I've eased myself in slowly.
The style was was limited by my fabric choice (just one flour sack).
The bag is lined for strength. I had a bit of fun with the raw edges and the stray threads & an Op Shopped suede belt was hacked into & fashioned into a bag strap.
Slouchy & casual & fun.
Did you guess?
You might remember last year I made the perfect bag for a friend. Well, this is my perfect bag but it's also for a friend. I plan to make myself one over the weekend! I based the bag on one I already owned...a very nasty op shopped piece of rubbish but with great bones.
I love the way the embroidery finished up & I've added the bright red zip to keep things interesting.
Everything came together really well except the flaming zip! That thing drove me nuts. I've got a "can do" attitude & I'm pretty confident with zips but really sewing a zip into a curve (& then trying to top stitch) proved impossible.
I ended up unpicking the top stitching. You know that rule about cooking something new for a dinner party? Well it's the same for gifts for friends, I've discovered. I'm pretty sure that she won't mind though.
Just a peek of the vintage sheet lining.
worn across the body, single strap, slouchy, soft
tick, tick, tick, tick
(with the added bonus of being machine washable)
I hope she likes it too.
for a friend.
We caught up for coffee last week & spent a lazy hour discussing The Sartorialist & the merits of the perfect handbag.
For me..
worn across the body, single strap, slouchy, soft
For her...
sacky, bright, wide straps, big enough to fit lunch, gusseted
It was her birthday yesterday so I made "the perfect bag" for her.
It's fully lined & made from thrifted everything.
As I finished it all I could think of was the iconic Country Road bag. This baby is "vintage" circa 1989. My sack bag has a similar capacity but with perhaps a nicer shape...
I've sat on this one far too long. It was begun so long ago it's embarassing.
I finally had a reason to finish it off & it's been gifted.
I intended for it to be a "colouring in" bag so have included a set of acrylic paints & some fabric fixative.
But I think she likes it just as it is.
Made from thrifted curtain fabric, button & belt. The lining is a thrifted sheet.
Last month I posted the beginnings of this bag.
It's taken me ages, but I'm finally finished.
I love this bag every bit as much as the boomerang bag. Best of all I don't have to fight anyone for it.
I've had a love affair with redwork for a very long time because of this friendship quilt.
The redwork was given to me by Jess.
Op Shopped: French silk ribbon, zip, belts & red & white valance used for lining.
in the tragic situation our state finds itself is...
For this.
This bag made from thrifted "reverse ripple" fabric. Slouchy & casual when you're not carrying much around but able to hold everything a busy girl needs.
The size of the bag was determined by the only thrifted green zip I owned.
I think it works for this fabric. Something smaller really wouldn't have done the pattern justice.
The idea has been kicking around for sometime & then I had a conversation with Lara about just how much stuff you need to carry around when you've got small kids & a crochet habit. It's made of Thornberry green fabric & the belt keepers at the top are crochet string.
Made from thrifted everything so totally green.
More bags by me.
& a bit the same.
This year I'm trying to focus on a couple of my favourite crafty past times & really hone my skills rather than leaping around all over the place.
This is the beginning of a bag made from vintage "Reverse Ripple" fabric...yep it had the selvedge attached.
This bag gifted to a dear friend.
She changes her mind a lot.
Constructed from upholstery samples.
Twisted cord closure.
I'm getting such a lot of pleasure from the bag making. I enjoy the thinking, the planning, the making of the story board (maybe more than the actual bag making) and ultimately the construction.
See the beginnings here
Constructed from vintage fabric from a suit (extremely stylish). All other materials were thrifted.
& happy 30th birthday
and I don't mean these cookies either (though I'd quite like some).
Of course, I'm referring to everyone's favourite Aunty, Shannon Lamden.
The bag's finished.
I meant the button to be in the centre of this flower...
...but this happened quite by accident.
& so did this!
Other bags I've posted:
Dee
Denim
Sausage Dog
Boomerang
& the project notes: (more for archiving than anything else - you could just scroll down the page)
beginnings
roughing it
This bag was made as a long overdue birthday gift for a very special friend. She's been waiting patiently & I'm finally ready to gift it.
You might remember the fabric. Selvedge notes: Robert Kaufman(?) Screen Print 3855 Boomerang Beat. One of my best op shop finds ever!
All components of this bag were purchased from various op shops. The embroidery floss came from my stash.
I know I've banged on before about how much pleasure this sort of crafting gives me, but honestly it's true.
I really want to keep this for myself - she's going to have a fight on her hands.
PS: Yesterday's post was supposed to say that my gorgeous sister made an entire pillowcase wardrobe for her sweet as anything little girl. I was also going to say how proud I was of her & how thrilled I was to have given her a hand...
Sorry about the total abandonment of the post...sometimes the heart wins.
Edited to add:
A few people asked about the how. I'm really sorry but I'm not ready to share my process. It's very much a work in progress & a pretty organic sort of construction. There's no pattern cut. I just get all the materials together & go for it. Maybe one day, but not yet. I hope that's OK.
The original was inspired by a bag made entirely of leather strapping by Danny Seo (which I've tried to find via Google & can't), as well as these tooled leather bags which my mum had in the 70s.
I will leave you with a quote from my hero found via his interview with Victoria Everman.
"The simple truth is that I think of what I want, then use what I've got on hand to make it".
Justin "Scrappers" Morrison
I've thought about this daily since I read the interview.
Elsie found the Danny Seo bag. Thank you Elsie.