Two Mondays in a row obviously means that the bad blogger spell has been broken. Such an occasion calls for some sort of celebration like pizza for dinner. That's how we used to celebrate in grade school. If you were good for half the year you got pizza for lunch. Not hot lunch cafeteria pizza but real pizza. It was like winning the lunch lottery. Well a room full of grade-schoolers acting appropriately for half of a school year is about as impressive as me blogging two Mondays in a row. So yeah, pizza for dinner is definitely in order...or wait, maybe an ice cream party!
It was a busy week but I did manage to crank out a couple of projects. Actually I cranked out a couple of the same thing one evening. One will be for me and the other will be or my snowbird dad who lives in an RV all winter in Arizona and probably "cooks" all his meals in the microwave. That sounds either mysterious or ominous. I give you the baked potato bag...
(You are not underwhelmed... you are not underwhelmed.)
We had company here for a few days so I really didn't have much time to get crafty. But hey, my dad is going to use the heck out of this thing and he'll think I'm a total genius for making it. I picked up the fabric when I was kicking ass and taking names in my hometown of Salem, OR during a visit in August. The quilt shop had a free pattern for it but there is a pattern exactly like in this post from CraftSanity. It makes a fun and easy gift for the carboholic in your life. What I'd really be impressed with is a potato bag that turned the potato into tots!
A couple of those bags obviously didn't put much of a dent in my fabric stash so I decided to join the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. The site has free patterns and ideas for places to donate your pillowcases. This week I'm hoping to make at least 10. The "roll it up" method that is linked on their site is the way I'll be making them. Such a great stash buster. Check it out and join me. Giving back rocks.
Speaking of giving. I received a surprise package from my friend, Sharon, today. It included a sweet note and an awesome homesewn snack bag. The timing couldn't have been more perfect. Another thing I wanted to do in 2012 was to be more environmentally conscious and stop using so much plastic. I pack my son's lunch every day and I'm truly horrified to think about the amount of plastic bags I've used in those over the years. Check this out...
First of all, the kitchen fabric made my heart sing. So cute! The lining is a ripstop nylon fabric and it has a velcro closure. You can just wipe the resuable bag out or pop it into the washer and dryer. I see many of these in my future. There's really no reason to use plastic sandwich bags for anything anymore. If you are interested in being a little greener this year you can find the pattern on Etsy or you can Google a bunch of free tutorials. Now I get to see what kind of fabric I'll be using for my son's sandwich bag replacements. He's a senior in high school and doesn't embarrass easily. I find that to be a fun challenge. I think Care Bears might work nicely.
So until next Monday... craft on and let me know if you whip up a potato bag, pillowcase or snack bag. You know you want something fancy to nuke potatoes in. Anything that's a precursor to mounds of sour cream, cheese and crumbled bacon is a pretty cool project.
The baked potato bag was a big hit when it made an appearance at our family reunion fund raiser. There was actually a bidding war over it. :-) It's one of those items that no one knows that they need but when they hear about it, they totally want one.
Posted by: NerdGirl | January 09, 2012 at 08:10 PM
oooh pillowcases!!! my friend Fran (who i see once a year at stitches) made two pillow cases randomly and sent them to me (in ORANGE) and i LOVE LOVE LOVE them. Funny how i never thought to ever make pillow cases....
Posted by: jen | January 10, 2012 at 10:07 AM
I enjoy reading the enthusiasm you have for your life. Happy two Mondays in a row too! :)
Posted by: Twistedknitster | January 20, 2012 at 08:10 PM
I am intrigued by the baked potato bag! Do you actually nuke a potato inside the bag? Just came to visit you to say thanks for stopping by and commenting on my newborn blog - thanks!
Posted by: Yzobela | April 01, 2012 at 11:53 PM