Balance Checkbook Cover for Amy Butler Style Stitches Sew-Along

Hello all,

I had been looking forward to making my checkbook cover and I couldn't help but use the MoMo fabric which I had always adored.

I made this on Cooling Off Day which turned out to be a super hot day. How apt. Cooling Off Day falls on the eve of Polling Day when all election campaigning is disallowed. I was already getting sick of the campaigning news so I was just happy to be able to do some sewing in peace and quiet. But I then got very, very upset. See this checkbook cover is for me. I have a chequebook which I keep losing so I thought this would do the trick. Instead of searching for my chequebook, I would search for the checkbook cover. Now, after I had cut out all the pieces of fabric needed, it occurred to me to take out my chequebook to see if it fits. Guess what? It doesn't.

Now you understand that I have already cut out all the fabric needed. Why it didn't occur to me to check before I snip snip is beyond me. As it turned out, Singapore chequebooks must be way longer than American ones. Do I have any American readers? Please do me a big favour and fish out your checkbook and tell me what the measurements are?

I've always assumed all checkbooks have universal measurements. Like passports and credit cards. Anyhoo, I woke up on Saturday, which is Polling Day to firstly vote followed by another round of cutting of fabric. I just made everything a little longer.

See, now it fits.

In keeping with the spirit of the sew along, I tried to follow the sewing instructions as much as possible. The only thing I don't like is the placement of the snaps. I prefer to place them as close to the edge as possible. Somehow I don't see myself making another one of this cover.

On to other news. Well, the Election results are out. We're still a one-party ruled country. No surprise. The big victory for the opposition is the capture of a GRC which is a Group Representation Constituency. GRC was created in 1988 comprising of 4, 5 or 6 members to contest as a group. In all, 14 GRC (a total of 69 seats) and 12 single-member-constituencies were being contested. Since the creation of GRC, the opposition has only been able to capture SMC. So, it is a big victory for the opposition. The final result? 60.1% voted for the ruling party. This translated to 81 seats for the ruling party and 6 seats going to the opposition. If you think mathematically it sounds wrong, go back to my explanation of GRC. And you may think 6 seats is pathetic but in the last election only 2 seats went to the opposition.

So a big win for the opposition but only a tiny step towards a better Singapore.

What does the majority of Singaporeans want? Clearly, they want the ruling party to form the government but the dip in popular vote shows a growing number who wants change. How the ruling party treats the loser candidates, critics and netizens who had spoken up openly during the Election campaign period will be an indication of which direction this country is heading. With the end of election, I think I will go back to my sewing and beading which are really far more exciting (to me). See ya.