For a swap: LBOE Pick 5 Swap

I have to show this one off separately because it has a lot of elements.

This is for the LBOE Pick 5 Swap.

For this swap there was this crazy ass long list of stuff you could pick from (handmade and supplies) and you just had to pick five things to send.

That's the whole shebang.

I chose to make a bag, a stuffie, a (larger sized) patch, a needlebook, and send some embroidery floss.  (and I added in a few other treats just because I could).

The bag turned out so freaking CUTE.  It's just the Poochie bag pattern done with some crazy cute cat fabric I had.  The cat print and the fish are from the same line.  The bones is a different line but works well as the liner (it would be too dark for the straps.

Yes, I do realize I didn't think about the direction of the print when I made the body of the bag.  I haven't made one of these in a while (in fact, I think the last time I made one may have been for a swap with the exact same partner!) so I forgot how the sizing of the pieces went.  It still looks cute as hell so I'm not overly concerned about it.

The needle book.

Oh yeah, I loves me some Bob's Burgers (so does my partner) and this just HAD to be made.  It was super simple to make.  I just traced an altoid tin (for the rough shape) onto felt and fabric and stitched them together.  That was after I put the white patch on the cover and did the embroidery (gots to hide my stitches, y'all).  Then I made another felt shape (trimmed smaller) for the pages and stitched it into the cover.  When it was folded over that made for two pages which was plenty.  Then I sewed the spine again (top stitched) so it would lay relatively flat.  Then add a few needles to one of the pages and you are ready to work your Tina Belcher!

If I ever make this again, I'll add a piece of ribbon on the back cover (catch it in the seam when I put the cover together) so the ribbon can pull over the cover to hold it shut (like those notebooks that have the elastic to pull over the cover).  I tried to add it to this after I had the cover done but it just didn't work.  It needs to be added into the seam so you can leave a nice long tail so the ribbon doesn't fray and pull out of the seam.  (but I was too lazy to make the whole book again when top stitching the spine made the book close just fine, which was what I was wanting anyway)

Stuffie TIME.

A stuffed stuffie, too.

Kawaii for the win!

Hi there little orange slice.

Let me share with you how lazy I am (ok this isn't so much lazy but more like double dipping).

I had this orange all cut out for another swap a few months ago (a kawaii stuffie swap, the one I made the jelly fish for) and then I realized the swap was for a kawaii animal so the orange wouldn't work.  Ooops.  So I just had to stitch this all up and use it for this swap.

It turned out so freaking cute.

I found the pattern/tutorial online (youtube, too lazy to look it up again right now) and just changed it one tiny bit.

I put faces on each of the segments instead of the skin.  I didn't want the stitches from the face to show on the inside of the stuffie and I didn't want to have to make a two ply skin (to hide the stitches).  So faces on the segments fixed that problem.  And it looks really cute.  I varied the eye/mouth colors a bit based on what bits of floss I had already cut.

Last but not least is the patch for this swap.  You could make one larger one (6x6) or two smaller.  I needed the bigger size to make what I wanted to make.

Burger of the day chalkboard!

Yes, more Bob's Burgers but something I hope is really unique for my partner.  I had roughly a fat quarter of this chalkboard fabric I had won a few years ago in the Sew Mama Sew giveaways.  I had to prep it up (scribbling and scribbling on it with chalk and washing it off).  Then I used a paint pen for the printing and added the backing.  It was super simple except for that fucking 'G'.  It looks wonky as hell but I had to just accept it because I was out of fabric.  I used one little bit for practice and then made one and it looked HORRIBLE so I re-did it (that's this one).  I also made one that has $5.95 at the bottom but it's not as big (so not as much space to write in).  So if my partner hates this I can make a patch from the smaller bit (with the price on it).  I'm keeping it for now incase a different swap person wants a patch like this.

I'm just so excited that you can actually write on it with chalk and wipe it off.  It really does work.  I tested it all out before I committed to the project.  I wasn't super convinced the fabric really would "work" but it does.  Perfect for this project but sewing with it was annoying.  It's super stiff (duh!) but not so bad you need to don a thimble, which is good thing because I don't have a thimble (I really should get one or two).

Phew, that's that.

Oh, what's in the little paper bag and drawstring bag?

Nothing is in the drawstring bag.  It's just to hold the needle book and floss.  I grabbed it from the dollar zone (I think it was on clearance in there) and my partner likes all kinds of bags and valentines so I knew it was perfect for her.  The paper bag?  It has something in it but I'll leave that as a surprise in case my partner caved and had to look (Hi Suzanne!).

Ok, NOW I'm done.