Monday, March 26, 2012

oh. so. scrappy patchwork tote

Happy Monday, friends!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Mine was a lot of fun, lots of sewing on Saturday, trip to Chicago on Sunday. Not bad at all.

I started off Saturday thinking I'd make some new pillows for our bed and maybe even start cutting fabric for my son's quilt. And then, as I was thinking about our trip to Chicago, I decided I NEEDED a new tote bag. Ok, so I really did not need one, I have tons of bags in my closet, but I was still going to make one. A scrappy, patchworky, colorful bag that screams "fabric love". I was totally inspired by this bag, and this one.

I had no pattern to base my bag on, so my "plan" was to make it up as I went. I started off by making 2 patchwork rectangles for the front and the back.



I decided not to quilt them, just stabilize them using pretty strong interfacing. I used black and white home decor weight fabric for the bottom of the bag, as well as the lining to make it more sturdy.


I know by now that the only bags I use on a regular basis are the ones that have zipper closures as well as zipper pockets on the inside. I used blue and orange zippers and they brighten black and white interior so well.



I was going to use webbing for the handles, it would have been so much easier and faster, but both of my daughters kept saying it did not match the bag, and they were right. I then made patchwork handles using most of the leftover scraps.

It turned out to be quite a large bag, a perfect size for my camera, a few books, and snacks for the kids. I had the girls model it for me while we waited for our train to arrive.


I love how it turned out. It's just the way I wanted it - bright, happy, summery.

What have you been working on lately? I'd love to know.

Svetlana

Linking up to Finish it up Friday,

 

26 comments:

  1. This is darling, Svetlana! My daughters would love this...especially my oldest. I've been making some simple little bags for my girls over the last week, but nothing nearly this fancy. You can see them at http://fabricmutt.blogspot.com/.

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  2. i love it so much! totally digging the orange zip, great idea! i've been practicing hand quilting on a little granny square mini quilt :D

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  3. It turned out great! I love how a photo of a block often gives us no sense of scale. I had no idea just by looking at the rectangles how big the bag would be. LOL It's the perfect size for a day out. :)

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  4. I have a huge favor to ask...Could you do a tutorial on how to put the zippers on a tote like you did? I want to learn how to do that! I ADORE your bag!!

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  5. what a bright sunny bag! i love it.

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  6. Love the bag! And I too would love a tutorial! :-)

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  7. Gorgeous! I love all of the bright colours! And I agree, I would love a tutorial on how to put zippers into tote bags.

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  8. Gorgeous bag!!! ... bright fun colours...

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  9. Very fun tote! You did an awesome job on it! I'm quilting up a scrappy quilt...

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  10. This is awesome svetlana! I love it! Its such a great size too! You should write a pattern for it, I know I'd buy one!

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  11. I loooove your new bag! Very good and practical pattern and your have used those beautiful fabrics so well! x Teje

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  12. Very cool, love the scrappiness! Isn't it terrible when you just *need* something like that though lol

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  13. This bag is beautiful. I gave you the Sunshine Award over at my blog.

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  14. super adorable. Love the fussy cutting!

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  15. I love the word "fashion" down the side!

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  16. These bags are perfect...great fabric choice and size

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  17. I think it's great! You have a lovely blog- visiting via flickr today, and am now a new follower!

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  18. Very cute bag! I love those bright colors.

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  19. I just made a couple of bags - not nearly as scrappy as yours. but I like them. Your bag is darling!

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  20. Am loving your bag!! Totally digging it.

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  21. Lovely bag! A complete success, handles and all.

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  22. Love how this turned out!!!!! And yeah, the handles were extra work, but so worth it. Having zippers makes it so much more secure...

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