Category Archives: bags

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DIY bag

Having practiced techniques by making bags from other people’s patterns I decided that it was about time I tried to design one of my own.   The plan was to come up with a basic bag design which would be adaptable to suit a number of different styles and fabrics.  I have been thinking about this for ages and ages, even in my sleep (do other craft addicts do that I wonder?  I suspect you do.)

So, with a pencil in hand and paper in front of me, I was surprised how quickly I came up with an idea, by basing the pattern on a lovely leather bag which I’d had ages and ages ago I have designed what I call a bucket bag.  Digging into the fabric stash I was soon in action, making the first one.

This image shows the lining, wadding (Hobbs fusible wadding) and outer sewn together with a phone/purse pocket stitched into the lining.

And this is the body of the bag, just the strap to add now, I think I will make this one into a shoulder bag.

Picture of the finished bag to follow when I’ve added the strap.

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Mum’s Twisted Roses Bag

In returning to this blog I’ve been trying to catch up with my omissions and I realized that I didn’t post any images of the Twisted Roses bag which I made for my Mum with the fabrics she chose at the Northern Needlecraft Exhibition we went to in Harrogate last September.

This is the only picture I took of this bag, which was part way through making it (and obviously Mum has the bag now) but it does give a clear view of the fabrics I used and the twisted roses on the front.

Click this link if you want to see the earlier version

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Finished another Japanese Shima (Stripe) Bag.

As promised earlier this is the finished bag, back and front views which show the different fabrics used for the stripes.  I love the way this bag makes up as it has two different looks depending on how the fabrics are placed.  In this one I tried to keep the lilac/pink fabrics on the front and the orange/creams on the back and I’m really pleased with the result.

I made this bag slightly shorter than the previous one,  just for a change to make them a bit different.  As a recap, for comparison, these are the two bags together.  I really love these Japanese fabrics!  A reminder of the stockists Euro Japan Links if you want any!

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Taken over by the bag making bug

As a means to forget the cold bug I succumbed to my bag making compulsion and decided to make another Japanese Shima (Stripe) Bag.

This was a kit my Mum bought at the same time as me but never got round to making and (being the lovely Mum that she is) gave to me to add to the set.

The images show some different parts of the process, 1) is the drawstring pocket, and toggle/loop fastening which I have added to the basic pattern (I like a bag to fasten and to have somewhere to keep my purse).

2) and 3) show the binding to cover the side seams inside the bag.



4) shows how the base of the bag is formed by stitching across the corners, through all thicknesses and 5) how the bag stands up now that the bottom conrers have ben formed.

The final image shows how I’ve sewn the drawstring pocket into  the binding at the top of the bag.  The toggle and loop are sewn in the same way.

Another bag to add to the collection.

Photo of the finished item to follow – I will take this in daylight.

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Japanese style bag

I bought a lovely book at the Northern Needlecraft Exhibition in Harrogate last year, Easy Japanese Quilt Style which one of the authors, Anne, was kind enough to sign for me.

Needless to say I also bought some fabric to make one of the bags in the book and also met a lady at the show who had already made the one which I had chosen to make, which she was using that day.  Well, seeing two versions of the finished bag (one on the stand and one in use) was more than enough to inspire me.  This is the image in the book, the bag is a really good size but I was advised to put some form of stiffener into the base, which is quite a large square, to prevent it from sagging when full of stuff (which my bag usually is!)

Some people use cardboard as a stiffener for bag bottoms but I prefer to use something which will wash so I opted for plastic canvas.  This is my finished bag and I’m absolutely delighted with it.

The design of the outer is made in a really cleaver way with patched triangles sewn in a ‘pinwheel’ then joined up diagonally (the lining is cut from one piece of fabric to match the shape).  I can’t describe it adequately here so have a look at the book, buy it and of course make one for yourself.  I only made a couple of changes, adding a pocket inside and putting the ties at the top so that the bag can be loosely fastened.  I would certainly recommend this pattern and can’t wait to make some of the others in the book now!  :-)

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Twisted Roses Bag – Progress to Completion

Not quite a day or so but over the weekend I did make progress with and managed to complete the Twisted Roses Bag!

