I posted my sister’s Baptism yesterday and today I’ve got a post about the little gift I put together for her.
You know how the first time you make something there’s usually some kinks to work out and the second one is usually much better? That’s totally the case here.
I made her a tote bag very similar to my library tote from a few weeks ago, but I changed up a couple things from my first experience. Since I did use a lining fabric, I went ahead and made a few modifications to make it nicely reversible.
I put the pocket on the inside panel because I just thought the outside fabric was so darn pretty I didn’t want to interrupt it with a pocket.
I also made wide straps on this one. Partly because I like the look of the strap and the fabric and partly because Mr. Fix-It keeps telling me that my straps are too small for how much stuff someone could cram into one of my bags. I like how they turned out, although they’re not a typical tote bag strap.
On this one I used some wide Stampin’ Up! ribbon as the edge trim. This was a little trickier than the extra-wide double fold seam binding I’ve fallen in love with recently. It was much thicker and it didn’t hold the crease well when I ironed it in half so there was a lot of pinning involved. Took a little more time to sew on the outside edge of the bag. But once again, my indispensable needle-down feature on Bessie got me through. And the color was a perfect match!
I also inserted a copy of Ann Voskamp’s book 1,000 Gifts. It’s a powerful book. Especially for anyone that’s ever suffered with depression or anxiety, or struggled to find happiness through life’s daily stress. (Yep, that would be us motherless daughters and mothers in a nutshell.) I’m really happy with how it turned out!
Have you worked on anything that made you smile lately? Something that made you think, “wow–look what I made!” If yo’ve posted about it on your blog or have a link to a picture, I’d love to see it!!
And I’m pretty sure there’s some new totes and pockets posted over at the store this week, so be sure to stop by and check them out. I’m crazy about some new orange blossom fabric I bought!
