Saturday, October 2, 2010

Chapstick lanyard

When I was trying to come up with a simple gift to send to a niece for her birthday, this chapstick lanyard came to mind. I saw the idea for it in Lexie Barnes' book called Sew What! Bags. There were no directions, just an inspiring photo to make one of these...so, I decided to give it a try. This is how it turned out:

The measurement of the chapstick holder is 2-1/2" by 1-1/2." It gives a little wiggle room for the chapstick (or any other small item you want to carry). The lanyard strap measured 32-1/2" long before I stitched it inside the holder. It came out to be about 1/2" wide, too. The top can be knotted if it is too long for her, but I purposely made it a bit shorter than normal-sized lanyards because kids just don't need such a long one.;)

I bought a fruity lip balm and placed it (along with some cash) inside before mailing it off to her.

This book has lots of ideas and instructions for many kinds of bags. I want to try a few out in there because not only are they cute but practical, too. Love them!

I have found quite a few sewing books at my library lately. It's a great (and free) way to find awesome ideas to make gifts for the ones you love.

What sewing books have you found to be fun and inspiring? I'd love to hear about them.

Happy Sewing!;)

3 comments:

Heather said...

Oh that is super cute. My daughter would love that. I will have to check that book out ~love Heather

Sheila said...

I enjoyed One Yard Wonders. I made a picnic gift for a friend using the pattern for placemats with pockets for cutlery and a napkin. I added napkins that I made and a bag from a pattern I bought when JoAnn's or Hobby Lobby had patterns for $1. I included 4 plates ($1 at Wal-Mart) and some inexpensive cutlery. I had to buy the plates, cutlery, and zipper, but I had the fabric on-hand from when Wal-Mart closed their fabric department here (really cheap). I thought it was a neat gift. I think she thought so, too.

How are you coming with your serger?

Theo-Ann said...

Thanks for sharing, ladies. Shiela--I have not touched my serger in a long time...I really need to get back into it!