Mini Tudor Rose

It's been too long since I've posted!  Truth be told, I've been looking for a job (besides wifing and momming and blogging) pretty diligently since the beginning of the year.  I am pretty picky about when and where I work, so it has been a tedious and time-consuming process.  I managed to get a position in the school system as a paraeducator substitute which I'm fairly pleased with.  I'm hoping for a permanent para position in the future.  I'm on call starting this week, and I'm so excited to try something in the "outside world".

I've haven't been sewing much, but I did find the time to create this little girl's handbag.  I got a special request for mother daughter matching Tudor rose purses and couldn't pass it up.  The mother's version is going to be a bit more chic with a zebra print paired with the red velvet.

If you're interested, I have several posts about this Tudor rose pattern which you can find under the tag "tudor rose" in the side bar.  Or you can go directly to my tutorial HERE.

I deviated from the original design by omitting the inner leaves and adding some heart-shaped quilting to the inner petals.  The center is created with canadian smocking.  I've finally used that particular method of smocking enough that I don't have to refer to the instructions any longer!

I made the flower and the front and back of the bag first.  Next, I stitched the flower to the front.  Then, I stitched together the front and back panel, right sides together.  Last, I finished the seams with bias tape.

The back and lining are just plain jane simple, but with all the fuss and muss of the rose, I didn't want to overly tax myself!

What have you been sewing lately?

Happy crafting and big hugs from Montana,

Before you click away, I'd like to invite you to join in my current sewing/craft challenge.