by the River

Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood

Denise Looney ~ A Quiltery

Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights

Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine

Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion

Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique

Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts

Julia Schweri ~ Inflorescence Designs

Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail

Carol Stanek ~ Stitch with Color

Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels

Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations

Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt

Baseball Jersey Quilt

 Hi, and thanks for stopping by.  I recently finished and delivered this quilt and wanted to share/document the process.  

Last year my friend asked me to make a t-shirt quilt (between other projects) for her son-in-law.  He worked for the baseball team during his time in college at University of Miami.  The Hurricanes team provided him with tons of shirts, and something needed to be done with them.  Most of these were very stretchy nylon or polyester type fabrics that work better for sports players.  I also couldn't come up with a layout for a bit, until I looked again at the logo for U Miami, which is a 2 color U shape.  I realized I could use the U shape in the layout, which would use the 4 orange shirts, and 4 of the green.  One of the white ones had a front and back design, and a few had designs on the sleeves.  

The cutting and prep work began.  I saved any sleeves that had a logo, and prepped all the shirts with fusible featherweight Pellon interfacing.  But the interfacing didn't stick to most of the shirts, so I had to keep trying, with progressivly hotter temperatures with my Oliso iron, until the interfacing was really sticking to the very stretchy shirts, to stabilize them enough to make the quilt.  I ended up using a pressing cloth, as well as the woolen mat, and was finally satisfied.  

The next step was figuring out how to create the curves.  I had taken a class with Mario using the Classic Curves ruler by Color Girl Quilts.  I couldn't find mine, so I borrowed Maureen's, a wonderful friend I've made in the Evening Star guild (Mineola, NY).  But the ruler makes squares with curves, so what if I want to only curve one corner, and how much of a curve should I do?  I played with the ruler on the shirt corner for a bit, and decided to use the 7" line on the 2 outer blocks, and the 4" line on the 2 white blocks.  I cut the squares that would be the new corners with White solid from Island Batik, and the Pineneedle basic and then used an orange cotton printed fat quarter for the orange part.  

The layout was still not pleasing to me, because there were more green shirts and placement to make the U stand out would not work.  So I opted to make the 2 lower corner blocks using the sleeve designs.  I pieced them together, then added more of the Pineneedle and orange fq to make them equal the size of the blocks which was based on one shirt that had a larger design.  They all were trimmed to 14 1/2" and a walking foot was used to enable smoother sewing with the still a little stretchy shirts.  I added s small border with more White to help stabilize it.  

Margaret had asked for orange Shannon Cuddle wide back for the backing and I searched for a baseball theme quilting pantograph that would work, without being too dense or juvenile.  Flying Baseballs from Urban Elementz was the best choice, and I layered the quilt with Warm & White batting.  Aurifil thread 40-three was used for quilting, in Chalk, a soft white.  I used 50wt for piecing.  

The back.

Binding was more Pineneedles from Island Batik, and one more sleeve design was added to the label on the back, which I embroidered.  

I know he's thrilled with it, because Margaret sent me a video.  She's sure they'll be using it for many years to come.  The quilt measures about 60 by 74, and I've heard they are using it on their bed.  

I had fun, and was grateful to Margaret for giving me time to design this, figure out the curve and get it done!  I'm also grateful to have the Handi-Quilter Amara with Pro-Stitcher to enable me to quilt great designs.