For my trip back home (leaving in four days - yay!) I decided I wanted to make some bags for my besties! These are gifts for my three favourite girlies to say Happy Birthday and I miss you all the time! Making these bags up has also allowed me to channel my love for Cotton+Steel, particularly their canvas range.
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| Horsey Handbag |
First up is this lovely horsey number. I bought these handles when I visited a Joanns in Lincoln City, Oregon at Christmas. I've been wanting to make this bag ever since then and I thought that this print from the mustang range for C+S was perfect. I love the tiny shiny bits and the pink and red together.
I used the pattern that is shown in this pin as inspiration, but between me checking how much fabric I needed and going to check how to make it again, the link has completely stopped working. However the bag was a cinch to make, as the pattern is pretty straightforward and I would definitely make lots more of these.
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| Seamwork Madrid Tote |
My next bag to make was the Seamwork Madrid Tote from Colette Patterns. This pattern is from the first issue and I can't believe it's taken me so long to get round to making it. The stated completion time for this pattern is 2 hours and I think I managed to complete this in that time over two evenings. I think the longest part of making this bag was making the handles! The pattern recommends buying handles but I thought that these would be just as strong, and I left it a bit late to order some in time for my return to Blighty.
I used the indigo tile print from C+S for this one, as well as some really hefty unbleached canvas that I picked up from Dressew. I didn't quite have enough of the indigo print left so used the plain canvas on the back.
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| Back of Madrid tote |
The bottom is sewn up with some pleather that I ordered from Etsy. I really didn't like it when it arrived but it's definitely grown on me since I started sewing with it. I used a magnetic clasp leftover from my cooper bag for the fastening. I'm definitely going to make me one of these!
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| Seamwork Valencia Clutch |
Last up is the Valencia clutch, also from Seamwork magazine. This one was even quicker to make than the Madrid.
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| Valencia Clutch with kitty cat lining |
I decided to go completely pleather on the outside and used this adorable print from the Hatbox range for the lining. I love the colour and the cats! Again this bag was so easy; my only frustration was with the fabric rather than the pattern. It just won't stay flat and always looks creased, and I can hardly iron it now.
I have really enjoyed exploring some more bag making techniques with these three bags. Making bags and purses is a wonderful break from dressmaking. No fit issues here and you can use such wonderful fabric without worrying about looking like you're wearing a quilt!
