Foxy Drawstring Pouch

For my birthday last year, my wonderful girl friends bought me this awesome book, Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross. What I like about this book is the fact that it is not only interspersed with projects that I would love to make and wear, but it also features lovely pages with things like recipes for Pumpkin Soup or sewing soundtrack recommendations. It really focuses on sewing on the weekend as an experience, rather than just as the individual garments or projects to make. For all you knitters out there, I hear there is also a Weekend Knitting version, which looks rather lovely!

The book also features absolutely gorgeous hand drawn illustrations as tutorials, which are surprisingly clear and easy to use, as well as being really easy on the eye!

Anyway, this blog post wasn’t meant to turn in to a book review, just a short introduction to a speedy make I did tonight as preparation for starting my new sewing class tomorrow (eeeeekkkk exciting!)  Remember this super cute Foxy Print from the Millets Craft Shack stash expansion bonanza?

Ooo Foxy …

I finally found the perfect use for it by making Heather Ross’ super sweet drawstring bags. The book features three sizes of bag – tonight I only had time to make the smallest pouch, but I will definitely be coming back for more of the larger sizes. As it stands though, the small pouch is exactly what I was after for tomorrow night. I need to take all my little bits and bobs along to sewing class (tape measure, pins, snippers, seam ripper, bobbin box, dressmaker’s pencil). This little pouch was the perfect size to tuck them all in together and stop them shaking about in my tote. Here’s my tied up little bag, looking foxy!

And here are its contents!

I absolutely loved making this little bag, it’s such a simple sew and a great way to use up fat quarters or smaller pieces of fabric! They’re a really good excuse to make use of fabrics with cute and cheerful prints which you’re otherwise not quite sure what to do with. I think they would also make sweet gifts and I plan to sew up a couple more for hand luggage to transport laundry home from trips away. No one need know I have owl print laundry bags while I’m pretending to be an important business lady right?!

Now I have this Foxy little bag, I don’t feel quite as nervous about meeting all my other classmates, who I’m sure are all pro sewers! I hope I can befriend them with my Foxy ways and they might lend me a pin or two. I may also have packed Dave the Dachshund in my bag for luck …

What about you? Do you have any sewing lucky charms? Or a favourite book to sew from?