Joys of Retirement

Just nipping in to say hello and apologise for missing last month 's round up and Linky.

In surprisingly spontaneous fashion we booked a late deal holiday so found ourselves enjoying the sunshine at month end.

I did manage a little bit of EPP by the pool but had underestimated supplies and only achieved this -

I am also trying to lay off hand sewing a bit as my silly thumb is still troubling me - apparently it is trigger finger and I have secured a hospital appointment that I hope will lead to a pain relieving injection, I shall cross my other fingers in the meantime.

My main accomplishment to share is the completion of the Overnight Bag for my DH. Back in 2014 I ran a six week class making these bags and I think approximately 50 were completed. What a great feat it was for my lovely ladies!

So I used  my own bag when away for a weekend in February and DH asked if he could have one - "of course, I said" inwardly groaning............but I did it and made one or two changes.

Last year I used Annie's Soft and Stable for the first time and was keen to try it out for this bigger project - well, I am just delighted at how robust the bag looks. I also added integral zips to the side pockets instead of magnetic catches, and I lined the bag with a heavy ripstop nylon giving it a waterproof element. This made the finishing stitching alongside the big zip a bit of a chore but think it was more to do with aforementioned thumb than the fabric!

The main body of the bag was made using a heavy calico from stash and also in my stash was the great New York print fabric, a sort of linen, that I had bought at Stitch Gathering a couple of years ago. It was a perfect way to use it up and I had just enough.

So there it is, ready to make its debut this weekend as we set off for Wimbledon. (waving excitedly)

Hopefully I'll still be in time next week to link up to Mini Archie's Furtle Around the Blogosphere.

Meanwhile I've managed to find photos from way back then, the first is my prototype, followed by some absolutely stunning bags.