HEY JUDE!

My friend, Judy, is retiring from her job as the college dorm mom, a job she is very good at.  She has been there for 19 years, one year longer than I worked at the college in the Registrar's Office.  She is planning to head for western South Dakota, where a daughter and son-in-law live.  Judy loves the Black Hills area.  She also loves buffalo!  Last weekend when I was on my four quilt shop trip, I spied some fabric that just shouted her name.  It was calling Judy!, Judy!, loud and clear, so how could I resist it?  I stood there wondering what I could do with a couple of yards of that buffalo fabric and came up with the idea of some kind of tote bag. 

Of course I couldn't hog the whole project.  My Big Brother wanted to help out, too.  So I had him do this stippling on the flap of the pocket.  This is a built in stitch, but it's only about 1/2 an inch wide, so he had to go back many times to completely cover the fabric.  Didn't my Big Brother do a good job?

I love buttons, and when I spied this big one, I had to have it for this project!

The flap of the pocket looks like it's wrinkled doesn't it?  It's not.  It is the coloring of the fabric, and it just shows up more now that it's stippled with dark thread.

And this is what the finished project looks like.  It's a large tote, suitable as a Farmer's Market bag, or a shopping bag.  It could also be used as a laptop tote.  There are pockets on both sides of the inside, so you could just stow your keys and wallet in there and be good to go for an afternoon at a flea market, too.  I hope she likes it.  We are meeting her in about half an hour for an early supper, and I'm bringing it to her then.

Now she is ready to move west to find a home where the buffalo roam!