Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
I went with Mom to the bank where she fumbled around inside the Pearce looking for her bank card. The vertical credit card pockets I added at the last moment are ok, but not positioned well. I thought a small wallet where she could stash her bank cards would be helpful.
I quickly found and started a little wallet. I couldn’t find my Little Wallet pattern. I didn’t want to buy a new one so I found a freebie, the Fold & Stitch Wallet by Caroline Fairbanks.
Yay! I finished the Multi-Pocket Organizer for my handbag! That is the intention anyway. More and more I have been thinking of sending this to a friend. It isn’t that I don’t like and don’t think it will be useful, but it is telling me it wants to go to my friend. We’ll see. I can always make another even with the same, or similar fabrics.
Above is the front of the organizer. It has a divided slip pocket that can be useful for pens or other item you need quickly.
The back of the bag has an interior zipper pocket.
I used the Heather Bailey flower fabric as the exterior. If you look at the front and the back, you will see that I used the exterior fabric for the slip pocket. I was trying to give the most space to the large print. The Tula dot print on the front is sort of like a tone-on-tone and I thought it would work under the slip pocket. I am not sure I was successful. The only thing I don’t like about the heather Bailey fabric are the flies. I didn’t notice them until I cut out the pieces. If they were bees it would be different.
Inside are a lot of pockets. The first one I made, according to the directions, after assembling the exterior was the divider pocket. In the photo, left, it is wide open. The inside is made from one of the Tula neon fabrics. The taupe/grey (?) background was a bold choice for me, but I wanted to use the fabric and it went with the dots I used on the exterior.
The ruffly pockets are sewn to the lining and made with elastic. I was looking for a tool I have, the Clover Clip & Glide Bodkin**, which is great for slipping something like elastic through a channel, but couldn’t find it. I am sure it will turn up when I don’t need it.
The photo, right, shows the inside with the divider pocket mostly closed and a bit of the exterior. I used the exterior fabric on the divider zipper pocket, though lining fabric would work as well.
One thing I learned is to make the handles and zipper tabs out of the exterior fabric. They would blend in better.
This is a good project and it doesn’t take very long to make. Again, the pattern is from Sotak Handmade.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this website.
After finishing the first Multi-Pocket Organizer, I wanted to make another. Over the weekend, using some of my favorite fabrics, I cut one out for me. Finding out that it would fit and work well in my handbag helped me decide to take the plunge. Yes, I need to get working on Christmas gifts, but occasionally, I need a break.
I cut everything out and used some bits of fusible fleece to interface certain parts (as indicated in the pattern). I wanted to use up pieces I had laying around and making something for myself was a good use of them. If it didn’t work, I wouldn’t give a substandard bag to someone else.
After the cutting, it took me a few days to get back to it, but then I was able to make the front pocket. It took me two tries, but after following the directions (rather than remembering), it worked out fine.
As you can see, I cut out the corners despite my session with Lynette on anchoring the lining. I have an idea for anchoring the lining on this bag and will try it. Boxing or not boxing the corners makes no difference in my idea. Stay tuned for more on whether it worked.
WOW! The Pearce is done. What a journey!
My Mom has been using it for a few days and she loves it. I am so relieved. I won’t tell her about the trials and tribulations.
It is a good thing I didn’t add that mesh pocket I discussed in the progress post! This was a challenging bag to put together. The final seam, as mentioned, was more than a bear.
I like the features that Sara added, such as the vertical pocket in the back.
I was able to use a leftover piece of zipper that I had laying around, thus the odd red zipper. Hopefully, it will add a visual cue to where my mom puts stuff. She uses that pocket for her glasses as it is too small for her phone.
I am running out of the Paint Tube fabric, so I had to find some other fabric that would coordinate. The dots are leftovers from a dress I had made for Politcal Wifery. It worked pretty well, I think. No complaints anyway.
The bag has two pockets. I added vertical credit card slots to both. I am glad I did and I would do it again. She uses the large pocket for her phone as well as various cards.
The small pocket is accessible, too. I think she uses this for her insurance card, driver’s license, etc.
I am pleased that she likes it. I feel like I should make another one, but am reluctant to take on that bear of a curve again.