First of all the addition of strips of fabric across and down to cover and bind the raw edges of the individual rose squares (above).  I decided to machine stitch these because the numerous layers of fabric were so thick that I would have had to use a thimble for every stitch and I don’t really like having to use one – especially for that amount of work.  I decided to go with the uneven finish as I don’t think it detracts from this particular design.

Then turned inside out binding the side seams and bottom corners (above and below) using strips of lining fabric.

Almost there, this is the bag before the top has been bound and handles added.

The pattern called for plaited handles using a combination of the fabrics from the outside of the bag.  These were  machine sewn into place on to the outside of the bag and to hide the raw edges  of the handles each one was covered with two appliqué leaves which were stuffed with the same wadding as the bag (Hobbs) and stitched with stem and vein lines (pinned on to the bag above) then hand stitched in place.

ET VOILA!  The finished result – perfect for a summer wedding – I am so very happy :-)

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Twisted Roses Bag

This pattern is really lovely, I saw it in a magazine over a year ago but didn’t buy the magazine (a definite case of ‘you stupid woman’) then saw the magazine again at one of last years shows and made up for my earlier mistake.

I am making this particular bag for a couple of events which are planned later this year.  First of all my elder son’s graduation ceremony which is in a few weeks time and then for a friend’s wedding in September.  I really hope that the unpredictable  English summer weather stays good for both!

The roses are made by pleating a large square of fabric (9”) on to a smaller square of backing fabric (6”) then twisting and stitching the resulting ‘hump’ into a rose and tacking the folds into place.  Using a graduated print such as batik gives a lovely shaded appearance.  I’ve chosen shades of fuchsia and purple (can you tell I like these colours?) to go with the outfit I plan to wear and am really happy with the results so far.

The image shows progress so far, with 9 hand stitched roses pinned on to the bag (which comprises outer, wadding & lining) I absolutely loved making the flowers for this, it was something really therapeutic to do in front of the TV so I will try to find time (after I’ve finished the bag!) to write a tutorial for them as it is something I just have to share! :-) :-) :-)

Hope to be able to show you the finished bag in a day or so.

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Japanese Shima (Stripe) Bag

long time no post again I’m afraid!!

For one reason and another I have been preoccupied with other concerns during the past few weeks,  I’ve still been trying to fit my creative ventures in between work and family priorities but haven’t achieved much until the last week or two.

Since bags are my favourite endeavour at the moment I had to get back into creative mode by starting on this lovely kit which my mum bought me as a Christmas present from one of the craft shows last year.

This bag kit was very inexpensive (only £8) and included the pattern and fabrics – I just had to add my own wadding (Hobbs fusible) and trimmings to fasten the bag.  I decided to keep the design simple and use a cord and toggle fastener

I think these fabrics are lovely and the pattern so simple that I had to go out shopping, to use my bag as soon as possible!

This is the finished bag, I’ve taken pictures of both sides as the fabrics differ giving each side a slightly different character:

Front of bag:

Back of bag:

Reminder of the stockists link :-)

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Planned Projects – Tulip Bag

Another project waiting in the large ‘to-do’ pile is the Tulip Bag from Monkey Buttons.  I am planning to make the version with squares (made in black & grey on the pattern) using one or more of my lime green(ish) batiks and a plain brown cotton for the main colour which I have yet to buy.

I want to make this before summer to go with a lovely lime green frilled Rocha, John Rocha shrug which I  recently bought from Debenhams and which I plan to work part of my summer wardrobe around.  The shrug looks a bit pale in this picture but it is a really warm shade of lime, not too bright, which is set off really well against a dark chocolate brown.  It is a shame that digital cameras often don’t show true colours as these are much closer in shade than they appear to be here.