Making Bento bags (kinchaku love!)

Okay, so at the request of some UKS-ers here are instructions and copious photies of handmade bento bags. There will obviously be a ton of ways to make these; this is how I do it. It should also be noted that I am an "eye-baller" so all measurements are approximate and I only do the ol' pin-tack-sew if I absolutely *have* to. That doesn't happen too often. ::grins::

Right, for this one I have used a length of fabric (mine's a tea towel), thread, something to use as a drawstring (shoelaces!!) and some pretty beads for the drawstring ends (nicked from little Chookie's toybox.)

The basis of the bag is a piece of fabric 12x24 inches long. If your fabric looks like it's going to fray *really* badly you can serge or zigzag the long sides now. I'm lazy so haven't. ::grins::

Iron a hem about 5mm along both the long sides.

Sew a hem partially down all four corners of your ironed hems. Mine are about 2 inches long. This makes neat channels for the cord.
Along the two short sides iron a 5mm hem and fold again at about 1cm and iron. This is the actual cord channel but isn't getting sewn yet!

If you're adding an applique do it now before making the bag up! Fold fabric right sides together and stitch up both side seams......
....only up as far as the cord channel.

Sew right round the cord channel in one go - if you need to adjust the hem so that your folds are sort of even you can re-iron now before stitching.

Look! A bag! Kinda.....

Right. Getting the flat bottom effect is easy if a bit fiddly. I find the easiest way is to open the bag flat with the side seams together.......

...like this.....

...and fold it flat.

Measure 2 inches from one point and draw a line straight across. Stitch over this line and do the same on the other point.

Turn your bag the right way round and it should look like this.

For straps, you'll need two strips of fabric. Mine are 2in by 17in. Fold them in half right sides together and stitch up the long side.

Turn them the right way round press flat. Tuck the raw edges inside and press again.

Pin to the bag (the bottoms of mine are 3.5in from the top and 3in from the outer seam) and stitch in place.......

...like this. You can sew an additional cross inside the square if you think you need additional strength.

Thread your laces (or cord) through the channel at the top of the bag. Use one lace to go right round both sides (so it comes out next to where it went in) and start the second lace at the OTHER side seam so when you pull all four ends the bag gathers closed.

Add beads if you're girly and you're done! ::grins::

Indecision

I'm still faffing about with exposure (I'll get round to this weeks stuff at some point!) and took this during a quick mid afternoon shoot, really just as a record of the incredibly short bunchies! I can't make up my mind if it's overcooked or not, between the light on her face - even though it was overcast - and her BRIGHT pink top it was a bit of a blighter. Still, it's kinda sweet and I like the catchlights!

A wee tradition.

Now, being a scrapbooker since Chookie was 6 weeks old I have pretty much documented everything she has ever done. When she turned 2 I had a years worth of wee shoes that I could hardly bear to part with so, naturally, I photographed them and made a page layout with all her vital statistics and a list of her favourite things. It's become an annual tradition and since she turned 6 last Thursday it's that time of year again. This first shot is pretty typical of the last few years' images but as her shoe fetish grows it's getting hard to get them all in shot!

I've tried a few different ways to squeeze all those wee shooz in one shot (some more successful than others!) and I think I'm most happy with this one. Any inspirational ideas are gratefully received! *grins*

Batteries charged....

So, I've been having a *gentle* play this afternoon to get myself back into the swing of things........I'm another who's hardly taken a shot since PWL finished. Ooops. So, since I always have fresh flowers in the living room here is this weeks fluorescent orange lillies.

And little Miss has become a bit of a twitcher after discovering Spouse's auld binos in the cupboard. Bless her. (and I admit to cloning out the bogies in this shot!!!! :eyeroll: )

Next stop.........histograms. Eeek!!

snap it - subject 4.

I'm not a huge telly watcher but since we got Sky-plus at Christmas I have a few programmes I like to record. All genre telly. None of yer soap rubbish for me! Do you spot the phantom grinner? I asked her to shield the gap in the cabinet from the sun.....didn't notice the manic cheekiness til after!!

UKS Overlooked. Make it - subject 1.

This is a copy of my actual current handbag. The photo of the contents is tucked inside with a list of why's. All done!

UKS Overlooked. Snap it - subject 1.

So, some of us UKS girls got really fed up waiting for prompt number 4. "Let's do our own," we thought. So we did. Our handbag contents. *grin* Now I've never been a handbag girl (ever the tomboy!) but work and motherhood have necessitated the adoption of one to house all the carp one must cart about. It's reduced in size as Missy G has grown but these are my everyday must haves!

Make it - subject 3

Oops. I've been a bit neglectful here haven't I? To be fair, the Overlooked prompts have been a bit.......erratic lately. It's so easy to lose momentum, innit? Anyhoo, here's the troublesome fridge layout. The photo lifts up to show the perspective shot below. *grins*

Snap it - subject three.

I hemmed and hawed the *longest* time over what to do for this prompt. It was "refrigerators" and I had three options. Mine nice and full right after a shop, mostly empty at the end of the week OR the multitude of things that get stuck to the outside door. Y'know, photies/paintings/lists and all that. Well, I did none of these in the end.....this is Chook's Sylvanian mouse families' fridge. Bless 'em, those Hawthorns get all the best stuff (there's even ice cream in the freezer!) although being so teeny my poor camera had a bit of a strop so it's not the sharpest I've ever taken. It's cute though, aye? And it had a fair bit of empty space for scrapping purposes. *grins*

Make it - subject two.

The only way I could think to get something relating to my gutties on this page was to fake shoelaces. Wishing I had red satin ones on my Etnies now. *grins* And one sunny day in Julember I will remember to not stick everything down before I've put the transparency journalling on!!

A Challenging Time.

One of my UKS buddies MollyMoo and I were having a conversation the other day. It was about how cool it would be to have an "Overlooked" book from your Mum or Grandma filled with the little incidentals of their lives. Moo joked she was off to photo her Mum's favourite mug and when I commented that my beloved Wee Granny actually had a favourite mug she dared me to take a picture of it. So here ya go, Moo!! I did her favourite collection, too, and am going to make her own Overlooked album. *grins*

Snap it - subject two.

Collections. Something that collects in my house. The obvious one is my Trollbeads, or my CD's, or my books. Or the Chookie's ponies or Barbies. Spouse's rusty car bits! But anyone who knows me knows I have a thing for trainers and sporty footwear in general. And they've never been recognised.....truly overlooked!! Ta-da!!

Make it - subject one

I thought I'd give 6x12 a try, I rather like it! This is the very last of my lovely Autumn Leaves paper, too, and I FINALLY found a use for that rub-on. *grins*

Jot it - subject one

Journalling. Not my greatest passion but, y'know, I wrote a LOT about my wee mug. It's fitting it on a LO that's the challenge now!!

Snap it - subject one

So, like the bit under my wee photie says, this is for my things for the "Overlooked" challenge. I'll put a link over on the left as soon as I figure out how! Anyhoo...

Week 1 was to take a photo of your favourite mug. Easy-peasy since I've used the same one at work for 12 years. A gift from my good friend, Sue . Everyone wave to Sue!!!

Yooooo-halloooooooo!!!

I will eat my Etnies if this works.

*edited* Dagnammit, someone pass the salt please?!