KICK IT INTO GEAR

That's what I needed to do - Kick It Into Gear. Ever go through one of those slumps, nothin' seems to "get your motor running"? It think my "lightbulb" has been on energy saver lately; maybe it was the summer heat - made me feel sluggish. But summer's over now, right? And you know what that means - I have to put away my straw purses - who made up that rule anyway?! But rules are rules, so off they go - and that's what motivated me. You see, I wanted a new purse, and I've been looking around, but I haven't found anything that said "buy me!" Everything looks so heavy and dark, and let's face it, winter is a long season. I want to carry something that's cheerful, happy and sparkly. I figured the only way I would get all that in one purse was to make it myself. So I did. It started out with, you guessed it, two placemats (I can't believe I actually made a placemat purse), but hey, don't knock it unless you've tried it, right? Well, I've had these two placements for months, maybe even a couple of years, I forget, but I always thought they were so pretty - and I had never used them. (Lightbulb gets a little brighter.) Hmmmm... hey, I've got some vintage purse handles (I've always wanted to put a new purse on those) - (brighter still). Oooo,! Oooo! - I've got some super jumbo rick rack (brighter, brighter). Eureka! - leftover sparkly beads and a vintage button with rhinestones to boot! (Put on those sunglasses!) Ready for the reveal?

Now, I don't know the exact age of these purse handles, but I think they have to be at least 75 years old. They belonged to Ethel Pekar, who was a very lovely woman. She worked for many years as the secretary to the President of the Frisbie Pie Company*. There was a fabric purse attached to the handles, but too old to use, so I gently removed it and carefully packed it away. Ethel must have owned this purse before she was married because the label she attached to the inside handle has her maiden name typed on it. I would never dream of removing this. I will think of Ethel every time I look inside.

You know, I was almost tempted to leave out the polka-dots, but I just couldn't help myself.

So what gets your motor running?

Before I forget, Frannie wants you to see her "gear":

Backpack

Lunch Box

Frannie has just started the third grade, so that means we have been purchasing a new backpack and lunch box for four years now (if you saw what they looked like at the end of a school year and then five weeks of day camp, you'd understand why we have to replace them each year). Well, each year we purchase a Hello Kitty backpack and lunch box - never any other character - not to mention HK pencils, folders, note pads, etc. We also have (had) HK purses, shirts, shorts, dresses, hats, gloves, sneakers, shoes, socks, jewelry, hair ornaments, unmentionables, toys - did I forget anything? One year we even had a HK birthday party.

Hello Kitty - don't leave home without her!

S.W.A.K.

*The Frisbie Pie Company was founded in 1871 by William Russell Frisbie in Bridgeport, Connecticut, when he bought and renamed a branch of the Olds Baking Company. It supplied pies to Connecticut retailers and restaurants, including the Yale University campus. Yale students discovered that the pie tins, inverted, had an airfoil shape which enabled them to be thrown in various trajectories by a skilled person. This eventually evolved into the Frisbee trademarked flying disc and many imitators. (Wikipedia)

PURSE-ONALITY

This is a new purse I've created using left-over patchwork pieces from a quilt that I had made. I forget what the fabric is called, but I just love it! (Could it have been something from Three Sisters?)

Guess I'm left holding the bag. :)
Yes, I Even Wear Polka-Dots!

The two sides have the same pattern, but the fabrics are different.

One Side

The Other Side

Let's Not Forget The Inside

I even made the pockets out of little fabric tidbits that were pieced together and they are really adorable. (Nothing went to waste, so does that make it Eco-friendly?) Of course, there is some rick-rack trim and buttons too.

S.W.A.K.

More info is available at Etsy.

MR. POSTMAN

PLEASE MISTER POSTMAN, LOOK AND SEEIS THERE A LETTER IN YOUR BAG FOR ME?WHY'S IT TAKIN' SUCH A LONG TIME
FOR ME TO HEAR FROM THAT BOY OF MINE
C'MON DELIVER THE LETTER, THE SOONER THE BETTER

From the archives. Actual plain white mailbox that was purchased at Walmart and then decoupaged with Mary Engelbreit images, stickers, buttons, charms, and ribbon. Feet are made from unfinished cabinet door knobs (Home Depot), which I painted red, polka-dotted and then glued on.

View entire lyrics here.

S.W.A.K.

A ONE QUILT SHOW

Here's a quilt that I made years ago - except that I only just finished it yesterday. All I had to do was stitch down one more side of binding. So what happened?!! I only know that it ended up folded (as you can see from the lines) and tucked away. I have always loved this quilt. It has a vintage look to it. Now I just need to throw it in the washer and dryer and make it all fluffy and soft. It's not very large - just 50" x 50". Perfect the upcoming chilly nights while watching an oldie but goodie movie on TCM.

I picked this backing fabric just because I liked it.

I'm not bragging, but this quilt is completey hand-pieced and hand-quilted with some old buttons tacked on just for added texture and interest. Hey, look at those stitches! Not bad, if I do say so myself! :) I love to do piecework because it means you don't have to be chained to a machine, but maybe if I had one of them new-fangled ones... Honey, are you reading this? Christmas will be here before you know it. Hint, hint, hint.

S.W.A.K.

HEY, GET YOURSELF OVER HERE AND ENTER!
ONLY 5 GUESSING DAYS LEFT