It started with Debbie, then Kirsty, then all manner of other inspired makers. I swore I would not be swayed from my belief that these babies would look nothing but awful on me.

You see I remember them from last time they were cool - they were so not cool on me, thank you very much 1980s. But Debbie kept chipping away at me and damn it if I didn't start to covet a pair of my very own.

Humble pie, anyone? Mmmmm, tastes yummy!

I just kept seeing more and more covetable versions popping up in blogland and in the coolest of RTW stores. So I thought...only one way to find out... and I headed out to my local Gorman to try some on. Well, I'll be damned... pick the right style and you might just be able to make it work for you! I took some sneaky measurements in the changeroom (don't you all do that?), hem width, leg length. A speedy side trip to Spotlight later and I was set.

But which pattern? Hello stash!

Behold Vintage Vogue 9661, at a guess dated from the 80's. This was part of a massive bag of vintage patterns I was gifted by an old work colleague. I don't need office or corporate wear, so I'd never looked twice at it. But looky there on the left. It might just work.

SEWN: FUROSHIKI MADNESS

Well they're not the traditional Furoshiki folded bag, but a rough approximation! These bags are also known as a Japanese triangle bags or origami bags.

I was originally inspired by the lovely Anna's post on her teacher presents this year. I loved the look of her bags and how well they can be completely individualised for the recipient. I had wanted to delve down the path of handcrafted gifts (at least for some) this Christmas and I knew I'd hit on the perfect project. Who doesn't love another beautiful and lovingly made bag?

I sent out a few emails with some vague, but enlightening questions, about favourite colours, prints or vibrancy and I was off. I used the very gorgeous Cloud9 100% certified organic cotton canvas fabrics for all but the flouro yellow chevron which was a buzoku duck from Spotties.

It really is a super easy and fast make. You just need a rectangle of fabric three times as long as it is wide, and a bit of fancy folding and stitches later, ta-da, there is your bag. I used BurdaStyle's Triangle bag tutorial because the particular way in which the material is folded and then stitched made way better sense to me, and seemed to suit the dimensions of my material. I was constrained by the width of my fabric and ended up cutting rectangles 43.5 inches x 14.5 inches.

Other, alternative methods can be found in this tutorial by //Between the lines// and this one at whipup.net.

I also decided to work that leather magic again with some handle wraps made from scrap pieces left over from one of hubby's many leather projects (see here and here).

I dyed the leather Whiskey brown  and found it hugely annoying perplexing that the final colour of each piece was so different. But in the end I love that each piece is completely unique.

SEWN: A VERY RAINBOW CHRISTMAS DRESS

Never work with children or small animals. I get it, I truly do.

This child never stands still or stops talking... she's talking above. Good lord, this was even after having to bribe her to model with the promise of a forbidden candy cane. Oh how the mighty fall when it comes to children. We truly aren't boss, you know. It's impossible.

Back to the dress. This is my fifth Xmas dress for the very lovely (if infuriating) Miss M. I'm liking it, and Miss M is ecstatic, but it's not the triumph of last year. Oh boy, how grown up she looks this year!

I was really pleased to use one of my vintage pattern finds for this dress, before she outgrew its one size!

Vintage Butterick 4983, View C. Isn't that illustration adorable?? It totally sucked me in... those pigtails, those bows, that cute floral. So much cuteness.