Monday, November 21, 2005

A crafty weekend

Thank you for all the birthday wishes! I had a nice birthday and a busy weekend. We saw Harry Potter yesterday and loved it. I was so drained afterwards I went home and immediately took a nap. On Saturday, we met up with my mom and my sister Yumi at the Japan Expo downtown. It wasn't very big, but I did buy a t-shirt there.


This is from a company called Spicy Brown. Rob and I are a big fan of cats and salmon sushi so I had to buy it. But will I have nightmares about eating sushi that turns into cats?

Since we were already in Downtown LA, we made a stop at the Garment District, where I stopped by Michael Levine, a big fabric store.

I bought some fabric for my first project on my birthday present... which was a learning experience.


Don't you love how I positioned the pattern to cover up the worst spots?
I made the "Uptown Bag" from the Amy Butler Madison Bag pattern. I think it turned out kind of wonky because I added a ton of interfacing to it. By the time I was sewing up the top, the machine was not happy. I didn't really know what I was doing. I thought about it and I think it would turn out better if the top of the bag was just sewn straight across, instead of the weird jog they have for the handles.


I love the fabric Rob helped me choose for the lining. It's chrysanthemums, my birthday month flower. I think I'm going to try to make a second bag with some modifications to help my non-existant sewing skills.

Of course, it wouldn't be a birthday weekend without a new knitting project.

I decided to make this hoodie in the fall issue of Vogue magazine. You know how sometimes you just want a project that is pretty simple that will use up some stash? This project fulfills both requirements.


I'm knitting this out of some handpaintedyarn.com merino that I bought a while ago. The color doesn't photograph well, but it's not as bright as in the photo.

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and is able to spend it with loved ones. Gobble gobble!

5 comments:

MinaG said...

I love the t-shirt, and the hoodie too! How quick you are with the sewing projects!

Anonymous said...

You always knit the best sweaters! I've had my eye on that hoodie, but probably won't get around to knitting it. I love the yarn you've chosen.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!

Anonymous said...

Ok, I can't believe that you got that purse done so fast. I was there with you when you got the fabric!!! Now, I know what I want for Christmas...or even the next birthday. I loved Harry Potter too. It was really good. I even like the next sweater you're going to make. Maybe that one for Christmas...

Anonymous said...

That hoodie is super cute! I'll be interested to see your progress on it.
Happy Thanksgiving!

huay in LA said...

crafty mari!
so excited to look your bag over, soon.
happy bday week! happy turkey day too!