Baseball Cuff Bracelets, Dog Bandanas, and Insulated Bottle Carrier

I can hardly believe eight months have passed since I last posted an entry on this blog! It wasn't my intention to take such a long break, but my SewAmazin shops have kept me busy sewing, sewing and sewing! I originally started choosing photos and drafting this post last summer (along with several others). I just haven't had the time or energy to come back and finish writing them. And to be honest, even this one post has taken me about two weeks to find the time to update, edit and publish.

One purpose for keeping this blog is so that I will have a virtual scrapbook of the things I make and how I make them. I actually do refer back to some of my older posts while working on similar projects, so it's been frustrating for me to allow so much time to pass. On a positive note, now I can combine several related projects into a single blog entry, like this Baseball themed post (although my memory is a little hazy now about some of the details). Hopefully I will catch up by the end of the summer...

Baseball Cuff Bracelets

Back in May of 2013, I stitched up a few samples of these baseball cuff bracelets using in-the-hoop embroidery designs from DigiStitches. They are made of white marine vinyl from my stash. I originally bought the vinyl remnant with the intention of making something Westie-shaped, but it's perfect for simulating the cover of a real baseball!

For the backing, I found a white terry type knit in my fabric collection and used it instead of a second piece of vinyl, to soften the side that goes against the skin. The embroidery design comes in 3 sizes. I made the smallest size (about 7 inches long) for my nephew with his name and little league jersey number (his younger brother got one too, with just his initials on each end). The embroidery is stitched with polyester embroidery thread; the baseball stitches are red and the name and number are royal blue. I added a red snap as a closure. As I recall, the boys both really liked their cuffs.

I made the largest size (8 inches long) for myself, stitched in Mets team colors. The baseball stitches and the snap closure are orange and I added #LGM in royal blue. If you're wondering what that means - it's a hashtag for Lets Go Mets!

Below are my samples for each size cuff bracelet. For the medium size (7.5 inches long), I stitched the sample with the name of our nieces' softball team. I wasn't happy with the density of the stitches for the letters, so I still have this one in my sample collection. I don't remember what fonts I used for the lettering, so if I ever get a chance to stitch more of these cuffs, I'll have to figure that out...

In addition to the cuff bracelets, I purchased DigiStitches Baseball Flowers In The Hoop; I had intended to make both and offer them for sale in my shop or at craft fairs, but I haven't had time to stitch them up.

All Star Baseball Over-the-Collar Dog Bandanas

Every year, the MLB All Star game falls on or around my birthday in July. In 2013, the game was hosted by the Mets at Citi Field!

In anticipation of the summer classic, in June I made these All Star Baseball Over-the-Collar Dog Bandanas, using complementary stars and baseball fabrics in patriotic red, white and blue. I couldn't decide whether I liked the baseballs or stars better for the front, so there are two versions of this bandana. They're available in several sizes - see all our Sports bandanas and ruffles at SewAmazin's Studio blog.

 

Keli models the Large size with the baseballs on navy blue as the front with white stars on red as the back and casing; Penny models the Medium size with the stars in front and baseballs as the back and casing. A year later, I still like both versions!

These 'no dip' over-the-collar bandanas are made using another in-the-hoop design from DigiStitches.

Baseball Monogram Insulated Bottle Carrier

Last fall, I received a request for a custom sized, baseball themed insulated bottle carrier, similar to one I made for Christmas 2010.

I embroidered the baseball shaped applique just like the 2010 version, and added the name on top, but the white nylon fabric puckered in the middle and shredded around the edges. It looked awful. Rather than stitch it again, I considered other options - and then I remembered how well the marine vinyl looked on the cuff bracelets.

At some point I also remembered I had purchased a Baseball Alpha font from Planet Applique which was perfectly sized for this project. Using software, I added the name Riley, stacked and slightly offset on top of the applique design ( the font is Puppy Love from 8 Claws and a Paw).

The vinyl stitched up great for the monogram letter! The only tricky part that I remember was trimming the section inside the curves of the 'R' without cutting the nylon base fabric. This carrier was sized to be slightly shorter than I usually make them; it had black strap and black plastic swivel snap hooks and d-rings.

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Now that this post is finally published, I'll be working on several others. Hopefully I'll be able to publish them once or twice a week...

edited:
Nov-16-2018 Replace SewAmazin Flickr photos, upload to Blogger (dog bandanas); edit old links
Nov-25-2018 Replace SewAmazin Flickr photo with Google photo (bottle carrier)
Dec-15-2018 Replace SewAmazin Flickr phtos with Google phots (baseball cuffs); edit Digistitches links