Wednesday, March 18, 2009

500 posts :: craft day

Yay! It's my 500 blog posts craft day celebration!
I've been busy making patterns and samples and here's what you could make (if you'd like to join in!)
2-layer handstitched cupcake purses!
Complete with an easy sew-in zip that the most terrified zip-sewer can conquer!
This post has A LOT of photos to guide you through the process, I hope they make the instructions easy to understand ::
To print the pattern simply right click the picture, save to your computer and print. It fits onto one piece of A4 paper.

Cut out :: 2 purse pieces & 1 of each cupcake piece. You'll also need to pick some co-ordinating ribbon, a button and a 4" zip.

On one of the purse pieces stitch the ribbon into position.
Stitch the ribbon to your cupcake piece.
Make sure the ends of the ribbon are tucked underneath and then they can't fray.
Pin you cupcake into position and stitch at right angles to the edge.
Pin your cupcake icing into position and again, stitch at right angles to the edge.
Sew your button on using a two strands of thread (it's stronger)
Once your purse is decorated it's time to conquer the zipper!
pin the zip to the decorated layer of your purse.

Carefully lay the two pieces on top of each other insuring the edges are lined up. Pin the two layers together.
Once your purse is all pinned together you need to adjust the pins that are holding your zip in position so they are also pinned through both layers. It's worth taking your time over this, making sure everything is nicely lined up and securly pinned.
the back should look like this.
before starting to sew the zip gently slide the slider back and forth to make sure it slides smoothly.
Start to stitch the zip in using a neat straight stitch.
before passing the needle all the way through turn the purse over to make sure that your underside stitches are the same distance away from the zip. Being patient and taking your time at this step will make or break your purse!

Once you have finished stitching the front looks like this.

and the back like this.
Now you have mastered zips! Hurrah!

The next step is to fold your purse over and pin all 4 layers together.
Felt is very forgiving and you will be able to manipulate the edges so they are lined up very neatly.
These next photos explain my way of blanket stitching...if you can already blanket stitch you can skip this bit :-)

Pass your needle through the back 2 layers of the purse

push your needle through from the back as close to your thread as possible.

pull the thread through but leave a little loop.

pass your needle through the loop (from front to back) and pull it firmly.
You've just done your first blanket stitch.

repeat the steps...needle through from the back to the front...
...leave a loop, needle through the loop from front to back, pull firmly, next stitch.
the secret to neat blanket stitches (according to little old me) is to keep the horizontal stitch the same length as the vertical stitch. The more you practise judging it by eye the easier it will get...it's also easier if you do a larger blanket stitch (about 5mm)
keep stitching round the curves
and tra-la! you've made your very own cupcake purse....
...complete with zip !!
The decorations you can use on this purse are un-limited, I made a pink & a blue one and will be making lots more, in all sorts of colours and with all sorts of decorations. I have set up a flick:r group and would love it if you'd all add your purses to it too :-)
Have fun sewing & let me know if the instructions don't make sense!!

99 comments:

Jackie said...

Congratulations and Well Done on your 500 posts! Your little felt cupcake purse is lovely, it's something I might try soon :O)

Unknown said...

they look like they make perfect sense to me!
Great tutorial - and happy 500 posts day!!!

Nia said...

Ooooooh- what a fab tutorial. Nice, easy-to-follow steps, and the end product looks adorable! Can't wait to give it a go.

truskawkaM said...

Congratulations :):):) great tutorial and beauty bag :)

Isa Dantas - Feltrolândia said...

congratulations, nice tutorial, I loved ... wonderful!

greetingarts said...

Thank you so much for this, I can only imagine how long it must have taken you to put it all together for us. Hand sewing is my favorite activity, and I can't wait to make some of these for my girls. Thanks again, now go have a cupcake to celebrate!

Anonymous said...

Happy 500th post!

Lovely tutorial! I may have to wait until the weekend to give it a whirl. It wil give me time to fnd my zip stash :)

Thanks Sarah! xx

Ruthie said...

The tutorial is great Sarah. Thank you for sharing.

Ruthie x

Apryl said...

congratulations on 500 posts! it looks like a lovely tutorial!

Rachel said...

Congratulations on 500 posts Sarah! I love this little purse, thanks for the fab tutorial, I will definitely be trying it out soon with some of my lovely new felt!!
:)

jojoebi-designs said...

