Craft Haul: Quick Trip to SAS

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

I needed just a few supplies for some upcoming crafts. So I stopped by SAS in Tempe, Arizona for the first in what felt like years. Of course, the day I chose had to be one of the few days in Arizona that we got a major storm. I still managed to get my purchases home dry. I can't say the same about myself. 

Anyway, here is my little haul of goodies. 

I needed a little bit of black tulle for a Halloween piece I am sewing. So, luckily I found the perfect amount in this discount baggie for a whopping $0.99. The pink tulle is a bit of a bonus. It might come in handy too.

I needed some ribbon, which SAS sells by the yard. However, I found a bin full of random embellishments. It was a "fill a bag" for only $0.99 each. I found the exact the ribbons I needed, plus some extra ribbon, elastic, and bias tape for future projects. 

I needed a small amount white fabric as a backing for a project I am planning for Christmas. These fat quarters were perfect, and they were only $0.99 each. That seems to be the price of the day.

What wasn't $0.99 was this yard remnant of black satin. It was $3.99, and it will work well with the tulle for my Halloween project. 

I got some thread and elastic, always useful. Also some fake flowers to have on hand. They range from $0.49 to $1.49, and are handy for making hair accessories. 

These long glue sticks are also handy for making hair accessories among other things. And they're only $0.15 each.

I couldn't resist browsing the wall of sewing accessories. I picked up some more pins and these bobbin buddies. 

They're similar to these ones I've been eyeing on Amazon. You use them to keep loaded bobbins with their matching spools of thread. Keeps things nicely in place, and at least gives the illusion that I am a neat and tidy sewer.

That's all for this craft haul. Now I need to use it all. In fact, I am almost done with my next sewing project, and I should be posting it soon.

Look forward to it. 

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A Spooky Black Craft Haul

I had intended to post this sooner, but life happens.

Anyway, to prepare for a certain holiday craft project I took a trip to my favorite craft store, SAS.

As you can see, black was the color of choice for my craft purchases this time.

I bought a few yards of black cotton fabric, you will see what this is for later this week. :)

To go along with it I bought this thin black lace.  It’s funny about the lace.  I looked all over the store, desperately trying to find black lace that would work.  I’m afraid there wasn’t much lace in that color to be found despite how close it is to Halloween.   Plus, most of what was there was either too wide, pricey or cheap looking.

Then I found the clearance area. 

This entire bag of lace for only $1, and not just any lace, the perfect lace for my project and future ones to come.  Which is why I bought two bags of it.

Naturally, while searching for this perfect black lace I found some more lace I couldn’t live without.  These two lovelies will come in handy for a couple more projects.

In addition to the lace, I needed black ribbon and that was thankfully much easier to find.

I also needed some large black flowers, so I bought the two on the right.  The smaller bunch of rosebuds I bought as an impulse.  I tend to used this type of rose bud a lot (see Hair Accessories Again? A Tutorial and Flowers for Your Hair, Flower Headband Tutorial), so having a few black ones might come in handy.

Speaking of impulse buys, I also got this little baby carriage party favor for less than three dollars.  I thought it would be cute for my dolls.

I also got this pack of golden roses with bows.  Couldn’t resist them at twenty-five cents and I think they will work perfectly for some Christmas crafting.

Now the practical stuff, like thread.  Surprisingly not in black, but I buy black and white thread in bulk.  It’s other colors I tend to need, like pink and navy.

I also bought a couple more blank headbands.  I like these ones because they are made of metal instead of plastic.  That means I can adjust the fit without breaking them.

I also needed some more hooks and eyes, plus I grabbed some snaps just in case.  I go through these a lot for doll clothes and stuff, so I like to grab a pack every time I stop by SAS.  For 99 cents each, it’s a bargain. 

I needed some more zippers, in black and white.  Both for upcoming projects.

And finally I grabbed some more glue sticks for my glue gun.  It will be used constantly in the next few months.

That’s all for this haul, now stay tuned for the finished projects.  :)

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A Quick and Pink Craft Haul

To prepare to tackle some of the projects on my current craft list, I needed to make a quick trip to the craft store. 

Specially to SAS, mainly because I noticed they were having a clearance sale.  :) I was just going to buy some lace and some basic sewing items.

But I came back with all of this.

This beautiful allover lace knit material, $2 less per yard.  It is perfect for one particular project.

