In Between the Raindrops

I did not get out quickly enough yesterday morning to cut the grass before it started raining. I stayed inside and sewed.

The Get Out of Town Duffle Bag is finished except for the inside binding and the shoulder strap. Here is one side:

And the other:

This was such a quick make, or perhaps it seems that way because I made the byAnnie Ultimate Travel Bag last year and many of the techniques were familiar. I was almost disappointed when I got to the end and the bag was finished! I doubt I could fit a weekend’s wardrobe in this bag, but it would be perfect as a day trip bag with a change of clothes. If I were a young mom with a baby, I’d use it as a diaper bag. I also think it would make a good bag for carrying around a small sewing machine—like that Janome Gem—although I might beef up the carrying straps a bit and make then 1-1/2” wide instead of 1” wide.

I also have the byAnnie Round Trip Duffle pattern. That pattern is similar to this one but a bit bigger.

I am going to use my Accuquilt 2-1/2” strip cutter to make the bias binding for the inside of the GOOT bag. That’s a method I haven’t tried yet, but I’ve seen it demonstrated and it looks like a slick way to cut binding accurately.

We have a few days of sunshine before the rain starts again. I’ll be making aprons next week as I have a custom order to work on.

*******************************************************

The husband asked the Architectural Review Committee to pick a siding color for the new shop. That involved taking the sheet with the (tiny) color swatches out to the old garage to hold them up against the siding on that building so that we get something relatively close. He got a price quote from the supplier, so I think he’ll order the siding and get that installed soon and that project will be finished.

I might make another attempt at cutting the grass today between our board meeting sessions. I haven’t been out to the garden in a few days to see how bad the weeds are. This hasn’t been the warmest spring that I can remember, but it certainly has been warmer than the past couple of years. The peas are already a couple of inches tall. No doubt the weeds are racing ahead.