I stayed up last night but alas the party didn't get going 'til I had gone to bed. Nevermind, I will be trying this today, I saved myself some spotty blue felt for the project, now off to find a zip...

trash said...

How sweet! Happy 500!

Anonymous said...

I love your tutorial, the purses are adorable.

illahee said...

oh, that is perfectly adorable! sadly, i cannot print anything so i shall be just watching from afar *sniff* LOL

congratulations on 500 posts!

jeane said...

the bag is so sweet, thank you for ur tutorial, greatly appreciate it. happy 500posts to u, may u have many many more 500posts.

jennyflowerblue said...

Brilliant purse thanks. Off this weekend to buy tiny zips!

greyparrot said...

Happy 500 posts! The purse is so purty...I may just give it a go!

Treasuresofjoy said...

I just preinted this it is so cute and well done instructions. I will be trying it.

Thanks, and Congrats!

Unknown said...

This is really sweet.

I could only find six inch zips though! Any hoo, I have made a very bad attempt at one....by increasing the size of the pattern you provided to accommodate my six inch zip. It looks ok...my four year old daughter LOVES it and can't believe I made it (even though she saw me, lol, I am new to felt making!).

My stitches are not very neat as I am new to this....I can't get my stitches straight, or the same length yet....oops.

Thanks again.

jojoebi-designs said...

I did the same as the last commenter and made the pattern longer to fit my zip, you can see it here
http://jojoebi.blogspot.com/2009/03/sunny-day-and-stroppy-child.html

I think these will make great presents, thanks again xxx

Orjana said...

Cool, I'm gonna have to give this a go!

Happy 500th post!

Anne said...

Congrats on your 500th post!!! These pouches are fab! I posted a link to your pattern on Craft Gossip Sewing Blog: http://sewing.craftgossip.com/tutorial-felt-…-embellishmenttutorial-felt-zippered-pouch-with-cupcake-embellishment/2009/03/22/
--Anne

LauraLaura said...

Wow what a great little purse and fantastic instructions. I cannot wait to make it, will post pictures to your flickr group.

Patty said...

Thanks so much for sharing how to make your cute little purse!

Anonymous said...

Il tuo tutorial è bellissimo, ho fatto un post su di lui nel mio blog.
ciao
Monica

BrendaLea, the Prpldy said...

Congrats on your 500th post! And thanks for an awesome tute!

Bethany said...

Awesome Tutorial!
Thanks so much!

Suzanne Vaughan said...

That is really lovely. I might have a go!

Ginger said...

What a great felt idea so sweet.Thank you so much for sharing it with us!I found you threw whipup.

Selina said...

just fabulous! i will cetainly be making heaps of these little cuties for all my nieces!

Rachel@oneprettything.com said...

This is so, so, SO cute, I love it! Thanks so much for sharing, I would love to link to this if you don't mind.

Lisa W. said...

I have been looking all over for four-inch zippers. I hope I find some soon so I can make a bitty purse.

Unknown said...

How cute is that! I {heart} cupcakes, and this one takes the cake!! Thanks for sharing such a great tutorial. I'll add mine to flickr as soon as I get it together.

Natalie M said...

Hi, I linked to this tutorial via One Pretty Thing. I can't wait to make it. I LOVE your work. You're inspiring :)

Kristin said...

Adorable! I am felt obsessed lately, and will definitely be trying this!

Small Fry and Co. said...

Great and super cute idea. Thanks for the tutorial. Love this idea.

RootsAndWingsCo said...

What a wonderful tutorial! Thanks so much for sharing and congrats on the 500 posts!!

Anjeanette

Cyndi said...

This is so cute. I just discovered your blog and will be back. I have been looking for some new things to do with felt and my daughters will love these!
Thanks and congratulations on your 5ooth post!

said...

I love this and I am so excited to try my hands on making one! Your work is AWESOME! I fell in love with this purse... and to think I can't really sew! =)

jjennyx3 said...

these are beautiful! i can't wait to try to make my own. one question: where do you get your supplies. michaels and joann's doesn't have the cute colors. and the little "sprinkles" on your cupcakes, what are those made from? thank you dear :)

Anonymous said...

