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Sunday, November 23, 2014

Tote Bag


My quilting bag that I use to cart my quilting/stitching stuff around is rather tatty and definitely needs replacing.  The problem was finding just the right pattern that had all the features I thought I required.  

I regularly follow Adrianne's blog (www.onthewindyside.co.nz/), she's had a few posts about making Tote bags.  Finally I thought I'd just do it and make a tote using her tutorial (here). 

Adrianne uses Soft and Stable in her bags instead of batting or interfacing. I happened to be in Stitchbird one Saturday (see here about why I'm often in Kilbirnie on a Saturday) and bought some Soft and Stable.  The fabric is also from Stitchbird. 


Her instructions are excellent and include a number of very good tips.  I added an inside pocket - next time it'll be bigger and maybe with a zip closure.  As I didn't have any tape for the handles I covered the off cuts of the Soft and Stable with some of the bag material.

Using the Soft and Stable was easy, one of the great things about it is the bag is mostly free-standing.  Also, it doesn't need to be quilted although I did.

I already have an order for a second one.  My daughter has chosen the fabric and wants a slightly smaller one - which is fine as I have a smaller piece of soft and stable left over.  Now to convince her that she could sew it or at least some of it!

Finally, for those in Wellington do go and visit Stitchbird's new shop - just a hop and a skip (not even a jump) across the driveway from their old shop.

3 comments:

Charlotte Scott said...

I think I need a new tote for Symposium. Do you think the soft and stable made a big difference?

Helen said...

It really did. When I bought it and had a closer look I wasn't too sure about how it would sew, handle, etc.

After using it I don't think I'd ever use batting again for a bag.

Elmosmate said...

Your bag looks great! The soft and stable is amazing. Stitchbird has it at a really good price too. I have made a few and you don't even need to quilt it. However if I made another I wasn't quilting I would use a thicker fabric.