Accckkk, no phone!

And no phone means no Internet, and JUST as I was getting ready to make a blog post Monday! Sheesh! We were out of service a couple days and it took three repairmen to get it back. At the end when I asked what it was, I got an embarrassed and sheepish "technical difficulties." Um, hello, I knew that much, lol.

What I think might have happened is that whomever hooked up the new neighbor's phone might have used my line for it, thereby making my line go down. It's fixed now, so all's well that ends well, except that my WIPs far outstretch my allotted blog time now.

Well, that isn't such a bad thing, either, come to think of it! I'll catch up with everyone and the posts I wanted to make after Sunday. We have company coming Sunday afternoon and I'm still trying to get this place company-ready. Tis a lost cause, so yesterday I did the only reasonable thing: bought thrift store pillowcases, because YES, I made a bag! A shabby chic purple bag! I even raided my strip piecing stash for a purple and white strip and fringed the edges, to make a shabby chic tie to adorn one handle.

And Lisa, thank you thank you thank you for laughing at your upside down floral bouquets---because I DID buy some directional pillowcases! Thanks for the warning!

I also bought some pillow shams--um, rather more of them and fewer pillow cases than I meant to *looks around, whistles innocently*--but it is okay cuz we need cushions for the chairs and there is no way I can make them all in time. We can stuff the bed pillows into the shams and use them on those hard wooden chairs for the afternoon; then I'll wash the shams and make bags! Or something.... they DO make me think all manner of "making" thoughts...

Last night while Gryph was on the puter catching up from the long drought (lol! We do so HATE being kept offline!), I sat at my sewing table and hand-stitched a lining to a pocket for my next bag. I could NOT help thinking about a box of fabric scraps coming my way from a friend who makes costumes, and wondering if I can translate the pillowcase technique to larger fabrics. I'm thinking that what I need is after all just a piece of fabric two layers thick, with the corners cut out for squaring and some extra for handles... I can do that!

The one with the pocket? Wellllll let me tell ya... you cut the hem off the handle pieces before you make the handles, and it just begged to be opened out, turned upside right, and used...it was a border design, different from the body of the pillowcase, so the pocket on the outside and the inside bottom of the bag are the border print, ever so coordinated. Works for me!

Yanno, I could make a quilted bag..... it would not be hard to do....

Oh, you figured it out? Yes, all this creative bagness DID show up when I got stuck on the design of the chair cover.... um... *blush* well, that is what WIPs are for, right? To, um, keep the momentum going when one stalls out on something? ......I think I must need to buy more pillowcases! Yes, that's the ticket... more fabric! lol!