Hamentashen for Purim

This year I tried a new hamentashen recipe along with the old standby. Chocolate Brownie Hamentashen with peanut butter filling (recipe here). I also used nutella for some, and cookie butter, (also called Biscoff or Speculoos spread) for some. Pretty delicious.

I tried to get Jenna interested in these, but she only wanted the traditional style, with nutella filling. I did make traditional (cookie dough) hamentashen with several other fillings: fig butter (and they tasted like fig newtons-delicious!), cherry jam, and cookie butter. My favorite flavor is poppyseed, but I did not make any this year, since I am the only one in the family who likes them. I don't need a batch of my favorite hamentashen calling my name every day between now and Passover.

Next, I will try my hand at some baked doughnuts, just for fun.

A Leather Bag Handmade by Me

I can't believe I did it! There were almost tears, and it was harder than I expected. The pattern is the Town Bag from WEEKEND SEWING by Heather Ross. I got the leather scraps at the FIDM Scholarship Store (in downtown LA), and the total cost for the leather pieces was $20. The main body of the bag is made from a piece of baby blue leather that is a little too thick for this project, but I did not know it until I was already in the middle of construction! The strap and side pieces are made from a much thinner piece of brown leather. The lining is cotton that I actually purchased in Tel Aviv a few years ago.  I added a magnetic snap inside the top of the bag.

      I will use a light weight piece of leather for the main body next time. The hardest part was sewing on the side pieces (brown strips) over the thick side seam of the blue leather. Here is the finished product:

Jenna liked it so much that it is now hers! I plan to look for a light weight piece of leather soon to make another one. This was a challenging project, but I will try it again.

More PJ pants for Jenna....

.....from my own hand-drafted pattern. She likes them! I made these about two weeks ago. They could be a bit slimmer/smaller next time; I will have to adjust the pattern a bit more. Overall, though, pretty cute!