Sew Tute – Tote bag

 

Tote bags are a great handmade gift for anyone especially for kids.  They can be used as a sleepover bag, shopping bag, toy bag and even a library bag.

First I like draft a pattern on paper and file it away for another day in an expander file but if you don’t have paper that is all good you can just draft it straight onto the fabric.

Ok what you need:

• half a metre for your outer fabric
• half a metre for your inside fabric
• 40 inches of cotton webbing tape

The finished tote will be 13 inches wide x 13 inches high x 4 inches deep so to draft a pattern on paper I started by marking out the main part of the bag that is 13 inches x 13 inches.  Then I added another 4.5 inches to the width of the bag on one side as this will add the  depth and 1/4 inch seam allowance.

For the base of the bag I have added 2.25 inches x width of the bag (17.5 inches) to the bottom of the pattern. 

Once this is all marked out cut out a 2 inch x 2 inch square from the bottom corners of the pattern.  And this is what you should end up with.

Place your pattern onto your fabric and cut 2 pieces for your outside fabric and 2 for your lining.  Starting with your outside fabric, place right sides together, pin and sew down each side and across the bottom.  Now do the same with the lining/inside fabric and remember  not sew the 2 x 2 cutout section.

Ok so now to make the base of the bag by pinching grabbing each side of the bag corners and lining them up together, pin and sew.  Do this for each corner.

Lets put it together!  turn your lining/inside fabric out the right way and insert into the outer fabric bag so that right sides are facing each other.  Pin and sew leaving a 3 or 4 inch gap to turn the bag right side out.

Give your bag a bit of an iron and then top stitch all the way around the top making sure that you sew the turnout opening.  If you like you can hand stitch the opening first before top stitching.

For the handles cut the webbing in half so that they both measure 20 inches in length.  Fold about half an each at each end a pin to where you want the handles to be.  I folded the bag in half and then went 2 inches out each side of the centre and pinned the handles.  Then I sewed a square then across the middle to secure the handles to the bag.

 

And now you are done!!   Have lots of fun making lots of totes for your family and friends.  You can even redraft using the same method to make the bags bigger and wider by adding a few extra inches to the side and bottom.

Would love for you to share what you have made over at my Facebook page.

Jennifer xx

 

Technorati Tags: tutorial,sewing,pattern,draft,tote,bag,library bag,toy bag,sleeping bag,kindy bag,handmade

Happy New Year

 

Hello and happy new year.  I hope you all have had a wonderful time with family and friends seeing in the new year and have all your goals/new years resolutions all planned and under way.

For me well I actually don’t make new years resolutions, WHY? you may ask well because I never stick to them.  I don’t, i just have a few little plans in my head that I want to do and if I achieve them FANTASTIC!!!! if I don’t well I ain’t going to punish myself about it.

Now what is in store for you this week well I recently made this matching felt doll, tote bag and art folder for a lovely young lady who has turned 5th birthday and I thought I would share a tutorial or to for the tote bag and art folder with you.  As for the felt doll it is actually a free pattern from Martha Stewart called the Black Apple Doll and you can find the pattern and tutorial black apple doll.

Also this week I thought I would share my recipe for a yummy kind of garment sausage roll that I made. It has ricotta, capsicum, spinach, sausage meat all rolled up in puff pastry.  It was yummy and I managed to make 2 of them for under around $12.  Its great hot or cold and perfect for this great picnic weather we are having.

Oh and I might just have to have a little giveaway too!

Jennifer xx

 

 

Technorati Tags: tutorial,recipe,felt doll,tote,art folder,sausage roll,black apple doll,giveaway

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!!!

 

Just wanted to say Merry Christmas too you and your family.  Thank you so much for following my little blog even though I have been so flakely this year lol.

I have had a wonderful day with my family and the kids have been very spoilt this year with Santa finally leaving a trampoline for the kinds under the Christmas tree (well maybe in its box next to the tree)

Be safe and I look forward to sharing lots more with you in the New Year!!!!

Jennifer xx

Fabric covered journal

 

Looking for a last minute gift for that family or friend that you just realized that you haven’t bought something for and just can’t face the Christmas rush or just need a secret Santa gift well why not make yourself a fabric covered diary or journal.

