While the sewing machine was out

 I decided to tackle another project I had been planning all winter long.

I wanted a new purse.

It is a spring thing, isn't it?

As fabric I wanted to use this ladies' corduroy jacket I had picked up free (yes free!) from the recycling center. It was in great condition, I simply washed it.

I found a good pattern for a pleated purse.

Love how the pattern says it takes 2½ hours to finish.

Yup.

Probably.

If you first don't have to deconstruct a jacket for fabric.

And then adjust the pattern size three times :P

As lining I used this amazing striped corduroy that used to be my beloved purse. Until the icky plastic lining crumbled away.

The size of these pieces in the end determined the size of my purse.

As inside pockets I used back pockets from my girls' old jeans I had saved.

I used a nice thick  fusible fleece on the pieces to give structure to the purse.

I also added a magnetic clasp.

Here's a peek inside.

 And this is what it looks like outside.

I left one of the sidepockets and the front buttons of the jacket as part of the design.

The length of the sleeves determined the length of the straps. 

I do like it.

A lot.

However, now I need to sew a slightly bigger one.

So I can fit my camera inside too.

I'm off to hunt for a good sized men's jacket...

My camera got a new strap cover too. In fabrics by Anna Maria Horner.

She wanted an owl

Niina's iPad needed a protective pouch so she'd be able to take it to school occasionally.

She wanted one that would look like an owl, as she's a bit nuts about owls ;)

I dug deep into my fabric stash and started sewing.

No pattern, I just winged it.

See what I did there? 

*grin*

 Turned out pretty cute.

The wings are made from this old miniskirt of my Mom's.

The pouch is padded.

Front and back are jeans fabric, the blue pocket is a sleeve from Mika's old shirt, and th elining is some delicious fabric by Amy Butler.

Niina can fit her charger in the pocket.

 Th eeyes are scraps of Marimekko fabric I sewed on with two shades of yellow.

She's pretty much over the moon :)

Oh I know, shall we let them paint a wall?

 Last fall we were looking around our space and thinking of ways to spruce up our crafts room. It was just a little blah, needed a splash of color to bring some brightness into it.

In the end we decided to hand a piece of white wall to the hands of our second graders.

They decided on a theme, which was under the sea.

Then everyone who wanted to take part sketched something they'd like to paint.

My job was to turn into a smurf.

Or rather to paint the background.

Then the kids drew their sketch onto a transparency which was then used to draw outlines on the wall.

It was great coming in each day and see progress.

The kids were loving it!

Here is the finished mural.

It makes me smile.

I mean, come on.. that is one happy whale!

Swim little Mermaid, swim! There's a shark behind you!!!

The original plan was that for next year, we'll paint white over it and let next year's second graders paint a new one.

I'm not sure we'll have the heart.

Oh the mess...

Monday last week I headed to work with a slight dread in my stomach.. it was St. Patrick's Day.

And I was pretty sure as one of the 1st grade teachers is Irish, we'd see some leprechaun action.

Little did I know..

That little fellow had been monkeying around our Club space like there was no tomorrow.

The kids were delighted to find tiny green footprints here, there and everywhere.

Some kids were convinced us adults had made these with our fingers, can you believe??

There is no way my finger would produce such a clear heel print.

Nope.

This was the real deal.

And the real deal left a mess for us to clean up.

Seriously?

Colored pencils on the floor as he had gathered all the green ones into one bucket.

Only the green slipper bags were still on the hooks, the rest were strewn all around.

 Our big smilie faces had been turned green.

The couch was upside down!!!

A week and a half later, there still are greenn footprints.. I haven't managed to clean them all...

Annoying little fellow :P

Mini escape

Hubby and I took a mini escape.

Just the two of us.

Yup, we left the girls home on their own.

 We hopped on a cruise ship to Stockholm.

We ate well.

And rested.

A lot.

I jumped aboard after two days of fever.

Hubby got the cold a day later...

Not a lot of partying went down :P

Here are a few reasons why I love our Swedish counterpart (aka nation's capitol):

It is pedestrian friendly.

We walked 9 kilometers on Sunday.

Most of it snail pace with frequent coughing breaks.

The drivers respect the pedestrian crossings, unlike sadly in my city...

We walked from the ship to Slussen, through the Old Town did some shopping on Drottningsgatan and then walked a little here and a little there before heading back.

And taking a nap.

There are cafés everywhere.

In fact I dare you to take 50 steps and not find a café, especially in the Old Town.

 

 You find art in unexpected places.

These sentences ran up Drottningsgatan, part of a street art project.

Really made you think too...

Outdoor marketplace.

Buckets of tulips. Nothing better.

 

The sea is present and accounted for.

I love a seaside city.

Gamla Stan, the Old Town.

 The lovely buildings.

The narrow alleys.

Ignore the tourist shops, there are some hidden gems in there.

You can spend an entire day here.

 

And there are amazing cafés.

Each competing on the size of their cinnamon buns.

We sat in a lovely windowless basement snug as bugs and couldn't finish our giant cinnamon buns...

I never get tired of going back.

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This post was brought to you courtesy of a fun project called
Lists with friends 2014.

A project that documents this year with lists of all kind.