Mason Jar Sewing Kit

I just got the new book Martha Stewart’s Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts and have been itching to make something from it.  The book is huge and has a lot of different ideas, some with a lot of sewing and some without any.  There are a number of the ideas that are recycled from the magazine, but I actually like having them all compiled in one place.  It also includes a CD with templates for all the patterns and designs which is really great.  I haven’t read it in depth, but the only downside to the book is that the instructions are not super specific on the projects.  If you’ve read the magazine, the instructions are more like the “Good Things” section – about a paragraph or two at best.  Not necessarily bad, but it does involve a bit more brain work than some other patterns do.    I really love the wide variety of ideas though and the pictures are great.  I’m inspired!

So, on to my first project – the Sewing Kit In a Jar.  Very simple and super cute.  Also a great idea for me, because I end up carrying my hand sewing or embroidery all around the house (following the children) and its nice to have something small to take along with everything I need.

If you do this quick project, I do have a couple of caveats that Martha forgot to mention.  When I glued the whole lid piece together, I thought “hey, I’ll just screw it onto the jar to dry and it’ll hold everything nice and tight.”  It held it so tight that it glued the lid to the jar.  Oops.  Second, when I did manage to unscrew it, the smell of the glue in the glass jar was so overpowering, I undoubtedly lost some brain cells.  So if you do this, glue the top and just let it dry before you attach it to the jar :)