FFFFFFlorence

The pattern for this bag, called The Florence, came with the pattern pieces and a 13 step assembly instructions including no pictures. Strangely it was printed on an 11x17 page, but was printed on only 1 of the 4 available sides. If you can’t guess a few choice words were uttered. It really could have used some pictures to help fill in the gaps. At times I felt like I was assembling complex Ikea furniture. If I had ever made a similar purse in the past it might have been ok, but between the handle ‘facings’ and how best to pin and sew the round bottom I definitely found myself wanting more.

I added a row of pockets to 1 side, 2 small pockets (perfect for a cell) and a spot for a pen. I used medium weight interface against the lining, and fuseable fleece on the bag fabric. The pattern didn't call to use the bag fabric for the top portion of the linner, but I like it better to see the same fabric when the exterior of the bag is just one fabric.

In general I like the finished product and will probably used the pattern again, but it really should have had some illustrations or pictures to help.

Getting back to it.

Despite my lack of posting since moving, I have been doing a little bit of sewing. I've made some curtains and worked on some small projects.

One of first projects was a grocery bag with a built in pouch, for compact storage. The bag is a fairly standard rectangular bag with 2 long handles, no interfacing, but derocartor weight fabric gives it a little weight and strength.

The pouch is fairly large, quite a bit bigger than I expected. It lays inside the bag and the main bag is reversed into the pouch which is also flipped inside out to house the bag.

I shall hopefully takes some more pictures soon and have another post or two before long.

Meet Rucinda

Thinking my bestfriend might like Amy Butler's Birdie sling, I showed her the pattern only to have her say that not only did she love the pattern but loved the fabrics featured in the pictures. So while not original, I made this bag as one of her Christmas presents. Shown in the right, Miss Rucinda was testing the bag out for us.

(For some strange reason Rucinda is obsessed with fabric and constantly wants to touch every piece of it that's not tucked away.)

If I were making this bag for me, I would reduce the width of the straps where the strap meets the bag, I find the opening left on the sides is a little on the small side. Other than that I really like the bag, the lining is interfaced with fuseable fleece, and the outside with a heavier weight fuseable interfacing. In addition to the pockets inside I added a strap with a hook for keys.

This is the last of the Christmas bags. Although in reality Birthday bags are probably right around the corner.

Christmas Bags

Being fairly new at bag making, I decided to play around with a few different types of interfacing and stiffeners while making a few Christmas gifts. I made 3 simple totes, to test different results.


For the above bag I used both a fuseable interfacing and a fuseable fleece attached to the outer fabric, first fusing the interfacing then the fleece. It turned out quilt nicely especially for this type of bag without any folds or pleating in the exterior.


This one I made interfacing the lining, and doing nothing to the exterior. It only works because the bag is so simple, and isn't that large. I like the idea in principle because I thought the bag would wrinkle/crease less and be easier to wash.

This over sized (quite over sized) tote I made using only fuseable fleece, but inserted a piece of timtexesque material in the bottom to provide more structure and stability.

I figure its important to experiment with some of the different products out there to see what works for my various needs.

First Post

Welcome to my first post!

I thought I would start my blog highlight some of the projects I've completed in the recent past.





I made this handbag as a gift from the Amy Butler pattern - Frechy Bag. It was quite easy to follow the pattern, Amy Butler does a great job of including lots of diagrams, with step by step instructions.



It was actually my first time using sew in interfacing, and I was quite doubtful that the bag would hold its shape well with the exterior having some weight to it, but I was really pleased in the end. I used a magnetic snap closure and included 1 pocket, which is more of a divider than a pocket as it is quite large and sewed in with the layers of the bag, as apposed to being sewn directly to one side of the bag.





The only thing I might consider doing differently in the future would be the pockets, especially if I made the shoulder sized bag.