I made a completely impromptu project today. I've had a few smaller projects in mind that I want to make for a while, and I decided that today was the day for a tea wallet. My cousin's wife made herself one recently and posted it, and I thought it was a great idea! It's (finally!) getting cooler here and I've been drinking a lot of tea recently. I'm going out of town this weekend and I have another long weekend away in November. I thought it would be nice to be able to easily and prettily carry a few tea bags.
I started with Youtube and searched "tea bag wallet." There were a bunch of hits. I watched a few and ended up combining two. I liked this one the best in terms of functionality and construction, but I liked the esthetics of this one slightly better. I wanted mine to be a little taller than the original tutorial, so I cut my main and lining pieces 7 1/2" high by 8" wide. I used the same measurement in the video for the pockets, 5" high by 8" wide.
The main thing I liked better about the second video is the closure tab with a snap instead of a ribbon. I have an old Snap Setter tool that I dug out for the snap--I believe these are discontinued, but I still have some snap pieces. Unfortunately, when I laid it all out to sew, I put the tab on the wrong side, so it closes backwards. The snap is supposed to show on the front. I do wish I had done it correctly, but I will try not to let it impede my enjoyment of the tea wallet.
The fabric from the outside is an older Lewis & Irene print from their Make a Wish collection. The interior blue fabric is Ditsy Poppies from the Forest Friends line by The Good Twin for Cloud 9 fabrics. The lining fabric is Dapple Dot from Riley Blake; I'm not sure which color. The two interior fabrics are leftover from a baby shower gift I made for my cousin's wife's, which I have not posted yet.
Sometimes it's nice to stitch up a project in an evening! Even with the closure being backwards, I'm happy with the tea wallet and I will travel with it this weekend.
I have a shorter tea wallet that I use for when I travel, and I really like the modifications you made for yours. Safe travels and enjoy the cooler weather and tea!
ReplyDeleteI've seen those wallets on social media. Yours turned out nicely! They would make nice gifts!
ReplyDeleteTea wallets are wonderful things for trips. I found one at a craft show many years ago and it was so nice to have when I was traveling a lot for business. I like your choice of teas too. Constant Comment resides in my tea wallet too.
ReplyDeleteAdorable! Mine would have Chai or English Breakfast if I was in dire straits :-D Thinking of you and sending hugs.
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