During the afternoon before I left for retreat last week, I cut and prepped all of the pattern pieces. Instead of using sew-in interfacing, I fused woven interfacing to all of the quilting weight cotton (the Amy Butler lining) and fused Pellon fleece to all of the linen blend outer bag fabric (Echino scooters). All in all, the prep took just over an hour and the bag construction about 90 minutes.
Erin's .pdf pattern is great: clear photos, concise instructions, easy to follow. She's even got a tips section on her blog that is all about interfacing. After making many bags and purses, I can tell you that I will never use non-woven interfacing again. The bubbling and crinkling and crispiness is just awful and your project can instantly be ruined with one blast of steam from the iron. Because I like using heavier weight fabric (linen blend or home dec), pressing is necessary to finish your seams nicely. Your interfacing has to be able to stand up to the heat!
The photo above shows two things I had to do differently from the pattern. First, I was not able to find the hardware for a strap slider, so I made the strap a fixed length. The ends went through the D-ring, then I sewed two seams of straight stitch to secure them to the wrong side of the strap. Then a row of 7mm wide satin stitch covers the strap end. Below the D-ring, you'll see that I was not able to topstitch all the way around the top of the bag. My machine couldn't handle the thickness over the area where the D-ring loop is sewn into the top of the bag. Next time I make this, I'll trim the fusible fleece batting so it doesn't run into the seam allowance at the top of the bag.
This entire bag was made from one piece of Echino scooters in brown. I love Echino yardage that includes accent stripes (in this case, the fuschia dots and natural/aqua stripe). I purchased the Echino on sale here. There are lots of great pockets, the bag is secure with a top zip, and I know it will be perfect for D to take on our trip!
Now Mom needs a vacation bag. One that can accommodate my new DSLR. Back to the sewing room I go....
Very cute! Looking forward to seeing what you come up with for yourself. :)
ReplyDeleteFabulous!
ReplyDeleteI love it!
It's a great bag! Very nice pattern.
ReplyDeleteOooh now I think I need you to make me a new bag for every trip - I like this one a lot.
ReplyDeleteSupercute; she'll be very chic walking around in France wearing this!
ReplyDeleteThat's a great bag! What a great idea to make accessories for your trip. Not too much longer and you'll be cruising around Paris!
ReplyDeleteSo a question about the pattern-- did it make the top zip fairly easy to do? For some reason that is my bag-making nemesis, but one I want to conquer. I owe a friend a bag with a top zip, and it's been a year and a half and I'm still putting it off.
This is awesome! Lucky D!
ReplyDeleteI've been eyeing off this pattern too! love love love your scooter version!
ReplyDeletex
I love it! Checked out the fabric right a way ;-)
ReplyDeleteOhhhh, it's adorable!
ReplyDeletei love those scooters! so so cute!
ReplyDeleteThe bag is tres apropos for a young girl in Paris for the very first time. She will be rockin it in style on the Champs Elysees!! What a good mom you are!
ReplyDeleteAwesome bag! Such a lucky daughter you have!!!
ReplyDeleteVery cool, well done mum! And yes, woven interfacing is the only way to go :o)
ReplyDeleteI purchased this pattern after a friend of mine made this. Yours is great. I'm sure your daughter will love using it in France! Great fabric choice too!
ReplyDeleteGreat bag Krista. And thanks for the link to Dog Under My Desk and the interfacing page. Way useful.
ReplyDeleteCute bag!
ReplyDeleteI've had this bag pinned in my Pinterest account for a while now, to make one each for the kids. Thanks for the tips, good to know before I try to sew them.
ReplyDeletevery cute bag! the scooter print is one of my faves. my daughter has a bag made with it and (lucky for me) i still have some left. i am waiting for the perfect way to use it! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm not much for making bags, but I might actually make this one! It's super cute.
ReplyDeleteSo cute - zip, zip! :)
ReplyDeleteLove the bag - so much so that I had to click over and buy it to make one myself!! Have a great trip!
ReplyDeleteI love it and I think I need one for me too!
ReplyDeleteIt's fantastic! The scooters are perfect. The only problem I encountered when I made mine was that the pieces that were interfaced shrunk a bit, which was kind of a pain. I don't know what to do to avoid this or if I should just trim down the non-interfaced pieces to the size of the shrunken ones?
ReplyDeleteI couldn't resist - after seeing yours, I just had to buy a pattern myself. I really like this one! Now to pick just the right fabric...
ReplyDeleteGorgeous!! I love it!!
ReplyDeleteThis bag turned out fabulously Krista. (No surprise there.) D will look so cool with this flung over her shoulder as she skips around Printemps & Galeries Lafayette.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great idea to make accessories for your trip. This pattern is very nice, Especially you put scooter image on bag. I try to made it.
ReplyDeleteDid you use fusible fleece for the strap too?
ReplyDeleteThanks!