My scrappy Christmas star is a great way to work towards zero waste sewing. I love using sewing scraps to create small projects to give away to friends, neighbours and anyone who visits my market stall. My scrappy stars can dangle on the tree or pretty up gift wrapping, be linked together to form a garland, or just say, "Have a Merry Christmas." 

Making a scrub cap is such an easy way to say, "Thank you!" to health care workers who have toiled so hard in this year of Covid 19. A six inch width of fabric, a tiny piece of elastic and about half an hour's sewing will bring a smile to a tired health care worker's face. 

A single layer, fat quarter scrub hat that meets the needs of long haired workers, that's what this tutorial will help you make. Health care workers, hospitality workers, workers in conditions where their long locks could be a risk factor, make them this style scrub hat and bring a smile to their faces.

Need a hanging towel in your kitchen? They are so convenient, but sometimes a bit too ... granny? I have a solution. My modern style hanging kitchen towel is convenient, classy and such an easy make. While you're in lockdown or merely following the social distancing guidelines, why not make a dozen or so from your scrap pile? Christmas presents for your neighbours and friends will be done and dusted in no time.

I just love this little tissue pouch project. It's such a useful gift for neighbours, teachers, friends that's so quick to make. Two small pieces of fabric is all you need. No tricky sewing. This has to be one of the simplest projects on your Christmas to do list.

Storage baskets are my kind of thing. I love being organised. Fabric storage baskets are even more my kind of thing. You know how much I luurrve fabric. Combine fabric and storage and I'm in heaven. Sad, but true. So, when the new baby in our family came home, I knew her mum would need storage. With babies comes the need for stuff, lots of stuff and with stuff comes the need for storage. Lots of stuff = lots of storage. Hence, it was time. Time for fabric and storage to unite to keep all those nappies, wipes, creams, soaps, burp cloths and, and, and ... in some sort of order.

60cm (21½") of two complimentary fabrics 110cm (43") in width
1m (39½") stiff interfacing 51cm (20") in width (I used fusible interfacing)

(This allowed me to make two baskets 24cm (9½") square with 13cm (5½") sides.)

THE MAGIC FORMULAS.

Let's get started.

Square up the fabrics.

Firstly, remove the selvages from both fabrics. 

Fold the fabrics in half width-wise and cut through the centre fold.

Fold each piece diagonally, and remove any excess.

You will now have four perfect squares of fabric.
(If your fabrics were not the same width, make sure all four squares are the same size.)

My pieces ended up being 53cm (21") square.

Square up the interfacing.

Create corners.

For my main fabric and lining fabric, I folded each square in half then in half again so that I only needed to cut one 14cm (5½") square through four layers of fabric.

Fuse interfacing.

Place your interfacing onto your lining fabric, if necessary cut the interfacing so that it is around 1cm (½") smaller than the lining fabric at the four edges that will be the top of the storage basket.
(This will allow you to easily turn over your seam allowance later on.)

If you are using fusible interfacing like I did, iron your interfacing onto the lining fabric.

Form corners.

On main fabric, fold right sides together, line up corners, pin and stitch with 0.6cm (¼") seam.

Once all four corners are stitched, turn right side out, push corners out and iron. This will form the outside of the basket.

On interfaced lining fabric, fold right sides together, line up corners and stitch with a slightly larger seam allowance. (I moved my needle one spot to the left.) This will allow your lining to fit snuggly inside the main fabric basket.

Leave wrong side out, push corners out and iron. This will form the inside of your basket.

Place lining basket inside main fabric basket. Wiggle until seams line up.

Turn top edges of main and lining in about 1cm (⅜"). Pin or use magic clips to hold firmly in place.

At this point, you could add handles to the top edges, but I chose to make a simple basket.

Top stitch, using a slightly longer stitch length than normal, around the top of the basket.

I found this easiest to do from the inside of the basket and using my left hand on the base of the basket to hold it in position on my trusty Bernina.

And you are DoNe!

Fabric storage baskets complete and ready to be gifted.
Look at all that llama loveliness!

Ready to hold all the necessities for this amazing step-grand daughter.

But ... then there is the problem of those left over squares from the corners.

So, if you're crazy like me,

 you cut a few more squares the same size from coordinating fabrics,

 stitch them all together,
edge it, back it, bind it

and

you've made a llama covered quilt for the new born as well.

With her name quilted into the top.

Let me know how you go making fabric storage baskets,

and maybe even quilts from the leftovers,

 for your loved ones and friends.

Catch up again soon.

 Kennie kitten has taken to resting in the drawer of my cutting table while I sew. As you do.

Who doesn't love a new baby, smelling of milk, cooing contentedly, snuggly swaddled in a cozy flannel receiving blanket? Especially a llama covered flannel receiving blanket. And guess what ... our family is at the cusp of having a brand new baby! No ... not me. MLP is about to become a Poppy for the second time and I'm about to become a Step-nanny again. So, for this new girl, yes, she's going to be a girl, or any new born, what better gift than a llama covered receiving blanket?

I loovvee travelling. I love the thrill of arriving at the international airport, celebrating with a glass of champagne and boarding that plane. Nothing better. And now, in my luggage will be my super special secret pocket hanger that I made for myself. Yes! I sewed for me! A rare and unusual treat. 

A toy sack, play mat combo seemed just the right project for MLP's granddaughter's Number 1 birthday. Yes, she's one already ... well almost, just a week to go. She's almost walking and almost talking and has heaps of toys. Her mum said the toy sack, play mat combo would be just the thing to wrangle those toys under control. So, I had a mission, a sewing mission and I set off with gusto.

Shopping trolley covers were not part of my realm of knowledge until a step-grandchild entered my world. I was blissfully unaware that shopping trolley covers were even a "thing", let alone that they were part of the necessities of modern life with a baby. However, when there was a request from the gorgeous baby's gorgeous mother for me to make one, my mission began. 

My family seems to be in baby making zone at the moment. Well, not making, more like producing, having, birthing. Cute little things have joined, or are on the cusp of joining, family life. So, I am sharing with you my quickest, easiest, most on-trend baby gift imaginable: the padded round baby play mat. They're everywhere on all the "in" sites and they are sooo easy and sooo quick to make you'll never have to think about what baby gift to make ever again.

A friend calls, a friend I've known for many, many years, around thirty years, he needs some help. Having just returned home from an extended time grey-nomading around our country, he needs some basic supplies to set up home again. A peg bag and a plastic bag holder. The plastic bag holder's easy. I've made heaps of them. More than heaps. But, I haven't made a peg bag before, so it's time for some thinking and a tutorial, of course.

My director chairs were looking sad, very sad. What is it about Spring that makes me look at things in a different way, with a different eye?

The end of August heralds increasing warmth in the air and a special friend's birthday. But what to give her ... make her?? It's almost time to fling the doona from the bed and store the winter jammies away for a few months, so maybe some OTT summer lounging PJs. And when I came across the perfect fabric, there was no time to waste. And ... why not write up a summer pyjama pants tutorial as I go? Yes, why not.

Yes, a tote bag, a good size tote bag with some volume to hold your shopping easily. And made in less than 45 minutes. Why wouldn't you want to get started!