Repairing and Adding Shells to a Summer Straw Bag

Hope everyone had a fabulous Easter!

 With all the sunshine and warm weather we're having I have really been getting the summer bug!

Recently I did my winter/summer wardrobe swap.  That's where I pack up all the heavy winter sweaters and boots and bring out all the swim suits and summer accessories.  Am I the only one that doesn't have enough closet and drawer space to keep all my clothes in the closet year round?

Anyways, I have several straw summery purses that I love for spring and summer.  I forgot how badly worn this one had become last summer before I packed it away.

All four corners were damaged like this.  I was about to throw it out when I realized I really like this straw purse and it was paining me to part with it.  So I decided to add some binding to the top edge to prolong it's life.  Although it looked just fine with the newly bound edge, I decided to add some shells to the top edge as well.

If you have a summery straw bag that needs some repair or you just want to add some shells, here's how I did it.

First I dug through my scrap fabric bin and found a color that I thought complimented the the purse.  My scrap wasn't very wide, so I had to cut 2 bias strips in order to have enough to go all the way around the top edge.  Hopefully you will have enough to cut one continuous strip.  I cut my bias strip 2 1/2" wide.

If you're not familiar with how to cut fabric on the bias, I've done a tutorial in the past that you can find here.

Since my bias strips were so short I had to seam two strips together.

I pressed my seam open.  Then I pressed my bias strip in half lengthwise.

Open out the bias strip and fold under 1/2" on both long raw edges.

Place the center fold over the edge of your bag and pin the edge along outside of the bag.

Using strong thread, hand sew this edge to the straw bag, going all the way through the bag.  Straw is pretty soft and I did not have any problems getting the needle through it.  

I joined my seam at one of the corners.  I left a 1/2" seam allowance and I hand sewed the seam making small close together stitches.

After you have the banding stitched to the front of the bag, wrap the remainder to the inside of the bag and pin about every 4".

Hand stitch this inside edge making your stitches about every 3/8".

This is what the edge looked like when I was finished putting the banding on.

I decided to add shells to the top edge like a fringe.  The shells I used were off a shell necklace I picked up at a thrift store.  I took the necklace apart and used the shells for this project.  The nice part was the shells were already pre-drilled with holes.

I used a heavy clear fishing line, you definitely don't want to use a cotton thread for this because the shells will wear away at the thread and it will break.  I placed the shells about every 1/2".

Easy huh?!

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Sand Dollar Pillow

I love shells!  If you don't know this about me yet, I love summer days spent at the beach!  And I love surrounding myself all year long with things that remind me of those summer days.
I for one have never been lucky when it comes to finding unbroken shells at the beach, so I purchased the ones I used on this pillow.

Isn't it cute!

Follow along as I make this summer inspired pillow.

What you'll need:
1 yd of burlap, linen or whatever fabric you desire
1/8 yd of off white fabric
4 sand dollars
zipper
thread
pillow fill

My pillows finished size is 19x12

Since the weave of my burlap is loosely woven and I did not want my pillow fill to show through, I double layered my burlap on the front.
Cut 2 @ 20"x13"
Cut 1 @ 21"x14" (I always cut my back piece 1" bigger)
Use scrap to cut 2 zipper stops. 3 1/2"x 1 1/8"
Off White Fabric
Cut 2 @ 13"x3"

Since burlap tends to frey a lot, I serged all around my pillow pieces.  I serged my 2 front layers together.

My banding on this pillow is 1 1/2" wide, but I cut my pieces 3" wide so that when I pressed under the long edges it would not leave shading behind it.
Press one long edge of the banding approx 3/4".

Now press the other long edge over to join that edge.

Turn the banding over and make sure it looks straight and uniform.

Measure and pin the banding about 5" in from the sides.  I think if I was doing this pillow over again I would have put the banding a little farther over.

Pin it well, cause it might slip around a little when you go to stitch it.

Top stitch close to both long edges.

I hand tacked the sand dollars on after the pillow was completely constructed.
You can find the instruction for finishing the construction of the pillow here: http://sew-passionate.blogspot.com/2011/12/how-to-sew-basic-pillow.html

After you have finished your pillow, place the sand dollars where you want them.  I used some painters tape to hold them in place until I could hand stitch them.

I hand stitched them through the 2 holes at 11 and 1 o clock.
Stuff your pillow and you are done!

It's feeling a little like summer at my house already. Pin It

"Dreaming of the beach in December" Holiday Decor

Since I don't have a mantle, my little red hutch usually acts as my mantle for decorating purposes.  This is my "Dreaming of the Beach in December" themed holiday decor.
I hung garland across the top and down both sides, then I ran a whole strand of white lights behind the garland up top for a little back lighting.   Three large bells I bought at the Dollar Tree hang down from the center top, and various glassware were used as the base for my decorating.

Everything I used I either already had or picked up at thrift stores recently.  My little red hutch came from a garage sale about 8 years ago for a whopping $20.  It was a steal!!  I've had so many designer friends offer to take it off my hands if I'm ever ready to part with it.

Here in Fallbrook, Ca we are known mostly for our Avocados, but we also grow other things such as Macadamia nuts.  I thought they looked kind of neat in this water pitcher with a few shells thrown in.

Some raffia and a shell I had in my collection, just looped over the top of this soup tureen.

These wood pedestal bowls were a find at an Estate sale a few months back....I got em for $1 each.  They were hand crafted by the guys grandfather who had recently passed away.  There was a whole room full, I couldn't believe the expert craftsmanship that were involved in the making of these.  I absolutely love them and so I stacked 2 on top of each other and arranged some Christmas bulbs, shells and some of my pearls.  I thought it looked unique and different.

This glass vase was a thrift store find for a $1.  Sand, red bulbs, a candle and another larger star fish gave it the holiday beachy feel I was wanting.

A few fish shaped platters leaned up against the back of the shelves for an added touch.

I added a few more shells tied with raffia, some red bulbs and some silver snowflakes.

So this is the final look.  I like the feel of it and I enjoyed decorating it.  Hope you like it! Pin It