Elephant bags

For being a busy holiday week, I’ve actually gotten a good amount of sewing done. Last weekend, I fell in love with the wipe holder bags that Beth created for Karen and Julie’s shower. I thought they would make a great clutch bag if the dimensions were just a bit smaller. I started working on that one after the 4th of July, but it was late when I started and I forgot to make it smaller. So, instead of a clutch, it’s turned into a smallish-sized messenger bag. Don’t you just love the elephant fabric!

I added a zipper pocket in the front for easy access to my phone. And like Beth, I used grommets on either side to attach the handles. Overall, I’m happy with how it turned out. But I think that the flap is a bit anemic looking. And, the Velcro closure is a bit too high on the flap.

I lined the inside of the flap with the pink version of the elephant fabric. It seemed like a great idea at first, but the Velcro kind of ruins the effect.


I was able to use my new labels too. I ordered these weeks ago from Name Maker and am pretty happy with them overall. The ones with my name on them are a bit larger than I would like. I thought the second line would me smaller than the first. It kind of feels like my label is shouting at people.


After making the elephant messenger bag, I thought that a couple of little clutch bags would be cute to go along with them. I’ve cut everything out and will hopefully get to sewing them together tonight.


We’re having wonderful weather this weekend. I took the kids to the pool yesterday, and we’ll probably head over there again today. After dinner yesterday, we took them to see Ratatouille. I had never heard of that dish before, and it looked pretty good (in pixels anyhow) on screen. I found this recipe on Epicurious and might give it a go.

ingredients
1 onion, sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 tablespoons olive oil
a 3/4-pound eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
1 small zucchini, scrubbed, quartered lengthwise, and cut into thin slices
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 pound small ripe tomatoes, chopped coarse (about 1 1/4 cups)
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1/8 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shredded fresh basil leaves

preparation
In a large skillet cook the onion and the garlic in 2 tablespoons of the oil over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil and heat it over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking. Add the eggplant and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, or until the eggplant is softened. Stir in the zucchini and the bell pepper and cook the mixture over the moderate heat, stirring occasionally, for 12 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook the mixture, stirring occassionaly, for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the oregano, the thyme, the coriander, the fennel seeds, the salt, and pepper to taste and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the basil and combine the mixture well. The ratatouille may be made 1 day in advance, kept covered and chilled, and reheated before serving.