Holiday bag charms

by Linda Theil

Okay, I've made a LOT of these little tiny backpacks, and they are a lot of work! Even in my stripped-down version of Carolina Little Stitches' "Bitty Bug Pack" pattern there are 20 separate pattern items that have to be cut, fused, clipped, and sewn --.not least of all, that darn gusset!

But since I went completely bonkers over Mia Charro's "Christmas Squad" collection for Free Spirit Fabrics, I had to justify the purchase by actually using the fabric.

Initially I thought the absolutely great "multi panel" animals could be used for the front of the little bag, but the individual animal portraits were too big, so I ended up using an all-over print from the collection. I fussy-cut the animals for each of the nine minis I decided to make for holiday luncheon favors.

I also fussy-cut the backpack backs from another print in the "Christmas Squad" collection. The photo below shows one of the fussy-cut back pieces; each back featured a different holiday message.

I used those great multi-panel portraits for the little inside pockets. I sewed an extention on both sides of each of the portraits to make them wide enough to form the interior pocket, and I sewed on a piece of fabric of equal size to form the pocket lining.

I cut those dreaded gussets from yet another fabric from the collection.

And I used a loop to add a little clip so that the mini-backpacks could be attached to any bag as a holiday charm.

The finished backpacks were filled with holiday foil-wrapped Hershey Kisses.

And packed up for their trip to Brighton Bar & Grill.

Everyone loved them!

For more "Bitty Bug Pack" info, visit the AppletonDance post,
"Backpack-ettes".

Comments

Starbucks mini-sling

by Linda Theil A bagmaker from the Kandou Patterns Community on FaceBook posted a bag featuring the Kandou "Mini-Traveler Sling" pattern using a Starbucks coffee bag as part of the fabrication. I am from Pittsburgh, so perhaps it comes naturally that I am intrigued by the use of iconic advertising in works of art, so I asked Alisa to please buy me some Starbucks coffee so that I could sew with the bags. I am also a fan of this slim, six-by-twelve-inch sling pattern that has three pockets and no inside! Alisa was particularly fond of the "Brown Sugar Cinnamon" limited edition bag, so I used this pink and gold bag for my first Starbucks sling. For the body of the bag, I used a cotton from the "Seedlings" collection by Katarina Rocella for Art Gallery Fabrics. The lining is Roccella's "Stacked Stones" design from her "Abstract Art" collection, also for AGF. "Stacked Stones" from "Abstract Art" collection by K. Rocc...

Origami wallet

by Linda Theil This little Lewis Men's Wallet pattern by Diane Spencer-Ogg is one of the quickest and cleverest wallets I've ever seen. The single-pattern-piece construction folds together like a work of origami. The wallet features several card slots and a slip pocket. Of the many fastening options available, I like the Velcro hook-and-loop fastener for security and ease of use. This little wallet is especially nice for kids. Back of wallet with AppletonDance badge applied.

Diane's Archie

by Linda Theil Diane Spencer-Ogg, owner of Spencer-Ogg, Ltd. in Greater Manchester, UK, released a new mini-duffle pattern she calls "Arch Zipper Pouches" in two sizes with printable pattern pieces and video tuturial. Her video introduction can be viewed at the end of this post. As always, Spencer-Ogg has hit the ball out of the park with the elegance of her design and the precision of her process. I have made two of the 10x8x4-inch large-sized Archies -- as her fans have dubbed the new pattern. The bag shown above is made of Mora Faux Leather in grape from Emmaline Bags of Alberta, Canada. The interior, shown below, is cotton from the "Art History" collection by Marcia Derse for Windham Fabrics. For my second Archie, I quilted a panel from the "Guess How Much I Love You" collection by Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram for Clothworks. With this new design, Spencer-Ogg debuts an updated pattern-production method that provides printable pattern pieces and a c...

Appleton Dance

Search This Blog