Happy New Year--With an Ugly Doll Chalk Bag and Delicious Pork Roast!

Belated Happy Holidays and Happy Happy New Year!  ....There are two hourish to go til the end of 2009 and I wanted to wish you all a most wonderful holiday and ALL THE BEST for 2010!   Sorry I've been a little absent from my blog...I've had some challenging family stuff--including the passing of one of my husband's uncles--Uncle John, who visited Gail and I in Chantilly, VA at the expo this past fall.  I feel so honored and blessed that I had the opportunity to spend that wonderful evening with him on a whirlwind tour of DC (You can check out some photos from that visit in a post that I published in October.)      

...So, this New Years Eve while we enjoy a quiet celebration with movies and yummy port roast,  I thought I would do a quick post of a recent Christmas gift to keep me perky until midnight!  The BIG thing that we got our kid for Christmas was a years membership to a local rock climbing gym. ... By the time we got the membership, shoes, harnesses and other associated items I ran out of money to get the chalk bags everyone would need to keep their hands from getting sweaty while climbing. I decided that instead of spending $25.00 a pop, I would make them.  The owner of the gym mentioned to me that he was thinking of using stuffed animals to make chalk bags.  ....Here's the bag I came up with for Abby.  (I know it's not fashion sewing, but it was fun!)

Luckily, Abby had an Ugly Doll that she was willing to offer up to me to try to create a chalk bag out of.  I think it came out adorable and I can't wait to see it hanging from her waist as she works at scaling the walls of the gym!

To make the body of the bag, I cut off the top of the head and saved the ears--to be reattached later!

I used a triple zigzag to attach some 1/2" polyester horsehair around the opening to hold the bag open.  

 

Then I attached to twill loops to the back of the bag--that way it could hang from the elastic belt I'll add later.

 

After cutting out and sewing together a lining made of fleece, I positioned it right sides together with the bag.  After pinning the raw edges of the lining and bag together, I sewed all the way around. 

Then I turned the bag right side out through the hole I left in the lining.   Then I sewed up the hole.

To keep the chalk from falling out, I made a little cuff with a drawstring. 

I made a narrow casing along the folded edge of the knit cuff by sewing a seam 1/2" away from the fold.  After measuring the length I needed, I trimmed the cuff to size and sewed it together into a circle by joining the ends using a triple zigzag. 

Finally, I sewed the cuff 1/2" from the top edge of the bag (right through the horse hair).  Now the chalk will stay safely inside the bag when the draw string is pulled tight.  To access the chalk, all Abby needs to do is loosen the drawstring and tuck the cuff down into the bag.  --I think she's going to love it! 

(I have to hurry up and make bags for the rest of us so we can keep up with her!)  

Happy New Year Everyone--And I'm happy to report that there will be LOTS of Fashion Sewing in 2010 at jsterndesigns...and maybe a little rock climbing adventure too!