To go with the lace, I bought ribbon in two different widths and thread.  Don’t worry, they don’t look it in the photos, but the colors match nicely.

I also got some matching roses and some bunches of white flowers just because.

I found some baggies of small faux pearls for 99 cents, in white and pink.  Great for embellishing clothing and for doll pieces.

And they had fold over elastic for 75 cents a yard.  Yep, the same elastic used for those hair ties that sell in stores for about $3 for a pack of 6 ties.

In addition to the lace, I bought this pink floral print simply because it was cute and half price.  Thank you clearance sale.

I made sure to pick up a pack of tiny snaps.  With all the dolls clothes I’ve been making, I keep on running out of snaps.

And I grabbed some glue gun sticks.  They sell large one for about 15 cents each.

I think I did pretty well this trip about not buying a ton of extra stuff, but who knows what will happen next time.  For now I just need to get cracking on my next craft project.  Look forward to it!

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Catching Up: Bags and More Bags

The last few projects on my list were bags so it seems fitting to put them all in the same post. Plus I just wanted to get them over with so I can focus on the next big project, Christmas.  So here goes.

First up is this purse.  Some may notice it bears a great resemblance to a certain lace covered purse I made years ago (see It All Started with Goodwill).  There is a good reason for this.  A certain individual I know really likes my white lacey purse and sort of requested one just like it except for a few differences.  I figure it would make a excellent gift, maybe.

Second up is this pretty purple tote bag.  I have been badly in need of a new everyday bag as my old one was about to kick the bucket.

I used some pretty fabrics I got from SAS (see The Biggest Craft Haul Ever) and trimmed it with the same lace as the purse which also came from SAS.

At first glance it may seem like a normal tote bag, but if you look on the sides you can see a zipper.

Two zippers running all around.  These are what make this bag truly special.  Because when unzipped…

…The bag is much bigger with nearly twice the capacity. That’s right, it’s a convertible bag.

I’ve found that on some days I carry considerably more stuff than others, so much so that my old bag was being overly stuffed.  Plus on my “lighter” days, my bag seemed needlessly huge.  Having a convertible bag solves this problem.  It goes small when I travel light, and grows larger when I carry more.  Much more in fact, it can hold noticeably more than my old bag.

Another problem I had with my old bag was trying to find things in it.  With a big bag full of stuff it can be easy to lose important things in the void.  This bag solves that problem thanks to the many pockets on the inside.  Perfect places to stash my wallet, phone, lotion, pens, compacts, tiny notebooks, etc..

And there is a larger pocket for things like my tablet and such.  The lining of the bag is actually made of vinyl to make it easy to clean.  I frequently carry food or water bottles and other things that may spill.

My third bag project is a little pouch made to match the tote bag.  It has lace along the zipper and some lace for a handle to make it both pretty and easy to grab and go.

Of course it is lined with vinyl too for easy clean up and actually has a vinyl divider inside.  One side I use for makeup and the other side I use for other supplies like cough drops and tissues.  Basically things that would be handy to toss together in any purse or bag.

Here’s the updated list:

• Purse
• Bag
• Mini-bag
• Dress
• Vest
• Fleece

Six down and out.  Now time to get started on Christmas. That list will be up by tomorrow for sure.  Look forward to it.

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The Biggest Craft Haul Ever

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

Over the last couple of days, I managed to pay a visit to almost all of the stores I typically shop for craft supplies.  Everywhere except Goodwill and other thrift stores and Bookman’s.  My bank account took a hit, but I’m happy with the goodies I found.  So happy that I wanted to share them all.

At Michael’s I got various jewelry findings including jumps rings, crimp beads, and ribbon clamps.  There was deal where if you bought three of them you would get 22% off, couldn’t pass that up.  I also got a chain I’ve really needed and a bottle of possibly the best glue known to mankind, Aleene’s Jewel-It. 

It’s an embellishing glue intended for gluing things like beads to fabric, but I use it for so much more.  It’s really useful for making hair accessories.  So many times I’ve glued flowers and bows to metal clips and combs using the glue gun only to have them pop off with use.  Never happens with the Jewel-It.  I’ve also used it to glue magnets to things, it lasts for years.