 

I thought it would be nice to make these as a Thank You gift for the girl’s teachers this year and you only need 2 fat quarters of different print, lining, 2 inch strip of velcro, 5 inch length of ribbon or fabric to close the journal and hold the pen, A5 size Journal (you can cover 2 A5 size books with 2 fat quarters) and a pen. 

 

First you will have to draft your pattern onto some paper.  Open your journal/diary and lay it flat on your paper and with a pencil draw around your journal/diary.

 

 

Now we need to measure the width of the book when its closed as we are going to use this as the measurement for the sleeves that the book cover is going to slide into.  My journal is 6 inches wide so that gives me 3 inches each side.  Now add another inch across the top and on one side of the journal/diary outline.  This will give you your 1/4 allowance on all sides and for when you make the sleeves for the book covers to slide into.

 

 

With your paper pattern finished and cut out, trace it onto each of your fabrics and your lining and cut out.  Place right sides of both fabrics together, your lining on top and pin.  Now its off to your sewing machine to sew each sides but leave at least a 3 inch hole to turn the fabric out the right way.

 

Before turning my fabric out the right way, I like to iron the seam where the opening is back so that it is flat and even for sewing when its turned out the right way.  Once turned the right way iron your fabric  again and hand stitch the opening closed. 

Now before sewing the sides down to make a little sleeve I actually marked them first so that I could sew on the closure.   Place the book open on the fabric, fold over the fabric each side and pin.  Now because my journal actually has a ring binding I found that I had to make a little bit of an allowance for this for opening and shutting so just keep that in mind if you have one similar (I folded on side an inch shorter then the other).

Close the fabric over as if the book is inside and mark each side where you would like to sew your velcro and your ribbon.  I used snap closures but with the velcro I would sew a 1 inch square of velcro onto the end of the ribbon and the other half to the fabric cover.

 
One you have sewn your velcro and ribbon on it’s time to sew the sleeves done.  This is done by sewing a 1/4 inch seam across the top and then across the bottom.  And now your done.

 

 

What do you think.  I just love these so easy and they can be reused over and over again.  If you are feeling a bit adventures add some embellishments.  I had a sample given to me of ribbon with a little saying on them a couple of years ago and thought they would go nicely with this gift.

 

 

Oh and a little tip for placing the book in the sleeve.  Arch the book up and it should slide in very easily.

 

  

Would love for you to share what you have made over at my Facebook page.

Jennifer xx

Technorati Tags: fabric,cover,book,journal,diary,sewing,tutorial,fat quarter,pen,secret santa,gift,handmade,teachers gift

Christmas cake

 

Christmas is just not the same without a yummy Christmas cake for dessert all covered in marzipan, wrapped in a pretty christmas bow with a piece of holly on top. 

Hubby’s Nana used to make it each year and it would sit for weeks in a cake tin in the cupboard until it was ready for eating.  It’s my husbands favourite kind of cake and he likes it heated up like pudding with some yummy custard.

This year I thought I would make one but I have been a bit slack and left it to the last minute and as I wanted to put some pieces in the baskets I have made for hubby’s work mates I thought I would use this quick and easy recipe that you can find on a lot of pages on the internet and also in magazines where I found it years ago (sorry to the magazine for no mention as I cannot for the life of me remember which one it was) and only uses 4 ingredients.

To make this cake you will need:

1kg diced fruit mix

2 cups of orange juice (I did read somewhere that a lady had used apricot nectar)

2 cups of self raising flour

1 of sherry (I didn’t have sherry and couldn’t find the grand marnier so I used port)

optional glazed cherries for the top

In a large mixing bowl place the fruit mix, orange juice and sherry and give it a good mix together.  Cover and let sit for about 2 to 3 hours (I gave it a bit of a stir every half hour but you don’t have to do this)

Pre heat your oven at around 120 degrees (my oven is fan forced) and line your cake tin with baking paper.  Once the fruit is all lovely and plump, sift in the 2 cups or self raising flour and mix thoroughly so that there is no lumps of flour. 

 

Pour the mixture into your cake tin and if you are going to decorate your cake with glazed cherries, place them into and around the top of your cake now. 