I finished the Multi-Pocket Organizer over the weekend. It is already off to its new home. I am kind of sad, because I would have liked to look at it a little longer, but birthdays are on a certain day and I wanted my friend to have it on or before the day.
I am super pleased with how this project came out, the directions and everything.
I think it was a great a great project to work on when I needed a break from the Pearce. The pattern is very straightforward and easy to follow. The skills required are somewhere between beginner and intermediate. I had never added an elastic pocket, so that was fun for me. The hardest part was the interior zipper pocket and they aren’t hard, really, just fiddly. If you have done one they are relatively straightforward. If you haven’t done one, then the directions in the pattern are great!
I don’t use fusible fleece** much for bags, but it works really well in this pattern. I didn’t quilt the pieces, which should come as no surprise, but quilted fabric would work in this pattern.
I might try foam one time if I make one in the future.
I am not sure I chose well when I picked that floral as it doesn’t go well with the neon pink stripe. Still I like both fabrics. For the next one, I might choose a solid for the fabric under the pocket and use the pocket fabric for the back as well. The pocket covers up so much of the exterior, as is often the case with a front pocket, that I like to use a fabulous fabric for the front pocket.
Half of my handbag is a mess! You know: lipgloss and a mask and two granola bars, a pad of paper, etc, etc. It needs an organizer. Before I sent off this bag, I tried it out in my handbag. It’s a bit of a squeeze and might not work when full, but maybe worth a try. I can always use it in my Kit Supply Tote, if it doesn’t end up working in my handbag. Perhaps I should see if I still have some of that Butterfly fabric. It might make a good pouch regardless of where I use it.
I really like this pattern and will probably make one for myself. It might be a good addition to Mom’s Sewing Date Traveler, which worked REALLY well in the hospital. I am definitely not done with this pattern yet.
**N.B.: Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
The Pearce is not going well. This curve is nearly impossible to sew on the machine. I have tried at least 4 times and ripped it out that many. Right now it is on timeout while I finish the Multi-Pocket Organizer.
The bad part is that this was going SOOO well. I got to the point where there was one seam left to sew (photo left) really easily. I mean the pattern has been a bit of a challenge, but nothing like I am experiencing with that last curve.
I am afraid I should have sewed the curve first. If I make this again, I will do that. For now, I will think about what to do and get back to it in a few days.
Because I don’t have enough to do I decided to make a bag for my friend Jen who had a birthday last week. I made her an Enigma Pouch last year. She is a fantastic person for whom to make bags, because she uses them.
I started it the other day when I was having a Sew Day with Tim and it went very quickly. The fabric is pink, which matches the color scheme of her Enigma, but I didn’t have anymore of the fabric I used, so I had to select new fabrics.
I had to stop working on the Pearce (it needed a timeout). Fortunately I had brought this bag along and very quickly got the exterior together.
I need to work on the center divider and the interior.
This is a Sotak Handmade pattern. I bought it in 2023. As I work on it, I think it might qualify as a purse organizer or insert. I am not sure Svetlana (at Sotak) would agree. She has another purse organizer pattern, which I have made. That pattern is very different from the handbag organizers in the post above. This pattern, the Multi-pocket Organizer, is similar to the ones I made for my Mom from the Sew Sweetness Mustang pattern.
I am starting to think I need to make myself something like this.
I am making good progress on the Pearce. I have the whole piece together and only need to assemble the final parts.
What you are looking at is the entire inside before the lining is flipped right sides together and sewn around the outside.
You can see that I added some binding, which will have to be sewn down as well.
The pattern didn’t include any pockets in the lining, which I didn’t realize. I added some credit card pockets using the template from the Sweetbay Crossbody. I would have preferred horizontal credit card slots, but I didn’t have time to figure out all the math.
I lined the panel for the credit card pocket so that the top portion is open and pens can be attached behind.
I need to get this done for my mom. I might add a mesh pocket as well, but we will see.
Today is surgery day for my mom and the Sewing Date Traveler is ready for duty.
For my purposes, this will be used to organize Mom’s stuff in the hospital room. There are a lot of little things in life that get strewn around and need to be moved for meals and doctor visits. This bag will provide the organization.
The bag has 5 pockets, but a couple of them are subdivided to keep items organized. One of the pockets is a zippered pocket, which provides the only security in the bag. Otherwise the bag is completely open.
