Friday, January 12, 2018

Retreat Organizer

It's about 6 weeks until QuiltCon, and my Retreat Organizer is done! It was not easy. It was only fun most of the time. But the end result is pretty great, and I'm so proud of myself for actually getting through this!

I wrote a blog post when I had finished getting the materials together for this bag, and I considered it the biggest sewing challenge I've faced yet. I bought this class more than 3 years ago, before I knew what a quilt was, and when I was barely sure how to thread my machine. I didn't take it back then, and I'm glad, because it would have been way, way too much. But now that I've had a lot of quilting experience and some experience in simple bag making, it was a great time to take this class.

I feel like I achieved a major milestone with this bag, which is far more complicated than any bag I've done before. I used a lot of techniques I've never, ever tried before, like velcro, mesh, vinyl, bias binding, and zippers by the yard. I only broke one needle too, so it didn't go too badly! The result looks so good and professional, I can hardly believe I made it.

This little organizer is just perfectly sized to carry all the essential quilting supplies, including the Omnigrid foldable cutting mat / pressing board. (It might have been sized specifically to carry that!)

I'm so happy I accomplished this. I got a great looking organizer, and now I feel empowered to make more of Annie's projects ... with video instruction, of course. (I don't think I would want to do this without video instruction still.) But I've purchased more of Annie's classes, and hopefully, with this one under my belt, the rest will feel less intimidating too!

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Link parties joined: Crazy Mom Quilts.

14 comments:

  1. Liz this turned out great! This is a huge milestone, one I would never think to attempt. Each of the pockets and zippers look perfect. Congratulations on getting this great bag done and ready to go.

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  2. Holy wow this is just beyond fantastic! It looks like it was professionally made. Kudos to you for all of the learning involved in this -- and way to go with breaking only one needle! Impressive!

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  3. Wow!! I am so impressed! So many different materials and techniques. You'll be the talk of your classmates at QuiltCon :)

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  4. Liz, your bag is fabulous! It's looks great and like you say, so professional. It will be fun to see what you'll make next. I hope you and your bag have a great time when you go to QuiltCon!

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  5. Great job! I have this pattern, but I too, have been intimidated by it. Now that I know it fits the Omnigrid travel mat, I really want to try it!

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  6. oooh I see the good times you're going to be having with this bag but the mom in me sees you leaving home. You outdid yourself making this beautiful bag with all the zippers and compartments; you definitely earned a badge. Might I inquire if you have matching outfits to go with your bag? :)

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  7. Haha! I just have to laugh at what Rose said! It is a lovely, lovely bag. You'd never find one this nice out there to purchase for any price. You are ready for QuiltCon! Great job!

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  8. What an awesome organizer bag you made! I've been sewing my whole life and I have never attempted anything like this. Is this the Everything in its place bag? I might just give it a shot.

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  9. You have done a fantastic job on this organizer. It is really quite lovely and it looks like it will get you through QuiltCon. Sewing with all the layers and the slippy stuff is tricky! Congrats for tackling it.

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  10. A marvelous feat! I think bags with lots of layers are hard! Great job!

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  11. Fantastic organizer! Bags with all of the different interfacing, zippers, vinyl, and construction methods are very difficult. I hope that I get to see you at QuiltCon, we should meet up to walk the show or for lunch one day.

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