Totes Finished!

T-minus four days until GAF! I finally finished all six tote bags! Yes, you heard me right. That's half a dozen tote bags, in two days. It has been a long week at work...lot's of changes happening and tons of stock rolling in. We're preparing for October, our busiest month of the year, which means we've been paying "catch up" all week.

It was easy for me to panic. When I got home from work on Saturday I felt overwhelmed. It seemed like I had SO MUCH to do and I was still suffering from the sniffles and the coughing. I couldn't focus and I felt like I was gonna shut down.

 

But I pushed through, with the help of some Grey's Anatomy. At about 11pm I finally gave in and went to bed. Yesterday I woke up late and got straight to work. It didn't take long to get them done, and boy was I glad to be finished!!!!! I've always struggled with handles, and until recently I couldn't even make them with batting. These are probably my best so far though, and I'm actually pretty proud of them. The seams all turned out straight and they feel very sturdy. Yay for accomplishments!

I love the vibrant colors of this little collections. It's awesome when I get to cut into some fabric of such good quality. I found all of the main prints at the quilt shop that we went to in Orlando. I went crazy in there! I could've bought five times as much! This Kaffe Fassett floral is gorgeous and the fabric is SO soft. All of the accent prints are from Joann's (excluding the yellow dot, which is Ty Pennington).

I just love this batik...especially the color combo. It is so unique, and the circle and semi-circles reminded me of the moon. I thought it went splendidly with this navy print. It will be the perfect Fall accessory! The hippie in me adores this combo.

This Ikat print from Ty Pennington's collection instantly caught my eye. The colors were so different! JT's Nana pointed out this dot print on the clearance rack. It worked quite nicely I think. I got a little extra of both, so I might have to make something for myself with them :)

This feather print was a must-have for me. It has all my favorite colors in it, not to mention I love birds and all bird related things! With the perfectly coordinating print from Joann's, this bag hit a home run! I kinda want to keep in for myself...but I'm resisting ;)

Last but DEFINITELY not least is this artistic beauty. A few months ago I found a stunning print by Carrie Bloomston for Such Designs at The Quilt Shop here in Boone. I bought it with the intention of using it somewhere in the kitchen area of our bus. It has coffee mugs, pomegranates, and birds. Could that not be more perfect?

Anyways...in Orlando I found several prints from the same designer, and finally settled on this one.I want everything that I make to be unique. I strive to make things that people can identify with...things that "have their name written all over it". I want people to see my creations and think, "that is SO me". So this bag was created in honor of all you artists out there, whether a brush is your instrument of choice or not. Keep creating.

I can't wait to see how these totes do at GAF this weekend. I will be posting the ones that don't sell on Etsy after the weekend, but if you're interested in a particular bag, let me know and I will set it aside for you! I hope you all have a wonderful first week of fall!!!!! I know I'll be enjoying the chilly weather :)

Happy Monday!
LB