Amanda loved my woodland creatures bag and wanted one for herself. I’m trying never to make  two bags exactly the same, so although very similar they are not the same. For one thing the finishing is better on the second! See if you can spot the differences…….

Almost the same but not quite.

Lovely neat finishing.

Quite happy with pattern match up on the base.

Lovely owl.

Another work colleague asked me for a knitting bag. And as she was happy to pay for it I was happy to make it. Now because she was paying for it I felt the need for the finishing to be better than it has been in the past, but I couldn’t quite work out how to get my top corners to sit better. For some reason they always look messy and this wasn’t acceptable to me. After scratching my head and racking my brains for quite a while I discussed it with the husband and he came up with a solution so simple, it had been staring me in the face all along, but I just couldn’t see it. I needed to iron the corner edges and fold the top over so that all the top edges were aligned. Don’t know if I’ve explained that very well, sorry. Now if I’d gone to classes I would’ve probably been taught that but as I’m self taught I learn these things along the way. Every time I make something I learn something new.

ironed edges

pink side

Mauve side (reversible). Put a label in but not perfected this yet, quite tricky.

I love how well the colours go together.

lovely corners!

another lovely corner.

handles not bad either!

Now, I am in no way going to do a ” how to post”, but I am going to try and show the stages of making a bag and the process I go through.

I choose the fabric I’m going to work with. I love the woodland creatures fabric, I picked it up for twenty four pounds a meter, quite pricey, but it is almost two and a half meters wide!

then I measure out and cut the calico I use to line the outer fabric.

I then plan where I want my pattern pieces and lay the calico on the fabric to use as a template. I pin the calico to the fabric and cut out

You’ll see I’ve tried to match the pattern pieces as best I can, to get continuity.

I then sew the calico to the back of the fabric, it makes the fabric a bit sturdier i feel.

these are the pieces for the lining, I don’t use the calico on the lining.

After marking out the seam allowance I can now start putting the bag together. I attach the sides to the base.

another view of the attached sides and base.

pin one of the front or back panels to the base and sides….

then sew.

starting to get an idea of shape now.

pin the other panel to the base & sides and sew that, now we have the lining

Do the same with the outer bag, trying carefully to match the pattern pieces.

this is going to be a messenger bag, but with added handles for versatility. I’m making these. Once I’ve made the straps its time to put the lining into the outer bag attach with pins. Then add the messenger strap, pin in place and add the handles, pin in place. sew carefully around the top of  the bag about  two inches from the top and again about a quarter of an inch from the top. and ta da! It’s done.

Finished.

love the trees.

and the owl, love the snail too. This is such a fun, cute bag.

the lining.

See how I attempted to align the pattern. Mostly works.

Love it! Very versatile with two different types of straps.

I was asked by a colleague to make a knitting bag, so I set about doing this using some scraps of fabric I had. I enjoyed the process of putting this bag together. Considering I used scraps and not all the fabrics matched exactly I think it turned out pretty well. I made the handles myself for the first time too.  There will now follow lots of pics!

Its now January, and the stress that was happening at work has calmed down, and i’m starting to feel better about things. Christmas is over and I once again have some spare time to think about sewing and what I’m going to make.

One of my best friends is about to turn 40 and I want to make her a bag. I have some lovely new fabric from the fabulous Fabric Yard, and I’m itching to make something with it. So this will be perfect for my new project. I think I bought 2 metres of the stuff and its quite wide too so I have masses. I will get loads of bags out of this.  YAY!

It takes me quite a while to decide exactly how I want the bag to look. This is my thing, I use simple shapes, but I take a lot of time to think about exactly where to place the patterns and how the fabric will work with the overall appearance of the finished item, whether its bags or clothes. And I always use the best fabric I can find and afford.

Love the teacups and teapots.

When making bags, I think the inside is just as important as the outside and like to use gorgeous fabrics for the lining. It makes me happy when I see a great pattern when I open my bag.

Choosing the placement of the pattern layout for the bag can make or break the outcome of the overall appearance.  I love how different the fabric looks once its made into a bag. And I really enjoy the process and seeing how it all comes together.

The sewing is starting to slow down, things are going on at work that are taking my mind off of sewing and I’ve sort of lost my sewing mojo! However I have made another bag and this time its for Kristina. When I gave it to her, it had the denim side on the outer, but Kristina preferred the daises on the outside. And actually I do too. I had also added buttons. I have seen her use it a lot, and I’m rather proud.

Love the buttons

The denim lining.

You might be able to see that my finishing is not perfect. The top edges are not perfectly aligned and look a little messy. I’m working on it!

I’ve now made a fair few tops so its back to the bags. I love the bag shape that I’ve been making, but my heart belongs to the messenger/crossbody style of bag, and I’ve been wanting to try this shape for a while. I feel ready to have a go now. You may or may not remember the fabric I bought back in June, that I felt was too lovely to use at that point, nor was I ready to cut up such an expensive fabric. Well now I’m ready. This fabric is gorgeous, both of them. I’m quite excited to see how it will turn out. I line the fabric I’ll use for the outer bag with calico, it just makes it a bit more substantial. Its quite a fiddlely make as the sides are quite narrow, and I haven’t perfected the corners yet. I swear a little bit whilst sewing, as the extra bulk due to the calico makes it quite tricky. But I get there and I’m really pleased with the outcome. I used gros grain from Merchant & Mills for the strap ( I know it seems like I’m constantly plugging M&M, but honestly I just love their products) and I think it works really well.

Now for lots of pics!

Attention to detail people.

more attention to detail

And more…….

I bloody love this bag, and have been using it almost constantly for six months. The fabric has held up really well, shows some signs of wear on the back from where it rubs against my clothes but otherwise still looks fab! Up till now I’ve had a very expensive bag habit, meaning I liked designer bags. I have several, that now rarely see the light of day, as I love using a bag made by ME :0)

August 2013 and more bags. Not all for me, in fact none for me. These are all going to new homes. A work colleague asked me to make her one and said she’d pay me for it! Felt kind of weird though taking money for something I made. I charged only to cover cost. The other two went to friends that I offered to make bags for. Everyone was happy with their new bags.

Lyn’s bag

Sue’s bag

Amanda’s bag.

You might have noticed they are all the same, but they all have different handles. No two bags I make are ever the same. All unique!