FO: recycled sweater tote bag + WIP
Yay, pictures. I'm still getting a hang of the new digital camera. Everything is beautifully sharp and the resolution is spectacular but low-light shooting is a bit touchy and it's a bit hard to focus manually.

Anyway, most recent FO: a tote bag.



Specs:
1 thrift store sweater ($3)
1 yd. fabric ($3)
embroidery floss
thread
Finished dimensions: 12.5" x 9.5" x 5.5"



I originally bought the sweater to use the yarn. It was a nice light green 100% wool, a bit stiff but usable. In the process of deconstructing, however, I realized why it was stiff. Somebody had accidentally felted it partway. I decided to felt it completely and use it to make a bag. After felting, there wasn't enough of it to make a whole bag so I decided to go with cloth sides. Didn't use a pattern but I based the dimensions of my favorite (free) tote bag. It's just the right size to hold my clipboard and a book or two. Lined with same material as the sides. The embroidery was totally free-handed and intentionally rough. I honestly can do better than that but wanted something sort of folk-arty. :)



Cut the lining a bit too big so I put darts down the center of the front and back. My sewing skills are still non-l33t but it turned out pretty well. Need to figure out a better way to do corners.

And a shot of the progress on the sashiko pillow as of earlier this week.



Color's way off in this one. The fabric is really a navy blue and all that cat fur on it is usually not that noticable. I'm really liking how this is turning out. My stitches might not be as even as they could be but it's not terribly noticable on the whole. Goes pretty quick too since it's just a running stitch. I got a Japanese sashiko book in the mail this week, along with an amigurumi one and one on embroidery, and I'm pleased to see that their work looks a lot like this in terms of stitch size and spacing. I hope to have this one done soon.



Boy, these pictures are big but I'm too lazy to resize.