I love the tutorial and I really want to make it but where do you get the zip from and the other stuff.

Denise * KKL Primitives said...

How adorable is this!!!! I have to make it for my granddaughter, she'll love it!! Thank you so very much for sharing.

Treasuresofjoy said...

Yeah I did this! I will post on Flickr as soon as I get pictures! Thanks sew much!!

Ruthie said...

I've finally finished mine and its on my blog and the flickr group.

Thanks again for sharing.

Ruthie x

http://www.thecraftyblogger.blogspot.com

CS said...

Thank you for this pattern and the explanations ! You can watch today my version, with a bird, on my blog. Kisses from France.

Deb (Two Cheeky Monkeys) said...

Thanks for the idea! I think this will make great presents for all those parties my little ones go to.

Alain said...

Sorry may English is very bad but it's enough to say thank you for this tuto....
You can see my realisation here :
http://defilenaiguille66240.over-blog.com/article-32699310-6.html#anchorComment
Kisses
Valé

Carlotta said...

Hi, I'm Carlotta, an italian beader... last year I used felt to do some Christmas gifts!
I love working with this colorfull material, I'll try to do your purse in autumn!
Thank you for the lovely tutorial

Baci baci, Carlotta from http://handmadewithlove.splinder.com/

Lenetta said...

SO CUTE! I am in love with these! I linked to them on my weekly roundup here. Oh, I could make these all day long! Thanks!

Bellas Manualidades by Thais Wever said...

The tutorial is great Sarah. Thank you for sharing.I liked so much I made one for me, and of sure I will make to my nieces. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Finally, a zippered pouch I can easily make. Awsome!!!! Great gifts for my 6 year old daughter's friends.

aida said...

wow..i'm in love...seen yr work place..yr works and yr tute..fantastic....Awsome.!!!!!
thank you for sharing..:)

greeting Aida

Catherine Peart said...

This is gorgeous! Perfect present for the many birthday parties my daughter is invited to.

heatherfeather022 said...

oh my! adorable....I could never figure out blanket stitch but your instructions are so clear. I think I am brave enough to try again :)

Ceiça said...

Hello!

It's beautiful!I love it! The tutorial is easy.

I'm brazilian. My name is Conceição, but you can call me "Ceiça". I have a blog of arts.Well, I dont speak English...

Kisses!

Ceiça

Lilian Janine said...

How cute!!!
I loved you taught us!
Kisses....

Miza said...

It's very2 nice of u to give this tutorial! Hope it's ok if someday i give it a try and sell the product afterwards ^_^

Jennifer said...

These are so adorable and they make me want to go make a whole pile of them right now! Thanks for sharing them. :)

Betsy Eves @JavaCupcake said...

This is the cutest thing ever!!!

Can you put this as a kit on your ETSY shop?? I want to buy one!!!

Betsy :)

Anonymous said...

It is very interesting for me to read that blog. Thanx for it. I like such topics and anything that is connected to them. I definitely want to read a bit more soon.

StressTheSeams said...

I love this tutorial so much! I just wish I had the time for that much handwork! I linked you about felt work, though. Check it out at http://stresstheseams.blogspot.com/2010/05/may-you-be-inspired-days-pocketwatch.html

Thanks for the awesome tutorial! :)

RID said...

Thnks for sahring tihis great tutorial. I made two of them for my little girls!
You can visit and see them in my flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31763458@N06/?saved=1

Rs Iena D'Izmans said...

Well done!! easy-to-follow steps. Thanks for sharing this tutorial. It's really simple and easy..cutes...!! hv a job to do after this!..v",)

NŌRA. said...

love ur ideas! and big thanks for sharing this one. ;]
and im sure, i'll try to make something like that.

Pati @ A Crafty Escape said...

Fantastic turorial, just made one and linked back to you: http://acraftyescape.blogspot.com/2010/08/felt-pouch.html

El said...

Just so sweet and cute!
Great tutorial and easy to do it!
Thank you!

Sue Paula said...

Beautiful!
Thank you for tutorial!
Kisses
Sue

Ειρήνη said...

So lovable!!!! I'll try it soon!!

Marjolein said...

That zipper construction is so good!! I really hate sewing zippers, but not anymore!
Thank you!
Marjolein

aishakenza said...

