Teaching Toteable Cork

For the 2020 Sewing & Stitchery Expo, I was asked to teach a cork project as one of my classes. Totes are always fun and useful, so I called my wonderful friends at Oliveusgirls LLC and talented Debbie designed a tote for me. Talented friends are a very good thing!

Debbie named her design the Tote-a-Long because its the perfect carry-all to take with you everywhere. She went way beyond what I expected and I am so in LOVE with her design. And, so were the sewists registering for Sewing Expo classes. The hands-on class sold out in less than half an hour and a long waiting list quickly developed.

It’s quilted on the bottom and handle, cork on the top, lined with LOTS of pockets and just fabulous all over! And, Debbie added two more designs to the pattern, so there’s two tote sizes and a cork zip bag.

We all followed the great pattern directions and I had a tutorial with images of the assembly steps up on a screen in the room. In 2-1/2 hours everyone in class got pretty close to finishing their tote and we had a huge amount of fun.

True Confession: I haven’t taught a hands-on sewing machine class to adults for a long time. During the summer, I teach kids, 10 at a time (!!!), in a five day hands-on camp, but it’s been a while since I’ve had adults and I wanted the class to be great for them. It went really well and it turns out teaching adults is just as much, if not more, fun than teaching kids! Here’s the key – I had the absolutely most wonderful students EVER. There were machine issues and a few logistical difficulties and they just kept sewing and smiling. Seriously, I wanted to bring them all home, give them chocolate and keep them forever, but I didn’t have room.

There might be a chance to do a tutorial or sew a long with Oliveusgirls sometime soon. Email me if you’re interested and I’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, hop over to their web site and take a look at the Tote-a-Long pattern. And, while you’re there, cruise around the site and see what else is there. In addition to the lovely for-sale patterns, the Olive Girls do a free pattern each month that’s announced through their email. Be sure to sign up for that while you’re visiting.

See you soon! Keep Sewing, Stay in Isewlation and Keep Smiling!

Moment of Further Truth:
My blog includes affiliate links and I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase using one of those links. Thank you if you do – it helps to keep The Sewful Life stitching along and I sincerely appreciate your support. The Tote-a-Long pattern was provided to me by Oliveusgirls LLC. All opinions are solely and truly mine and I only gush about things I love!