At Joann Fabrics and Crafts I got this jewelry making tool kit.  I was in need of a pair of pliers as well as other items for jewelry and this kit had everything I needed and more for only about $10.  Works out well.  I also got a spool of stretch cord and found a string of glass pearls that are the perfect size for making doll sized jewelry.  The best part is that I found it in their “Treasure Box”.  It’s a special area for beads and stuff where everything is only $1.99.

Speaking of bargain priced glass pearls, I found these beauties at Wal-Mart for 97 cents each.  I got two each of both white and off-white.  I’m hoping they will work with some pearls I already have.

The bulk of the my craft shopping was at SAS.

Here’s what I got from them:

• 1 yard purple floral print vinyl
• 3 yards lavender poly poplin fabric
• 2 white zippers
• 10 yards white grosgrain ribbon
• 10 yards white ultra thin satin ribbon
• elastic
• green thread
• Pretty green flowers with pearls
• toggle clasps
• 4 hair clips
• 4 yards white cotton lace
• 16 yards of thin white lace
• lace gloves
• faux pearl necklace and bracelet set (it was only $1)
• 0.19lbs of black lace from the $4/lb. remnant box

It all came to under $30, and around $60 combined.  Not too bad. Best of all, most of it is actually stuff I planned to buy.  The fabric, vinyl, zippers, elastic, ribbon and thin lace are all intended for projects on my current craft list.  And the thread, flowers, jewelry stuff, glue, hair clips, pearls,and other laces are for future projects I’m planning. 

The rest sadly are impulse buys.  It’s something I’ve come to expect when shopping for craft supplies.  It fuels creativity, mainly because some impulse items are so strange that I need to get really creative to figure out what to do with it.

Anyway, I am now very well stocked and ready to get going on my projects.  Look forward to that.

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Sewing for Baby

As I mentioned before, I have friends who are expecting their first child this month, so I made a boat load of things for their baby shower which I haven’t shown yet. :)

But first here’s something else I haven’t shown here much. My notebook sketches.

Before I do a lot of my sewing, I like to sketch out ideas in notebooks.  This one page is dedicated to all the baby things I wanted to make.  Some of the things I didn’t actually make, this time anyway.  Let’s save something for later.

First up is the diaper bag.  I designed it based on a tote bag I saw someone using at work.  Large and roomy with lots of pockets on the inside and a useful little one on the outside. The twist?

This is the fabric I picked out for it.  I found it at Wal-Mart, have I mentioned before how glad I am that they brought fabric back to their stores?  I just couldn’t resist the little turtles and elephants, plus it works for boy and girl babies.

Here’s the finished bag.  The straps go most of the way down the sides of the bag for security, plus it makes the pocket look good.

Here’s the inside.  There are six pockets all ready to shove stuff in and carry.  That’s exactly what I did.  I crammed it with all the other stuff I made plus some essentials I bought on sale.

Now the blankets.  Here’s the baby blanket…

…and receiving blankets.  The receiving blankets were just a single square cut from a knit fabric and hemmed. The baby blanket involved a layer of sweat shirt fabric sewn with the softer side facing outward.  I used this tutorial as a guide.

Here’s the fabric I used.  I got it at SAS. Dalmatians and fire trucks, perfect for a new little boy. :)

Here are the finished blankets.  In addition to blankets, I made some birth cloths and wash cloths.  The wash cloths are made like the receiving blankets but smaller and using plain white knit fabric.  The burp cloths are made like the blanket only smaller and rectangle shaped.

Now the best part, the teddy bear.  Because every kid needs a stuffed best friend.

Here’s the finished bear.  All ready for hugs

I made the patterns from scratch using newspaper.  It was easier than expected, I must be getting better at making patterns.

Here’s the fabric I used.  It’s fake fur from SAS.  It’s a perfect off-white and super soft.  I have plenty of leftovers so be prepared for more teddies in the future.

Some in progress photos just for fun.

Sewn and turned partially right side out.  The legs were a pain to sew.

And now the jacket.  Sad thing about it, I seem to have lost the finished photo.  I have search all over my computer and it seems to have totally disappeared.  It looked totally adorable and almost exactly like my sketch except I put a turtle applique and an elephant applique on the front.  Obviously I cut the appliques from the bag fabric.

Here’s the patterns I made, they are based on a dress pattern but were perfect for a jacket. 

And of course this the fabric I used, I used it for the blanket as well.  I got it a Goodwill.  It’s always nice to find good fabric at thrift stores.  I have plenty of it leftover so I will probably make another one soon.  Look forward to it.

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