Chihuahua fever

My best friend lives far away, in Quebec to be precise. That means I don't get to see her as often as I would like to. But she's still my favourite friend and when it's her birthday, I want to make it a little bit special, in my own way.

This year I came across the Chi-Chi Fever pattern from Sublime Stitching whilst browsing in a shop and I instantly knew what I would be making for my girl. Did I mention she owns a chihuahua?




I decided to make a bag based on an Amy Butler pattern and embroider the chihuahuas on the main panels. I picked this pattern because it's a good size bag and because Amy Butler patterns are really easy to read.

Embroidering is still very new to me so I was taking a bit of a risk but it turned out all right. I didn't do any really fancy stitches just a simple split stitch along the main lines, a satin stitch on those areas I wanted to fill and then I made an attempt at French knots for the beads of the necklace.





It would have been better if I'd split the stranded cotton so the lines wouldn't look so thick. I also suspect that it would have made the detail work somewhat easier. But I didn't know at the time that you actually could/were supposed to split your thread. Practice and learn, I guess!

I really like the Amy Buttler pattern though. As expected, the instructions were clear and really easy to follow. If you use the fabrics and interfacing that she recommends, it makes for a very sturdy bag with a very professional finish.

All I needed to add was a little personal touch that would put my trademark on it and make it a wee bit more unique for the recipient.

It took longer than I thought to arrive to destination, in fact, I was starting to wonder whether it had gone lost in transit, but it's now safely in the hands of my friend and she loved it. Her husband actually thought I'd had it made! Now how flattering is that?!