Two Stow It All Totes, One in Faux Leather and One in Prequilted Fabric

I finally finished my second Stow It All Tote from Chris W Designs.  I have to say the pattern is relatively easy but the faux leather was a challenge.  But before I talk about that bag, let me show you the other Stow It All Tote I made.

I love the look of prequilted fabric on this bag.  The first two that I made were made from prequilted fabric, too.

The butterfly fabric is a remnant of upholstery fabric.  This bag is a perfect place to showcase it.

I think it is a very striking fabric but there are limited bag patterns that I can use it on because the butterflies are pretty large.  But, this bag is very large, too.  It measures 16" wide, 12" high and 4.5" deep.   On this bag, I divided the front pocket into three compartments and the back one into two.  You can divide them any way that works for you.

The top of the bag is closed with a recessed zipper.  I like the peek of lining fabric around it.  I used a double zipper on this bag.

The bottom of the bag has bag feet.

The inside of the bag has a divided slip pocket highlighting the outside fabric on one side and a zipper pocket on the other.

Here is my second tote.  Same pattern but not the same ease of sewing.  I love this black ostrich faux leather that I got from Norwalk Fabric Outlet.  I have used it as a small part of other bags.  I decided to try an entire bag from it.  I then decided I would combine it with upholstery weight (heavy) suede that I would use for some of the more thicker areas like the straps and strap tabs.  I used it on the flap, zipper panels and zip tabs as well to make it a more cohesive look.  That worked out better but I ended up having to take out the boxed corner of the lining to get this bag turned inside out.  Now that it is done, I do love it but I won't use this heavy of a faux leather for a whole bag again.

I used another double zip on this bag.

 For the lining, I used a snakeskin patterned quilting cotton.

 This second bag is a special order.  Since I won't be using this faux leather on a full bag again, they will have a pretty unique bag.

You can get this pattern here.

Two Small Orders Finished

Well believe it or not, I have been sewing.  I have a test pattern that I have finished that I am waiting to be released before I can share it with you.  I have finished a Get Carded wallet from Dog Under My Desk for a customer but for some reason, I didn't take one picture of it before it was delivered to the customer!  You would have thought that this was the first time I have sewn something that I wanted to blog about.  So here is where you all have to use your imaginations.  I have taken a photo of the blue fabric I used on the exterior and the green fabric I used for the lining.  You can get the pattern I used here.

Didn't I do a great job??  Come on, picture it.  Imagination, remember?

I did take a picture of a Necessary Clutch Wallet that I made for a customer.  She requested something in breast cancer pink ribbon fabric.  Since what I found had a white background, I made most of the wallet from a solid magenta.  I, also, included a wristlet strap and a shoulder strap. 

You can get this pattern from Emmaline Bags here.

I have, also, completed a Stow It All Tote from Chris W Designs that I have not shared with you yet.  I am currently making a second one so I figured I would show them both to you later this week.  Stay tuned....

The Happy! Bag by Imazzpatterns

I was contacted by Rahimah Othman of Imazzpatterns to test a bag that she had recently released called The Happy! Bag.  The name comes from the pocket that appears to be smiling on the front of the bag.
I had tested for Rahimah before, in February of this year when I made the 1,2,3 Fabric Book Cover with Handles.  You can see my blog on that project here.

I made her Paris clutch in March of this year and you can see that review on my blog here.  I love Imazzpatterns because they are great looking but ready for the confident beginner.  Her bags go together well and her directions are clear.  The pattern is loaded with pictures and some drawings that take you step by step through the sewing process.  And look at my new Happy! Bag.

This bag is perfect for heavier fabrics like denim, duck cotton, or home dec.  I used a heavyweight brown fabric for the bag body and a metallic striped upholstery fabric for the pocket.  In my haste to get this posted, I neglected to take a picture of the back of the bag but it is all brown.  The straps are striped fabric on top and brown fabric underneath.  The smiling pocket on the front of the bag is huge and deep, so it is a great place to keep your keys or phone handy.  

The inside of the bag is open with your choice to add one or two slip pockets.  I used a brown cotton fabric with gold metallic print to play off of the striped fabric from the front pocket.  The top of the bag is closed with a magnetic snap which is what I used here but if you are a more seasoned sewer, you can easily add a recessed zipper at the top.

The Happy! Bag measures 15" high and 14" wide at its widest point.  Thanks, Imazzpatterns for a great casual bag pattern.  I will definitely make more of these.  You can visit her Etsy page and get the pattern here.

More Bucket Bags Find Homes

I recently had an order for 3 Bucket Bags to be made in suede/ faux leather.  Since I don't duplicate bags unless the customer agrees that it is OK, here is what I came up with.  If you have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I usually choose bold fabrics (shades of BOLD is the name of my blog after all).  You probably also know that sometimes customers tame that bold side of me.  This customer wanted two of the bags in black!  OK.................

Here is bag #1.  I chose a shinier textured faux leather in black for this bag.  Although the cording looks white, it is actually gray.  The boldness had to pop out in the lining though.  

I used one of my favorites for lining in black, gray and red.

Bag #2 is a combination of a heavyweight black upholstery microsuede and a black faux ostrich.

I love this black ostrich faux leather and am planning a whole bag in it soon.  Again, the lining had to pop so I used this geometric black and white print.

Bag # 3 was made with the same orange heavyweight suede that I used on another bucket bag but I combined it with a brown woven faux leather to change it up a little.  Thanks to Rochelle at Esheep Designs for the idea of adding a different fabric for the bottom of the bag.  I love that look.  She made a Bucket Bag after she saw the first ones I did on my blog.  She made several changes to hers that were great.  You can read about her bag here.

I used the same houndstooth orange and white fabric I used the last time as the lining.

Just as a reminder this is a free tutorial from Sew 4 Home and I love it.  It is quick and easy to make and the strap is adjustable because of the snaps on the straps.  The strap is attached to the bag with snaps, too.

The bottom of the bag has bag feet to top it off.

You can find the tutorial here.

My Lighthouse Campfire Bag Was Featured

How fun is it to be catching up on some of the blogs that I follow and see that my Lighthouse Campfire Bag has been featured on the Sew Can She blog?  Really, really fun.  My bag got the most hits on the Show Off Saturday Linky Party from last weekend.  If you would like to see the feature, click here.  My original post on this bag is here.

Thanks to everyone that clicked the picture of my bag to check it out!