Book Bag

 

Recently, I made my first book bag for my shelf at The Hive in Guelph, Ontario. Here it is in all it's glory! I'd love to make some for my website Rachelle Designs in the near future. Stay tuned!

Mouse Moxie 2

In 2016, I made these mouse characters.  My sister  reminded me of it today because she  suggested that I put out some Valentines day  cards at The Hive, a store in Guelph, where I have a shelf for my business, Rachelle Designs. I decided to make some more cards and came up with this image below. 

 

Bountiful Bags

My husband and I wanted to let our daughters listen to music more autonomously and since they don't yet have phones, and the children's products on the market are so expensive and limited, we decided to go with a classic Discman and Headphone set each. CDs are still a thing in 2025, right?

Another of my goals became to sew them something each, so while on Pinterest, I saw a few bags with frills/pleats that I liked the look of. I decided to make a version of them, big enough to fit the discman and headphones, so that my kids could easily store their new gifts and listen to music on the go. 

  

I started with diagramming on paper to try to find the right size and shape for the music playing items. After considering a few dimensions, I finally got my measuring tape, and measured approximately the biggest size I thought my youngest daughter could manage carrying. The last diagram is the one that I went with that included those measurements.

At my sewing table, another night, I tried out some designs on paper. First I used my French Curve to make some rounded corners.
Next I tried to mimic the original diagram that I liked by using a pin, some thread, and a pencil to make a semi circle. 

Between these two, I asked for some feedback (from my family). My husband liked the top one but thought the curve needed to continue to round out the top a bit. I ended up taking his advice so the final design looks a little different than the top one below. 

Here I made sure they fit. A very important part of the process, and easier to do before the sewing began. I decided to make it 3 inches wide instead of 2 inches, as the total depth was actually 4 inches. 

The next thing to do, of course, was to make a prototype, so I used some fabric from my stash of cottons. I added seam allowance to the pattern and tried it out. I made a lot of mistakes, so it was an important step of the process. During the prototyping, I find out if the pattern measurements are accurate, what are the parts that I need to think about slowing down for or doing differently next time, and the length of the strap etc.

I checked that the discman and headphones we got them fit and they did!

After the prototype, I had two nights left before Christmas morning, however we had some unexpected circumstances and then we got sick, so I just started on the final piece for one of my daughters last night. At least it is still December. My daughters each picked a fabric that they liked from a curated collection that I chose from a local quilting store. 

In the photo below, I am making the pleats. 

Here I am checking the length of the pleats as it needs to be quite exact. 

And I skipped a bunch of steps to the final product!

Working Space 2

Recently we got two out of three cabinets (we're getting the last one this week) from marketplace for our house and moved one of the cabinets down to my sewing corner in the basement. Of course it is filled now with batting, finished items to sell, some photography tools and prototypes. I put my current sewing pattern on the top with my small business bullet journal. I moved some of my fabrics to the shelf so that now all of my fabrics for making clothes are separarted from my small business fabrics. I notice that I am running out of space for thread, so another thread storage shelf is on my wishlist. I'd also love to update my ironing board by making a new cover for it, but that likely won't happen for a while. I'd love a grey gingham on it though.

As for sewing clothing, I have a project that I've been thinking about for some time. It is the Frida Jacket by Fibre Mood. I have all the fabric and notions for it, I just need to practice sewing a zipper and a welt pocket before I try it on my new coat. I found a pattern from Peek A Boo Pattern shop with both of those features, so I want to make a kids jacket out of some purple fabric that I got from a friend. If I can't figure it out myself, or if I need extra support, I have requested my first sewing lessons from a professional--Sewing Till Sunset, for Christmas. Hopefully I can make the jacket to wear it for Spring of next year.

Working Space

This is what my current workspace looks like:

On the weekend we actually got a few more second hand ornate wood cabinets for a great price and so far have moved one of the three into our bedroom. So this space is going to be rearranged soon as I have another ikea cupboard that will move downstairs to hold fabrics or other things. I might move some of my art supplies and journalling items upstairs as well, so make more space on the shelves. So as an alternative, I could put my fabrics on the shelves which would display them and allow me to see what I have to work with. Anyhow, I'd like to post what it looks like after the revamp as well but I thought I would once again post about my process. Looking back on my blog recently I found that I sometimes don't give updates when things are finished but I would like to be better about that.

Rachelle Designs

Lately I have been sewing in the afternoons and evenings after my children are in bed. I have been working on products for my shop, Rachelle Designs. My first finished commission is this dice bag. It holds a few handfuls of dice and can either be laid out flat or can be cinched in and tied up to hold the dice for on the go. It's great for playing Dungeons and Dragons, and fits a medieval vibe. Some of the material is reclaimed fabric. 

I have also been making some book covers for my bullet journal. I've made about 4 book covers now and have really been enjoying the process. Two of them, I am currently using for my bullet journals. One of them was an earlier rendition and I have redesigned them now. The fourth one I made for my sister. I have learned something from each of them and hope to make many more in the future. This one, for my sister, I made quite sturdy and already put it through a wash and dry cycle. She picked the lovely fabric. 

I recently wrote about how Rachelle Designs started on my store's blog. Check it out here 💛

Brilliant Buntings

Buntings are one of my favourite decorations to make.

Check out my Instagram and my shop.

I'm going to design more things. There is so much to make!

Here is my first Christmas bunting for the shop.