YOYO MA...ma

It would seem that I am bag obsessed these days. I had not planned another bag project so soon, it just sorta happened. I bought this cute little straw bag for Baby Doll. She LOVES to carry Groovy Girl's purses around, so I thought this would be an instant fave. But when I got home I realized the flower was not as sturdy as I thought and then I caught site of the tag that read, "PRODUCT NOT INTENDED FOR CHILDREN UNDER 8 YEARS OF AGE." 8?!? That's a new one on me! Since Baby Doll isn't even 2 yet, I decided to do the only wise thing... rip the flower off and decorate it myself, with YOYOs!!!! And I just HAPPEN to have a cool gadget! What were the odds? Pretty good with me, I guess, but let's not judge.

I've had this doodad for a while now. I have thought about using it on purses, blouses, t-shirts...that about covers it. I hadn't actually tried it yet though and when I read the instructions I was confused (and that was after I finally found the English version). It seemed simple enough after you got going but the first couple of stitches made no sense to me. So I did it my way (feel free to sing) and I have no regrets.

The finished diameter of these yoyos is 1 inch. I had some really pretty charm squares I bought in a pack a while back. From each square I was able to get 2 yoyos (I only needed 10 total). The yoyo maker has two parts. One is shaped like a ring and has three tiny knobs sticking off the outside edge. The other is solid and has three lines marking it. Taking care to align the knobs and lines on the yoyo maker pieces, sandwich your fabric between the two, right side facing the ring side. Pop the solid piece into place. It is important to match the knobs and lines so the holes you will be sewing through will line up properly.

Trim 1/8 to 3/8 inch away from the edge. This will be your seam allowance. Caution: The next couple photos contain graphic material of a stomach turning nature - a vivid illustration of dry hands and unmanicured nails. Just be thankful I didn't have to use my toes! Really.

This is where I found the instructions confusing. But then with four kids, I am easily confused. Let's face it, my mind is mush. But I digress. This may or may not be the "right" way, but it worked for me! I knotted my thread using a quilter's knot (an easy way to make a bulky knot which won't pull through the fabric). I picked one of the lines on the solid yoyo maker part as my starting place. From the solid side I felt for and inserted my needle into the first hole to the right of the knob and through both parts of the maker. From now on you will be holding the maker with the ring side facing you.

Proceed counter clockwise and insert needle into the next hole to the left being careful to hold the seam allowance down from the back so your stitch will catch the fabric. Keep holding that fabric down on the back and stitching around the entire perimeter. Your stitches should disappear as you pull them taut. If there are loops between the scallops on the ring side of the maker you will be unable to remove the fabric.

And here is the reason I suggest starting at one of the knobs - it makes it easier to know when to stop. As I stitch, I keep track of the knobs like mile markers and when I get back to my starting point I take one more stitch which will overlap with my first stitch. DO NOT TIE A KNOT!!!

Pop the yoyo maker pieces apart and gently pull the fabric off of the solid piece. DO NOT TIE A KNOT!!!

Pull the thread gently to gather the yoyo, encouraging it to form a circle. The seam allowance will roll inside. You may need to fiddle a little to get the folds even. NOW, you can make a knot! I run the needle back through a couple folds and into a crease, then clip the thread close to hide the knot.

PURRRRDY!!! I made 10 of these babies and then whipstiched (3 stitches per adjoining edge) them together. Here they are stitched on the bag.

Hold it up for me Baby Doll!

Thanks... Let me borrow it a second...

AHHHH!!! Sweet and not nearly the choking hazard... but I'm NEVER going to show the before photo to Groovy Girl, because she is nothing if not brutally honest, and this version does not have NEARLY enough bling to satisfy her!

UPDATE: Baby Doll must actually LIKE her new purse. I told her we were going bye-bye earlier and she ran to get her purse and stand by the door. Oh, I'm SO working on her dress first!!!