Thank you for this great free pattern. I've put a photo of mine on the flickr group and it's also on my blog here: http://somethingbetterinstead.blogspot.com/2011/01/early-spring-or-just-taste-of-it.html.

sheetal said...

Such adorable purses. I am bookmarking this page. Thanks for the tutorial

Cantinho da Nina said...

Hey, I did mine!!!
Check out on: http://cantinhodasimonynha.blogspot.com/2011/03/minhas-bolsinhas.html

Did you like it???

Thank you!!!

Monchys Hand Made said...

Gracias... por tu aportacion las intentare hacer haber como salen... te dejo mi blog
http://monchyvariedadesenfieltro.blogspot.com/

Hug a tree with me said...

Thanks for posting this cute tutorial, ill have fun making this with my daughter
newest fan from
http://hugatreewithme2.blogspot.com

dini kurnianing said...

i love this so much...thanks for share..


big hug from me..dini...from indonesia :)

visit my blog at http://b3craft.blogspot.com/

i will have ur link on my blog :)

thank u very much ^^

emmiemarja said...

thanks for the tutorial...;)

want to try this...;)

SandiMini said...

Thank you so much for this awesome tutorial =) i'll make one for sure!! xoxo

Alice said...

Congratulations it's so cute....thanks for share. I´ll try to make one.....

From Portugal..Alice

uri said...

thank you a great tutorial...
http://handmadebybunda.blogspot.com/2011/08/cup-cake-felt-purse.html

uri-australia

FantaFeltro said...

great tutorial, thanks! join my new blog www.fantafeltro.blogspot.com :)

Little Puteri said...

Cute. Will try :) http://littleputeri.blogspot.com/

MMC said...

I've made felt pouches, keychains, and plushies. My issue is that felt doesn't have much resistance to the elements and after a week, the surface gets dirty and fuzzy.

Do you have any suggestions as to stopping this (ex: some sort of coating or resin)?

Kak Nik said...

A lot of thanks to you for sharing the great idea..i think i'm stupid if i don't try!

Debbie said...

I am very grateful to you for publishing this wonderful tutorial ... I could not resist the temptation to make this beautiful purse, and put my result on my blog.

Greetings from Argentina

I put a link to your blog

jollyqueen said...

thanks for the tute, it really helped me. appreciate it.

Criativa said...

Oi... muito lindo seu trabalho!!
Suas peças são uma fofura!
Me visite: http://guriaprendadaatelie.blogspot.com
Vou adorar seu comentário...

Mary said...

Found your blog from a pin on Pinterest. Loved this sweet little purse. My darling granddaughter made one to enter in the open class at our county fair. She just turned 8 years old and loves hand-sewing. We are both delighted with how her little purse turned out. Will post a picture on your flickr group. Thanks for sharing.

Britt said...

I featured your darling purses on my website; ecofeltcrafts.com. Thanks for making me look cool. :)

Britt

Marie said...

Thank you for the pattern and tutorial. My 5 year old daughter and I each made one today and had such a great time together. Thank you for the time you put into this and making the pattern free.

Buttoned up and Pinned down said...

HI there, I love you little purse tutorial and have made one myself as part of my blog resoultion. http://buttoneduppinneddown.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/felt-purse-and-cupcakes.html x

Ελευθερία said...

great tutorial!!! thank you!!! have to try it for my daughter!!!

jenny said...

Πραγματικά τέλειο! Ευχαριστούμε πολύ για τις οδηγίες...Μπράβο!

birdunyafikir said...

That's a beatiful purse:)

Calma que estou com pressa! said...

olá
lindos!
parabéns pelo tutorial
lu

Jeni Glee said...

How sweet is this? Thank you!

Hayley said...

I know this post is old, but I just had to leave a comment! I love this and mine turned out great. I'm going to use it as a makeup bag when I'm traveling. Also, I work in a youth center and the young girls there are going to love making these!

carol said...

Thanks a lot!!! It's so cute!! Happy 500 post.

Anonymous said...

Love your purse! I started a girls club at my work and currently have 10 little girls working on making your purse modified to fit our theme. The girls are 5-9 so the stitching isn't always the best but they are having so much fun. Thanks for posting this!

clipart said...

This is such an awesome idea! Thank you for the great tut!