Bake in the oven for around an hour and a half or until golden brown.  I tested the cake after an hour and it was ready but it will depend on your oven.

Once your cake is cooked, leave to cool then place in an air tight container for a few days before cutting.  Now we couldn’t wait (hubby that is) and had some that night and it was lovely and moist.

And there you have it your very own christmas cake.  Now for the flour I used The Healthy Baker self raising flour and for the orange juice well I wanted to try something with a few more flours so I used Golden Circle orange, carrot and ginger juice.  It’s lovely and only has a little hint of ginger.

For decorating well I'm not a real big fan of marzipan and you can use icing but I just love my Christmas cake just the way it is.

What’s your favourite Christmas cake or dessert for Christmas?

Jennifer xx

 

google Tags: christmas cake, recipe, cooking, fruit cake, custard, golden circle apple carrot ginger juice, the healthy baker self raising flour, fruit mix, sherry, grand marnier, port, cherries

Rum Balls

 

 

I don’t think there has ever been a Christmas where rum balls didn’t show up at a least once at a Christmas party, morning tea or afternoon tea and I have never made them before either. 

Its not that I don’t like them it’s just that I don’t have much of a sweet tooth and there is the fact that baking and making sweets scares me.  Yep it does and I don’t know why.

So once again I hit the boards of Pinterest and a few of my  cook books and found a easy recipe that uses weetbix.  Yep breakfast cereal so that should mean that they aren’t all that bad for you right.

What you need to make these yummy little morsels:

2 1/2 cups of weetbix crushed (now you want to crush them so the crumbs are about the size of rice bubbles you don’t want to turn them into powder so down use a food processor)

395g sweetened condensed milk

3 tbsp rum (I only put in 2)

1 cup of desiccated coconut

Very simple to do, in a big bowl place the weetbix, condensed milk, rum and 1/2 a cup of the desiccated coconut together and mix really well.  If you think the mixture is too wet add one more weetbix.  I think all up I just about 7 of them.

Spoon some mixture into your hands and roll into a ball.  If you wet your hands with water first they roll better. Place the rest of the coconut onto a plate and roll the rum ball in it to coat them place in a container.

And that’s it nice and easy.  These are best eaten the next day.  Christmas cake recipe tomorrow and yep it’s another easy one!

Enjoy

Jennifer xx

 

 

google Tags: rum balls, recipe, cooking, tutorial, christmas, morning tea, afternoon tea, snack, party food, nibbles, weetbix, sweetened condensed milk, coconut

Fudge

Fudge is something I have always steered away from as I have always had visions of burnt chocolate/caramel on the bottom of the pot that you just have to throw out cos that stuff ain’t coming off.

But after searching on Pinterest and looking through a few of my recipe books I came across 2 recipes that I thought I would give a go.

The first one is a very simple 2 ingredient recipe that you just have to melt together in a pot on a medium heat.  The second is a caramel recipe that you can change to make into chocolate (which is what I did).

So lets start with the two ingredient fudge:

1 x 395g can sweetened condensed milk

1 x 400g white chocolate (can be melts or your favourite bar)

First you will need to line a square tin/tray with baking paper.  Pour your condensed milk into a saucepan, stir over a low heat while slowly adding your white chocolate.  When all your chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth and think, take off the heat and pour into your tin/tray.

Allow to cool then place in the fridge over night to harden.  I made this after I did the school run in the morning and it was set that night to try with a cup of tea.  But I find the longer it is in the fridge the better it is.  You can also get fancy with this recipe and add a few extra ingredients like peanuts or cranberries.

Caramel Fudge

Now for this fudge it takes a little bit longer but is very easy so don’t be scared to try it.  All you have to remember is to keep stirring and keep on a medium heat as to not bring it to the boil.

You will need:

395g can sweetened condensed milk (this where I changed the recipe as i used chocolate condensed milk)

125g unsalted butter

1 cup brown sugar

2 tblsp golden syrup

100g white chocolate (melts or your favourite bar)

Once again line a square tray/tin with baking paper and set aside.  Melt the butter in your saucepan over a low heat and then add the condensed milk, brown sugar and the golden syrup.

