Saturday, March 4, 2017

QuiltCon: The Pre-Conference Pouches

Last week I traveled to Savannah for QuiltCon. My brain still can’t wrap itself around everything I saw and did during the course of the conference, but I can tell you it was awesome—like, one-of-the-best-weeks-of-my-life awesome.

I went for the classes (I took two) and the lectures (I took three). I went for the show and the shopping. It was the people who made the conference what it was, though. Being around all those creative quilters, talking about quilting from sunup to sundown, was both inspiring and exhausting!

I can’t summarize all that was QuiltCon in one blog post, so I thought I’d break it into a few posts about different aspects of the experience. First up is the pre-conference sewing I did ...

I wanted to make a little something for friends I’d be seeing in Savannah. I knew I couldn’t make a present for everyone I would hang out with, so I settled on making a gift for two in-real-life friends and for two social-media friends I’d be meeting for the first time at the event.

I sewed some of Ellen Luckett Baker’s Pixel Pouches, from her book 1-2-3 Quilt. I started one of these pouches a years ago, but assembling the 54 1½-inch squares—of nearly 2 dozen different fabrics!—was more than my scrap bin could handle. A few years later, my scrap bin is overflowing. Once I considered using a color scheme and layout different from what Ellen uses, these pouches came together quickly.


This is the Pixel Pouch from Ellen Luckett Baker’s 1-2-3 Quilt.

For the first one, I used scraps from this quilt. The beauty of this approach was I already knew that these fabrics worked well together.


The back features an extra block from this quilt, which was recently quilted and just needs to be bound. (Stay tuned for that finish in the next few weeks!)


For the remaining pouches, I broke into a Basic Grey Fresh Cut charm pack and sewed three pouches in slightly different color palettes. 


The only snafu I encountered while creating these pretty pouches was zipper related. (Isn’t it always?!) I zipped two of the pull rights off the trimmed tape. It took more than a little coaxing to get them back where they belonged. My perseverance paid off, however, and the recipients were thrilled to receive a pouch with a zipper intact and functional. Ha!

I have made my fair share of pouches, but truth be told, I prefer bag making to pouch making. Size matters, and smaller often means harder and more fiddly!

Do you have a go-to pouch pattern or tutorial? Once I make a bag or pouch pattern, I usually sew it up again and again. Check out some well-worn patterns and tutorials I have used here.

Linking up to Let’s Bee Social, Needle and Thread Thursday, Finish It Up Friday, and Scraptastic Tuesday ...

Follow on Bloglovin

22 comments:

  1. After seeing all the comments, I'm sad I didn't make the decision to go. But it would have meant forgoing one of my favorite retreats so ... Hoping to see you in Nashville in 2019!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love these. I have been using the open wide zipper pouch idea a lot as I like how they really do open wide. I want to try something like a Lola pouch as the bound top looks so neatly finished.
    I knew I saved all my tiny 1.5 inch squares for a reason and not simply because I am a bit crazy.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Open Wide Pouch is pretty great. I can't wait to see your finished Grape Fizz quilt. I'll carry my gorgeous pouch with pride!

    ReplyDelete
  4. These are wonderful! I really like the Quilted Patchwork Pouch by Julie Hirt on the modabakeshop site. Directions are great, it's roomy, and it stands up nicely. So glad you had fun at QuiltCon!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am absolutely in love with the purple triangles bag! So in love, that I might be planning on making my own version this week, if thats cool with you :) And Nashville is on my radar as well!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great use of the extra Icy Waters block. I'm getting ready to quilt mine this month.

    ReplyDelete
  7. They are beautiful! ;) And I saw that the purple back was from your Icy Waters quilt?? I can't wait to see that one!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I was sad not to get to QuiltCon. Hopefully the Canadian dollar will make a comeback before 2019. My go-to is Open Wide Zippered Pouch by Noodlehead.

    ReplyDelete
  9. These are awesome! I'm sure the recipients were thrilled!

    ReplyDelete
  10. What lovely pouches you made - can't wait to read more about QuiltCon.

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a sweet idea, and so pretty, too. I'm glad I'm not the only one still processing QuiltCon! I am posting my picture of you and your quilt today, though! You should get a pingback. I'm on WordPress, so my google profile is no reply.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sending you more hugs! I love, love my pouch! I am beyond thrilled to be one of lucky recipients of these gorgeous pouches!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Well you have really created a range of pouches over time. I like the look of them but have not yet attempted to make one myself.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Bag making, zippier pouches is not my favorite thing to make! I love seeing what others do...like these sweet ones you made! What a great idea taking special gifts to friends and I'm sure they appreciated it very much! Maybe I better start making a few gifts...they might be ready for the Nashville 2019 show...which I will be attending!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I've only made a couple of pouches..all of them were boxy pouches. I guess I prefer to make quilts.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Lovely pouches, I especially like the pixel one. I like pouches and bags and once I even bought a bag pattern I liked, but I have never made it, or any other bag or pouch pattern. Tell a lie, I did make a bag once, but never finished it and after a few years I came across it and didn't know how to and couldn't work it out, so I binned it (couldn't salvage the fabric), sad.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I love your pouches, gorgeous colours, who knew scraps could look so great! :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Such cute pouches. Maybe this is how I should start using up some of my scraps.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, and it was so wonderful to finally meet you in person and hang out with you a bit! Was one of the highlights of the weekend for me!

      Delete
  19. Oh they are so cute, and I'm glad QuiltCon was a lot of fun, it sounds absolutely incredible. We have the International Festival of Quilts in the summer over here but we're always playing a little bit of catch up to your side of the pond!

    ReplyDelete
  20. These all look great and I'm glad you enjoyed QuiltCon! Thanks for linking up to #scraptastictuesday

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for commenting! I almost always respond to comments by email. If my response might interest others or if you're a no-reply blogger, I'll post it here.