One Bag--Finish #3 for 1st Quarter 2017FAL

The bag

Last September, I took a fancy stitches class. The class was designed to help us use more of the decorative stitches in our machines.

We started to make this bag; but, we ran out of time to finish. I thought that it was a cute project and decided that I would make another. Unfortunately, September was a long time ago and I couldn't remember what size the pieces were or what the steps of the project were.

The bag is large enough to put a cell phone in it. On the other side, there is a pocket where a few dollars, car keys and a lipstick would easily fit. The strap is a piece of elastic and you wear the strap across your body.

I e-mailed the instructor because she said that she would be sending instructions on the project during the class; but, the instructions never arrived. I also didn't get a response to my e-mail. I decided I could finish it. After all, how hard could making this little bag be?

Pin tucks and decorative stitches

It was fun to stitch the decorative pin tucks and add decorative stitching between the tucks. The beauty in using this particular foot is that I could use the same foot to make the pin tucks and add the decorative stitching! I couldn't believe how fast it was to do this step!

Lining finished in class

Before the end of class, the instructor had eliminated the invisible zipper at the top of the project. She said that the piping made it too bulky to put in the zipper.  She gave us a piece of elastic and a button.

I planned to give this as a gift and I didn't think a button closure with a piece of elastic would work for the recipient.
I wanted to add the zipper closure. I decided it would be less bulky if I inserted the zipper like a welt pocket.

At the end of class, I had stitched the front/back; completed the pocket, stitched the piping, added the decorative accent and had the lining ready to attach. We didn't have time in class to make the round appliqué with the initial like the instructor's bag.

I wanted to add the initial. I thought I could finish the bag in a few hours. Ha! It took me all day to get to the step to add the buttons!

Good resource

I even needed to consult help along the way. I was able to find what I needed in the book, "The Bag Making Bible." My favorite aid/tool for inserting zippers is wonder tape. I so remember my early days of clothing sewing, basting the zipper in place before stitching. This tape holds it in place beautifully! What a terrific invention wonder tape is!

Personalizing the bag

  The "V," I stitched using an alphabet in my sewing machine. I didn't hoop it and another time, I would because I could have also drawn a perfect circle; but, this worked. I like that crazy decorative stitch on the outer edge of the appliqué.

Finished back

Here are the final finished photos. The finished size is about 6 " wide x 6 1/2" long. I plan to make another cell phone bag. I hope the next one goes more smoothly! It will be a gift too! This is the third finish on my list which you can read about here.

Finished front