Recently I've taken to listening to the Crafty Planner podcast by Sandy Hazlewood during my sewing sessions. As I've been devouring both new and past episodes, I've noticed a theme during Sandy's interviews with various sew-lebrites: the idea of being an "artist."

In episode 35 with Mandy Lein, Mandy tenuously calls herself an artist, as if she is unsure if she's earned the title. While I have nothing but respect for Mandy and I would never challenge the way someone chooses to identify themselves, I was struck by my aversion to identify myself as an artist.

This isn't a new revelation for me. I've never felt quite right calling myself an artist. Even as an art major in college, I felt that the title was still missing the mark. Hearing people talk about being artists within the quilting industry stirred up my bottled up university art department experiences. I think that some people call themselves "artists" in order to elevate their work. A person who makes quilts might introduce themselves as an artist rather than a quilter because they feel that the former title has more distinction. The problem I have with this rationale is that it implies that being a quilter is not good enough. 

It's no secret that pursuits like quilting, knitting, scrap booking, etc. are deemed "crafts" or "hobbies," while the mediums that have historically been dominated by men (painting, photography, sculpture, etc.) are the ones we call "art." On the Crafty Planner podcast, Lizzy House (episode 35) even comments that when a woman makes a quilt, it's a quilt. When a man makes a quilt, it's art.

This is where my college art major angst kicks in. Most of my professors and peers were firmly in the fine art scene, with many being conceptual artists. As a representational artist, I frequently found myself at odds with others. I was unintentionally trained to bullshit a conceptual thesis to bolster my illustrations, for without one my work was deemed to be shallow, empty, or vapid. In their minds, a piece is good when it sparks a 30 minute discussion or debate. To me, art should leave you speechless. I feel that when ideas are more important than aesthetics, it should be called "visual philosophy" or something like that because the medium is nothing but an incidental vehicle to express the thought. One of my professors began referring to my work as "illustration," (a term I have zero issue with) like it was a dirty word. In college, some dismissed my work as illustration, and now some dismiss my quilts as "craft."

During my senior year of college, I vowed not to let illustration be a dirty word. I began introducing myself as an illustrator. These days, I wear a lot of hats. Quilter, pattern designer, fabric designer, blogger, etc. At the core of it all, I am a maker. There is no definitive answer for what makes something craft or art, but either way, they both involve the act of making. Making things is what brings me joy, and the word "artist" always makes me think of judgement and elitism. I am not an artist.

One Hour Top with Hit Parade Knits

I've been a long time sufferer of knit-phobia. I had a brief encounter with knit fabric in college, trying to make a tshirt for one of my BJDs. It kept getting sucked into my machine and stretching. I honestly had no clue what I was doing, but it instilled a sense of fear in me.

At Quilt Market, Julia wore a dress she made out of Lizzy House's Hit Parade Knits from Andover. It looked so comfy and cute, I was pretty jealous. After scoping at the knits at every major booth, Julia declared the Andover knits are her preference. They stretch two ways, and don't distort the colors' appearance when stretched. They're also very soft and an ideal weight for garments. 

I decided it was time to face my knit-phobia. Giuseppe sent me the cream kitty print and I selected an easy beginner project: the One Hour Top from Fancy Tiger Crafts. I don't have a serger so I spent some time researching how to tackle the task of sewing with knits. The main points I gathered were:

• Prewash your fabric (always a good tip)
• Take care not to stretch the fabric when transferring the pattern
• Use a ballpoint needle
• Use a stretch stitch, AKA, the lightning bolt
• Use polyester thread (cotton doesn't stretch and will break)
• Use a walking foot
• Lower the pressed foot pressure to the lowest setting 
• Don't stretch the fabric when sewing

After adding 2" to the hemline (I need something I traced my pattern onto the fabric with a water soluble marker and cut it out with my rotary cutter. This process took way longer than usual because I had to be careful not to stretch the fabric. Luckily the One Hour Top only has two pattern pieces.

I used a stretch stitch for all my seams and it worked wonderfully. I was pretty shocked that it worked so well right out of the gate.

The only issue I had was with the twin needle. I've never used a twin needle before. The pattern says to use a twin needle to hem the neckline, sleeves, and bottom hemline. I followed my machine's instructions to set up the twin needle tested on a scrap piece of knit. Based on the illustration in the pattern, it looked like they were doing a straight stitch, so that's what I selected. Well, it offered ZERO stretch. It didn't seem practical to have the neckline and sleeves not allow for any stretch, so I switched back to the stretch stitch to hem everything. I mentioned this to Lizzy House during our Meadow Quilt workshop and she informed me that there's actually a twin needle specifically for knits. Who knew?

The finished top is precious! I love loose 3/4 length tops, so this is right up my alley. I can't wait to sew more with knits.

Teacup Crossbody Pattern

My process for designing bag patterns is usually straight forward. I sketch my ideas, determine measurements, generate some pattern pieces, and sew my bag. Having a clear vision from the outset means any revisions to the design are relatively minor. The Teacup Crossbody through a wrench in my formula.



The Teacup Crossbody began as the Teacup Tote back in July. I was looking for a way to introduce some new materials to my customers, which in this case, were rivets and Kraft-Tex. I made my petite tote with a small snap closure and single handle for carrying over the shoulder. I loved the look of the result, but after using the bag for a couple days, I became disillusioned. It didn't feel practical to me. I set the design aside to let the core design simmer in my head.

When I returned to it two months later, I decided the design needed an overhaul. I retained the same design for the body of the bag, but changed the style from a tote to a crossbody bag. I added a contrasting flap with a magnetic snap tab and a gusseted pocket, a technique I introduced in my Collegiate Tote.

The Teacup Crossbody passed my usability test and exceeded my expectations. It's now my current everyday bag for running errands. I love the front gusseted pocket for quick, easy access to my cell phone or car keys. The bag has a mid-size body which easily holds the essentials plus a small drink, my iPad mini, and a light sweater.

I had a wonderful pool of pattern testers this time around who made beautiful samples of the Teacup Crossbody.


@marci_girl made this breathtaking bag with pleather accents and fabric from April Rhodes. My pattern only calls for interfacing the exterior pocket pieces, but Marci suggests interfacing the lining pocket pieces as well since Art Gallery Fabrics are rather lightweight compared to most quilting cottons.

@amythystgecko's happy green bag uses some of my favorite prints (Lizzy House's Natural History and Pearl Bracelets along with Carolyn Friedlander's Botanics). 

@jennycoplin's plaid bag is perfect for winter. Her fabric choices are so spot on, and that red flap warms my heart.

@leahrene made combined a busy Alison Glass print with a cool solid for just the right amount of energy.  

@monpetitebiscuit's bold floral combination of Anna Maria Horner and Tula Pink is a striking one. I love the magenta accents!

@mycraftycrap blew my mind with her skillful fussy cutting. Look how the snap tab lines up perfectly with the moose on the flap!

@skynme2 also used pleather accents for her Teacup Crossbody. It really elevates any fabric choice!

The Teacup Crossbody is now available for sale in my Craftsy pattern shop!