Category Archives: Pattern Reviews

Lindsay’s (not-for-knitting) Bag

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Remember when I made my roommate Katie this whimsical knitting bag for Christmas?

On the Sew Lindsay Sew blog: Amanda's knitting bag pattern review

I recently decided I wanted a bag of my own! I was keeping skeins of yarn in one of my favorite reusable grocery store “green bags,” and to be honest, I just wanted the bag back in my collection for grocery purposes.

The only thing is — I don’t knit. So this is really more of a crochet bag, because I crochet. But the pattern is technically called Amanda’s Knitting Bag by the Sometimes Crafter, so it feels blasphemous to call it a “Crochet Bag.” So I affectionately call this Lindsay’s (not-for-knitting) Bag. 🙂

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Hooked on my nook!

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      Remember when I said I was going to recycle

the Hot Seat

      into the draft of a new project?

Ta-da! Introducing… a cover for my nook! (My Barnes & Noble e-reader) …

Nook e-reader cover draft

I searched for a nook cover pattern awhile ago, but there wasn’t much out there since e-readers are still fairly new to the world. I recently stumbled across this amazing pattern on etsy.com that included patterns for the nook, nookCOLOR, Kindle 2, Kindle 3, iPad and KOBO, all in one PDF file!

E-reader Nook Kindle iPad Cover Pattern

Click here to visit the etsy shop, BirdfulStitches, where I bought this pattern!

I printed the pattern at home and decided to use scrap fabric – the fabric from my old “Hot Seat” – for a first draft to make sure I knew what I was doing before invested in new fabrics. The pattern was easy to follow with lots of helpful photos, and I couldn’t believe how quickly I finished the project! The cover is sized perfectly for my nook.

Only one boo-boo took place during the first draft – once I finished, I realized I had some leftover fabric pieces, and my nook cover didn’t have any extra pockets on the inside. I read the pattern ten times over and realized the reminder to sew the pockets inside must have slipped through the cracks, because it was never mentioned. I sent an e-mail to the person who created the pattern, who thanked me for my input and said they’d update the pattern. Yay!

With my first “draft” safely behind me, I excitedly allowed myself to buy new fabric for the cover I actually planned to use.

E-reader nook cover

I even got adventurous and strayed from the pattern, using a magnetic snap instead of the recommended button. My first magnetic snap!

E-reader nook cover magnetic snap

I was so excited to take my freshly covered nook to my book club last week… with the second set of pockets and all!

E-reader nook cover

E-reader nook cover with pockets

It’s projects like this one that make me truly appreciate the power of the internet. With e-readers being such a new product, it’s unlikely that I’d be able to find an “official” pattern like this anytime soon… so I’m thankful that I can tap into the talents of others via the world wide web!