I think it would be possible and useful to make the inside pockets, at least, from vinyl. It will mean that people can see what’s inside. The pockets are deep, too, so a phone inserted will be three quarters in the pocket.
The bag is large enough to keep a water bottle, a book, glasses, phone, hand lotion and a myriad of other items.
The pocket on the inside is one of the 5 mentioned above. It is divided in half so the sections are larger. A phone will fit inside.
The pattern says to do some stitching across the center seam near the top of the bag to anchor the lining. This was not enough for me. I didn’t want the lining getting caught on something and flipping out of the bag. My practice of anchoring linings to exteriors with Lynette the other week (month?) and a note in a Sew Sweetness pattern helped me figure out how to anchor this lining. As I was turning the project inside out, I realized that I could anchor the center bottom exterior seam with the center pocket seam. With a lot of jostling and bag wrangling, I was able to do it.
That didn’t solve all of my problems. I couldn’t figure out how to anchor the lining to the exterior using the boxing corners method that Lynette and I discussed. Not because I forgot how to do it, but because of that center pocket and because the whole bag was so stiff. I still needed more anchoring, because the corners were not anchored to anything. I ended up setting a few hand stitches in in the corners to keep the lining in the corners. If I were to make this again, I would do something different. I don’t know what, but something.
The exterior has more pockets. I divided the front pocket (photo, left) into 3 sections with the right section being largest. The smaller sections can be used for pens.
I like the trick of ‘self trimming’ for pockets. In this case, the trim is also the inside of the pocket. I wouldn’t do it again for this bag, or I would use a solid or tone-on-tone fabric. The art supplies fabric is lost in that small trim area.
I’ll let you know how Mom likes it and if it is useful. I am pleased I was able to finish it.
I made some good and positive progress on the Pearce Sling. Cyndi and I got together for a Sew Day at her house. It was really nice to hang out with her and I was able to focus and get quite a bit done on this piece.
Cutting it out the other day didn’t exhaust me. The pattern doesn’t have a ton of pieces, which is nice.
It takes quite a few steps to get to this point, but I didn’t feel annoyed about it. I felt like I was making good progress. Part of it was probably that I had someone with whom to consult and chat to.
I could have made more progress, but I decided to put a credit card pocket in the lining and I didn’t have a pattern piece with me. I switched to working on the Sleeping Bag Pouch, which was fun, too.
When I got home I pulled the credit card pattern piece out of the Sweetbay Crossbody project file and used it. It is a more vertical credit card pocket, so I might need to add another one, so Mom has enough for all of her cards. I was expecting the pocket to be horizontal. I am not as familiar with making these types of pockets, so I got what I got.
I will say that I LOVE the zipper end technique that Sara showed in Bag Lab at the beginning of the month. I know it is ridiculous, but I am so excited about how my zipper end looks.
I am also excited about nailing down that skill. I had a little trouble with it on the Dogwood pouches I made, but after watching the Bag Lab tutorial, I understood the concept much better and was able to do it relatively easily. One key was to use thin pins to hold everything in place until you sew. I am not a big fan of thin pins, but they are key in this technique.
After doing all these steps, my Sling is well on its way.
Clearly I found my Sewjo again, because once again I am starting projects right and left. The latest is the Pearce Sling. I started it for my mom.
A few months ago, I made her a Day Trip Wallet. I made it so she wouldn’t carry a 40 lb. purse around after her surgery. She uses it all the time, but when she came over she had the Day Trip looped over her shoulder (cross body) and her hands full of stuff. Not great for someone with balance issues.
The Pearce sprang to mind. I bought it with the recent 4 pack release of patterns from Sew Sweetness. This isn’t one of the patterns I thought I would make from the 4 pack, but I am kind of glad I am making it. It is slightly larger than the Day Trip, so I thought it might work for my Mom to keep her more hands-free.
I haven’t made a backpack before, but I think I can do it. Perhaps this will set me up to tackle the Pandora Charisma.
There have been a few bumps in the road to finishing this project. Due to the thick interfacing described in the previous post, this is taking additional time. I thought I would finish over the weekend, but am still working on this.
The lining is done and ready to be put together with the exterior.
