I made this shopping bag-size tote several years ago for the Warren County (Lebanon, Ohio) Fair.  It won a blue ribbon and I enjoyed doing the harness horse design.  I used a coloring book sketch transferred to white fabric, then embroidered the design with black floss.   I used crayons to color the picture and heat set it by placing a piece of white paper over the coloring and pressing it with a hot iron.

I used the same patchwork blocks to make the back of the bag, machine quilted it with low loft batting and made a lining and handle.

I found the large size of the bag to be extremely useful.  My oldest daughter recently mentioned that she would like to have one the same size and I started looking through my orphan blocks and scraps to see what I could put together.

The center block is a Morning Star block  I posted last year and the center with vintage-type fabric was appropriate for my daughter because she is interested and talented in any type of hand sewing.  I looked for scraps with shades of yellow and blue and cut 2-1/2 inch blocks to accentuate the focus block.

On the back, I put together 2-1/2 inch blocks with 2-1/2 inch strips to continue the color theme.  The front and back were machine quilted using low loft batting.  The sides  were left unquilted to cut down on bulk.  I made another bag of plain fabric for a lining and made the handle extra-long so my daughter can swing the bag over her shoulder if she wants.

The bag is large – 22 inches wide x 25 inches long and should accommodate a lot of stuff when my daughter comes for her weekend visits.

I make small quilted items for my daughter, Shannon, to add to her donations to two of our favorite cat charities in the Cincinnati area, The Scratching Post and O’Bryonville Animal Rescue.  

The quilt is a small snuggle quilt for a child and is made in the quilt-as-you-go method from the Kaye Wood book, 6 Hour Quilt.  It is a simple method that joins strips, batting and backing at the same time and the quilt is reversible. 

I enjoy making small projects for various animal charities in our area.  My daughter, Shannon, is a great supporter of these groups and makes beautiful cross-stich pieces to donate.  I pass all my projects on to her to distribute among the groups as she sees fit.  I found some great Funky Cat fabric at Fabric Shack in Waynesville, Ohio and used it to make three wall hangings and a tote bag for the benefit of the cats.   These items are offered for sale at various functions with the money going to the cat groups.

Two of our favorite cat rescue groups in the Cincinnati area are The Scratching Post and O’Bryonville Animal Rescue.