When the brown sugar is dissolved, turn up the heat a little bit to bring the mixture to a simmer and stir for 10 mins. 

After 10 mins take off the heat and slowly add your chocolate until it is all melted and combined.  Your mixture should be thick and glossy.

Now to pour into your tray/tin and allow to cool before placing in the fridge. 

  

Now out of the two recipes both are very yummy but I must admit that I preferred the second one.  I cut them up into little squares and wrapped them in baking paper before putting into little Christmas baskets with the rum balls as gifts (of course I forgot to take a photo of them). 

What yummy delights do you make at Christmas time? 

Jennifer xx

 

google Tags: fudge, chocolate, christmas, treats, goodies, recipe, cooking, sweetened condensed milk

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

 

Wow can’t believe that Christmas is next week already and I am happy to report that I have all my Christmas shopping done and dusted.  Can’t believe that I am organised this year.  Usually I am still buying presents and stocking fillers 2 days before the big day lol.

This year I decided that I would try my hand at making a few yummy sweets for Christmas and I thought I would share the recipes with you over the next couple of days.

First I have a 2 recipes I tried for fudge.  Both are easy to make but one of the recipes I found has only 2 ingredients. 

Next is the rum balls which turned out really yummy and uses weetbix.  And the third one is super easy and you can cook it in one day, and that is yummy Christmas cake. 

 

I made up so little Christmas baskets for hubby to take to work with him to share with his work colleges. I also thought I would share a sewing tutorial for a gift that you can make for any occasion but would also make a great secret Santa gift.

Jennifer xx

 

google Tags: christmas, santa, gifts, rum balls, fudge, christmas cake, recipe, tutorial, sewing, secret santa, presents

Egg and Bacon Pie

 

I bumped into a lovely lady I know named Sharon during my weekly shopping run and when got talking about cooking over Christmas.  Sharon had family and friends visiting in a couple of days and was buying goodies to make them all lunch.

One of the things Sharon was going to make them was a bacon and egg pie.  Now I make a lot of quiches which I love but have never made a bacon and egg pie before even thought I know how so I made sure I had everything I would need and I made one for brunch on Sunday.

This is a basic recipe but Sharon shared one little secret to her bacon and egg pie and that was on the bottom of the pie she like to spread Green Tomato Relish.  I made sure to grab some of that too lol.

What I used:

1 x cake tin lined with baking paper (I like to spray it with cooking oil first as it helps the paper to stick better to the tin)

1 dozen medium/large eggs (I used 8 in this recipe as that was all that fit nicely in the cake tin but you can use all 12 if you like)

2 sheets of puff pastry (you can use short crust on the bottom and puff pastry on the top)

3 rashers of bacon chopped

1 cup of grated cheese (optional)

1 small onion chopped (I used spring onion)

2 tbsp Green Tomato Relish (or relish of our choice or leave out all together)

1/4 milk for the top of your pastry (you can also do an egg wash too)

Lets get started:

• line your baking dish of choice with baking paper and pre heat your oven at 180 degrees (my oven is fan forced)
• place a sheet of puff pastry or short crust pastry on the bottom of your dish.  I didn’t trim the pastry but just let it hang over the top.
• spread your relish all over the top of your pastry, then sprinkle have the cheese, onion and bacon over the relish.  

• now carefully crack your eggs in and around your dish,  Don’t stress to much if the yoke breaks.

• place the rest of the cheese, onion and bacon on top of the eggs.

• cut a cross in the middle of your puff pastry to let any steam out and very carefully place the puff pastry on top of your eggs.  I did this at diagonal to the bottom of the pastry and pressed down and around to seal.

• using a cooking brush cover the top of your pastry with the milk or you can whip up an egg and use this too.
• bake in the oven for 35 to 40 mins or until your pastry is lovely and golden brown.

And there you have it, yummy bacon and egg pie.  This is great cold for brunch or to take on a picnic.  And why not replace the bacon with leftover ham from your Christmas lunch.

Enjoy!

Jennifer xx

 

google Tags: bacon, egg, pie, recipe, tutorial, cooking, picnic, brunch, christmas, left overs