Make. Customized Tote Bags with ECOBAGS

Straight out of the embroidery hoop (sorry I didn't iron it before taking the photos), I bring you an embroidered tote bag.  This was a lot of fun to make and it reminded me just how much I love to do embroidery.  It isn't the quickest way to embellish an item, but the look can't be duplicated by any other means. 

For this project I used an ECOBAG.  This one is a cotton/hemp blend.  The fabric is sturdy but lightweight enough that it seemed like the perfect canvas for embroidery.  I found a pattern I thought would look cool and kitschy on the bag and went to work! 

ECOBAGS provided me with these samples to try out.  The bags I received use organic cotton but they also carry bags out of recycled cotton and hemp/cotton blends.  I thought it only fitting that try to finish this project in time for Earth Day.  In fact, this company has been around for a long time, launching their bags on Earth Day in 1990.  The bags are affordable and can be around $5-$8.  They offer discounts if you buy in bulk and there are wholesale opportunities as well.

My new favorite tote is the shopping tote.  It is so large and sturdy!  I decided to applique on it.  I applied some Heat n Bond to the red fabric, cut out the word "books", and ironed on each letter.  This is my new library bag.  I'd like to try to keep all of my library books in this bag so I don't have to go hunting for them every time we want to return them.  Maybe this bag will end up *saving* me money from all those overdue fees! 

Craft Night with the Lincoln Handmade Team

I'm a member of our local etsy team, Lincoln Handmade.  Last night we all got together at my house for a craft night.  We spent most of the evening using the Big Kick, eating, and chatting.   You can read more about it at the Lincoln Handmade blog.  

The Big Kick was the hit of the evening.  I bought mine on sale a couple of months ago at Joann. It is a die cutting machine.  It is great to use with paper, fabric, chipboard, felt, and whatever else you can run through it.   You can make appliques like a dream!  TIP: add your heat n bond to the fabric BEFORE you run it through the machine.  Then you have a ready to iron on shape!

The dies can be purchased at craft stores.  I have a few that are exclusive to Stampin' UP that match their stamp sets.  The dies can get a little expensive.  Most run around $15.  Make sure to use your craft store coupons!  Alphabet and other specialty dies can cost over $100.  We were talking about maybe charging dues for our team and investing in some of these more expensive tools for the good of the group.

This is actually a pretty good price for the Big Kick if you're interested.  Do you have one already?  What are some of your favorite dies?

Meet Marcie McGoldrick from Martha Stewart Living

Photo of Marcie McGoldrick by Ditte Isager

I had the opportunity this past week to do an interview via email with Marcie McGoldrick. She is the Editorial Director for Holiday and Crafts at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Long title, dream job.

Just last month, they launched a new blog at MarthaStewart.com called The Crafts Dept. Through that blog we are able to see some of the behind the scenes happenings and even see what some of the employees like to work on in their spare time. One of my favorite posts was done by the TV staff. They did a post about the inspiration behind some of the crafts. This blog is a daily read for me and I'm sure that all of you will love it, too! Tell them Christy Nelson sent you!

Have you ever wondered how they choose products to feature in their magazines, books, and television spots? Marcie explained that each of them are inspired by different things like color, texture, etc... but what it ultimately comes down to are three things. They need to be useful, well made, and beautiful.

When I asked Marcie about the economy and what she thinks about the near future of arts and crafts, she remains optimistic. I wholeheartedly agree with her there. Marcie wrote, "There is so much value in learning a new craft. There is the activity itself, the learning that takes place and the physical reward of the final outcome."

Marcie is an accomplished artist in her own right. On doing my research for this interview, I happened upon her new etsy shop. Her craft of choice is ceramics and it looks like her work is rubbing off on her own shop. The items stocked there are useful, well made, and beautiful.


A new book, Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts, is coming out on March 31st. I'll have more information about the book and review of it next Tuesday. Oh, and did I mention that I'll be giving away FIVE copies of the book to some lucky readers? When I asked Marcie about one of her greatest accomplishments, she mentioned being a part of The Crafts Dept. and this book. I imagine this was quite a task to gather all of the great information included in this resource book.

Before I finished with my questions, I had to ask Marcie what she might include if she were in charge of filling up the Christy's Craft Challenge packets. Her picks include some of her favorite tools.

1. Cutting mat--once you have one you can't craft without it.

2. Bone folder--essential for any paper crafter.

3. Screw punch-- it is a really versatile tool- you can use it like a regular hole punch (in 3 sizes) and it can also punch holes anywhere on a piece of paper.

4. Brown craft paper

5. Wax twine in a bright color


I hope you will all take the time to go and check out what's new at The Crafts Dept. and you can even follow them on twitter.