Bags, Bags, Bags...

Hello again,

well I was up all last night making my new bag. It is the Rebeka Lambert Pleated Tote. I really love this pattern.

I wanted a neutral fabric so I made it out of a plain grey quilting cotton and a grey and white striped quilting cotton for the lining. I did have a couple of little issues in making this bag though. I had already made the Reversible Bucket Bag using the plain grey fabric as the lining and so when it came time to make the pleated tote I had already cut out the lining and one piece of the exterior. When I went to cut out the second piece of the exterior I realised I didn't have quite enough fabric left. The best I could do is cut the piece out with a small rectangle missing in the corner. I thought to myself "What am I going to do?" So I came up with some kind of a solution. I cut a little scrap of the plain grey and zigzaged it to finish the pattern piece. It looked realy ugly though so I took the same fabric I used for the internal pocket and cut out one of the butterflies. I stitched this over the repair.  My husband thought the finished result made it look like a label from a store bought bag. (Isn't he sweet) I put it at the back so it doesn't stand out too bad.                                                                                                  

Another thing I had a problem with was that I didn't have enough medium weight interfacing for this bag so I had to use a light weight interfacing instead. I was worried that it wouldn't be stiff enough but I actually really like the bag the way it is. It has a much softer finish and is really comfy looking. I really love the thickness and length of the handles and overall size of the bag. The pleats give a feminine touch and I am HAPPY!

Here are some pics of my other bags I made using the Reversible Bucket Bag pattern.

The coloured bag was my first attempt. I'm pretty happy with this bag. It was the first time I made my own bias binding and was really happy with the result. The second attempt at this bag was with the butterfly fabric. I used shop bought bias binding and I was not as happy with this. I really think it is worth making your own. That way you can perfectly match it with the fabric of your bag and it will most likely be much better quality (thicker).