Monkeys for a friend...

Ok, I know I promised you even more "scores" today, but I finished this special little bag last night. My good friend Amy commissioned this bag...I excitedly agreed to make it for her in exchange for her purchasing all the fabric, and then me keeping all the left over fabric (because I have yet to make myself a sock monkey purse...I know, hard to believe but true!)

So, I bought the material here...Part of the Funky Monkey line...The sock monkey portraits for the outside of the bag, with the polka-dot fabric on the top of the straps (because she really liked the one I made for Rozzie) with a green banana print for the lining...And 2 inside pockets (polka-dot and portrait fabrics)...
...And is that a hand painted red banana print button you see?

Why yes, it certainly is! That was me you saw in the shop today with a tiny paint brush painting my heart out. It was really fun, as I've never painted a button before. I picked up a rather large wooden button at Wal-Mart, and it worked perfect for this purpose!


I delivered the bag this evening after work (was this the longest day in the world or what? I swear, it went really slow here in Prescott! Just the kind of day that rambled and meandered along with no real end in sight) and, I made this little card just for Amy...

Amy nicely took me out to dinner for a little treat and thank you. I thought the good conversation, plus the fresh chocolate macaroons she'd just baked (have I mentioned that her special talent is cooking?), and just being able to give her something I made that I knew she would love was enough...But really, if you want to feed me Mexican food as well, who am I to disagree?

So, tomorrow, I will post more thrifty goodness...Right now, I am eagerly awaiting Project Runway (no repeat tonight) and trying to breathe. The forest service is doing some sort of prescribed burning, and it's so smoky here, it's like living in a fireplace. I could barely see any of the mountains this morning when I woke up...And the smoke is making me a little snurflie!