I really should, as a rule, make bag linings smaller than exteriors. This designer didn’t note that in her directions and I didn’t do it. I’ll need to think about a measurement that would be good to use when cutting a smaller lining. For example, should I cut the pieces one half inch smaller or an inch smaller or what?
I added a leash to the inside. This isn’t part of the pattern, but they are easy enough to add. I may make a small Open Wide pouch with a lobster clip for added storage. The leash will also be useful for keys.
Putting everything together is proving to be a challenge. Despite my practice at anchoring linings to exteriors with Lynette, I can’t figure out how to do this one.
If I make this again, I will consult with Lynette about that. Neither of us could make the meeting and I need this done before the 26th.
I found the Sewing Date Traveler pattern a few months ago. It is a free pattern on the Robert Kaufman site. It was designed by Cynthia Frenette. I looked her up on IG, but didn’t see any other bag patterns. I wasn’t sure whether I would make it or not, but saved the pattern anyway.
Recently, I found out that my mom has to have another surgery. After looking at various examples on IG, I decided to make this to corral all the little things (phone, glasses, book, etc) that lay around a hospital room. She had a nice big ICU room before, but we hope she doesn’t get sent there and I don’t know how big the normal rooms are.
The bag doesn’t have a closure, so it will be used more as an organizer than security. I keep thinking of it as a tray. The picture on the RK site is a little confusing until you read the directions (which I actually did for once). I thought this bag was more like the Sew Together Bag. I thought the green pocket on the inside back was another zipper pocket. In truth, that is a slip pocket on the back lining. The construction is a bit like the Sew Together Bag. If you have made one of those, you should be able to make this without much trouble.
Famous last words. LOL. The construction, for me, hasn’t been the problem. It is very straightforward, if different from the other bag designers whose patterns I normally use. The problem is the interfacing. Since this will be used for who knows how much stuff, I wanted it to stand up to some heavy use. I thought foam might be ok, but wanted something stiffer if I could find it. The pattern calls for Pellon 65. It is described as “… Extra Heavyweight is a sew-in interfacing for extra firm body and stiffening. It is great for printing, visor brims, backpacks, and drapery headers.” I have a chart for interfacing equivalents, but I couldn’t find an equivalent for Pellon 65 on any of them. The description told me a little about how stiff it was and I thought I wanted it stiffer. I used Pellon Peltex 71F, which I knew was thicker than how Pellon 65 was described. It is thick! I don’t use it that often, but once I started, I couldn’t backtrack.
At the moment, the exterior, which has the Peltex attached, is flat on my ironing board, but the lining is assembled. I thought the bag would be larger, but I think it is a good size. Also, it isn’t exactly small.
I thought I would get the whole thing finished over the weekend, but, as you can see, that didn’t happen.
SIL#2 led at swap at the meeting on Saturday. As mentioned, I made a pencil roll. I decided at the last minute to make another organizer in case a new member or potential member came and wanted to join in.
I found the pattern in a book I reviewed some time ago called Make It, Take It: 16 Cute and Clever Projects to Sew with Friends by Krista Hennebury. I am glad to say that I did notice this project when I reviewed the book.
I am very pleased with the needlecase I made. It is kind of a portfolio and holds quite a bit of stuff. I like it because it is useful and practical, but also has scope for creativity.
I used some of the leftover improv piecing from the latest improv donation top. I think it would work to use Quilt-as-you-go to make the cover as well. I could just as easily use one piece of fabric for a very quick finish.
I was also pleased to see the way the zipper was installed, because I thought it would help me with another project on which I have (mostly not) been working.
This was a fairly quick project. I had all of the supplies, which helped. You do need some wool felt and a long zipper.
Each section could be used for a different type of needle, if one were that organized.
One of the reasons I am pleased with the pattern is that it gave me a different way to install a zipper on a circular piece. I can use this technique. I need more practice, but it came out better than my other project.
I am also pleased because the exterior looks really good. There is ton of scope for creativity with the outside, as I mentioned. This might be a great project to work on in a group.
Well, the Rose Petrillo sort of returned. I found the project bag in which I put all the pieces.
There are a couple of pieces missing like the strap. I’ll have to find some good fabric for that.
The fabric pieces are all interfaced with SF101, but no foam is cut out. It could be that I didn’t have foam at the time I cut out the pieces. I really don’t remember.