Rose Bag and Reindeer Buddy II

When you use these cross-body sling bags that I make,  surprise... they wear out eventually.   No problem.. just means I get to make more.   I had stitched this beautiful red rose from Passione Ricamo with the intention of piecing it with other fabrics and making something completely different.  But it sat for way too long waiting for a finish, so I just whipped up a romantic little bag with it.   I added a bit of crocheted lace, the first two rows of the  Celestial Edging pattern.  Then I threaded a piece of hand-dyed silk ribbon through it from a grab bag of ribbons I once bought from Vikki at HDF.  The cord is purchased.  The piece is lined with no raw edges showing inside.  I took the photos before I added a snap closure.  I have a wedding to go to later in the summer, so I think this will be perfect to use then.

The pattern is called 'A Rose For You' and you  can download it  here.
There are lots of other beautiful freebies on the page as well.

The Aliolka reindeer were just to cute to stitch only one.  Here's a companion ornament to the one I made earlier.    Another fork bow, this one with 2 loops and a bit larger.  I made it on a wide-toothed comb that I use to get the tangles out of my hair.  You can find the pattern here.   The trim on this one is actually a round spiral braid made exactly like a gimp lanyard.  This was a little thicker than my last one, but I still think I could have added another 6-strand length of floss to each of the 4 lengths used for braiding. 

 

Just for fun I tried a little sample of 3-strand braiding and the 4-strand round braid using 4 lengths of floss.  The 4-strand one on the bottom in the photo below is the same as the braid on the ornament, but by placing the lengths in a different order, you get a spiral effect instead of a diamond effect.

If you want to try it, here's an explanation:  Four-strand spiral braid tute 

I think I like that thickness and I'll try it out next time.  Uses a lot of floss, but floss is the cheapest supply. 

Edited July 11, 2013:  Here's a link to a You Tube video that demonstrates the four-strand braiding technique very clearly:      Four-strand spiral braid video