Mav Pack

Linds Handmade Designs has done it again! She already has another new pattern out, just released yesterday, in fact. I’d like to see inside that mind of hers… it must be constantly swirling with ideas for new bags that just MUST come out into a pattern!

I was fortunate once again to be able to test the latest, the Mav Pack. It’s a smallish (about 7”x5”x2”) sling bag that can comfortably be worn on one’s front or back. It’s even a fun size to use for a child. Here’s the front view of mine.

The fabric is a barkcloth, gifted to me by a friend who was destashing. So cute, right? Here’s the back.

The side view, with a better look at the cool strap ends made from faux leather.

There’s one zippered pocket on the inside. The fabric I used is a piece I’d bought on sale 30 or so years ago, thinking I’d find a use for it someday. I was right! Ha!

The pattern suggests webbing for the strap, but since I only had one in the right width but not the right color, I decided to make my own strap. The khaki-colored twill seemed a bit boring, so I added a couple extra lines of stitching to give it a hint of color to match the bag some more.

As Linds said, wearing it in front is so handy because all your stuff is ‘right there’ and easy to get at.

(Don’t you love how my shirt and bathroom colors are so coordinating? 😁)

Have you ever tried to take a photo of your back? Let me tell you, it ain’t easy! I deleted many shots before I finally got one I could crop to make work!

This time I got my post written in time that you can take advantage of the pattern (as well as everything else in her shop) being at a 20% discount through tomorrow (3-5-23). I believe she has some of the many samples she made for sale, too, if you’re not a sewer yourself. So head on over to Linds Handmade Designs to take a look!

Andrew Trifold Wallet

Whoops! I guess it’s been a while since I posted anything (again). Let’s remedy that right now!

This is the only thing I’ve sewn since the last post. (Christmas and other things got in the way.) It was another pattern test for Linds Handmade Designs. Want to guess what it is?

Maybe this folded-up version of the above will help.

If you guessed a wallet, you were correct. Of course the title of the post might have helped you out a bit, too. Ha.

Here’s what it looks like on the inside.

Loaded up it looks like this.

It has a zippered pocket for cash, a zippered coin pocket, two card slots, and a clear vinyl ID pocket. Linds designed this with her young boys in mind, so the important things ($$) are secured, including the entire wallet which snaps closed. (There is also a velcro closure option in the pattern.)

The pattern is designed for non-fraying fabrics like waterproof canvas (which I used in mine), cork or leather, as there are raw edges inside.

Linds suggested that a D-ring could be added so that it could hang from a wristlet strap or lanyard. I gave this wallet to Courtney (to hold her newly-acquired DRIVER’S LICENSE!!), and she chose to have a lanyard for it. I managed to get a quick photo of her wearing it when we were over celebrating her 16th BIRTHDAY last night! (The years keep going by faster all the time!😅)

The Andrew Trifold Wallet is a quick, easy sew, and it’s domestic machine friendly using waterproof canvas. The pattern can be found here. Try one… it’s fun! You may find you need to make more than one. 😁

Ashley Clutch Wallets

My latest sewing project was another pattern test for Linds Handmade Designs. When she asked, in her Facebook testers group, who would be able to test this round, she didn’t even show us what we would be making! I was a bit hesitant to agree to test sight unseen, but I was assured it would be quick and easy. So of course I had to take the challenge.

It was indeed a quick sew (although for me that meant not quite as slow as my usual😜). It was fun to sew! Until I got to the gussets. I have to say they were a bit of a challenge, especially since I’d chosen to make my first one using faux leather. Those seams were thick and in small areas. They required lots of Wonder Clips.

 

But my faithful 52-year-old Kenmore and I made it through, with some patience, hand cranking, and a big (#16) topstitching needle. I loved the final result! Here is my Ashley Clutch Wallet:

It’s a small bag, as you can tell by my hand. It is secured with a bar clasp, and it has a chain shoulder strap.

The inside has three card slots and a zipper pocket on each side.

It’s just big enough to carry your cell phone and a few essentials on that fancy night out.

I made those card slots from waterproof canvas. The other fabric is one of Jess’s barkcloth designs, with quilting cotton in the pockets.

After I finished that one, I decided to try another using cotton fabric to see if the gussets would be a lot easier to sew. They were indeed less challenging… but I still wouldn’t call them “easy”. 

Here’s my second Ashley Clutch Wallet:

The fabric is left over from a dress I’d made for Jess around 30 years ago. I’ve always loved it and was glad to find a good use for more of it. I again used WPC for the card slots. It makes such a great lining for bags, and it also adds some sturdiness.

I didn’t put a strap on this one, so it’s just a clutch. It’s for me. Do you think I’ll ever have a fancy date to take it on??? Okay… I won’t wait that long to use it. 😄

I got my chain and bar clasp from Amazon. I wanted something less expensive for experimenting. The chain is very nice. The clasp is just okay.

You can find the Ashley Clutch Wallet pattern here. It includes SVG files for those who have cutting machines, and as with all of Linds’ patterns, there’s a video tutorial that goes with the pattern. ALSO, now a number of Linds’ patterns are available in print form, including this one, for those who don’t have printers or just don’t like printing and assembling patterns.

Geranium Top #3

A few weeks ago I finished a project that I couldn’t show you until it had been received, because it was a gift for a very special recipient. It had to go all the way to eastern Canada, so that took nearly two weeks. Since then I’ve just been procrastinating on writing this post. Sound like me? Yup.

The gift was something I’ve sewn a couple of before: the top version of the Geranium Dress, from the pattern by Rae Hoekstra of Made By Rae. The fabric is Jess’s babywale corduroy that she designed for Cloud9 Fabrics a few years ago. Here is the Geranium Top!

I happened to have some KAMsnaps that were perfect for the back closure. Here’s a closer look:

Just for fun, I took a photo of it on my American Girl doll… so you have something for size reference. I used the 6-12 months size of the pattern. Yeah, it’s a little big on her. :)

But guess what?! You get to see it on the real baby, who is about 4-1/2 months old in these pics. It fits her pretty well now, as a dress, over a onesie. So she should be able to get use out of it for quite a while. 

What a cutie, huh? Speaking of the onesie, did you notice how perfectly it goes with the top, with the little white flowers on it? I did not plan that. It was totally coincidental that her grandma had gotten it for her shortly before my gift had even arrived. Amazing! I love it!

CUTENESS OVERLOAD!!

If you want to see the other two tops I made from the same pattern, you can find them here. They are also made from Jess’s corduroy, just different prints from that line.

SnackPack

 I made a backpack!

Okay, it’s actually a mini-mini backpack. 

It’s not really even a backpack, but instead a SnackPack! The straps are just for cuteness… or to use as grab handles. It’s insulated and has a mesh pocket that can hold an ice pack to keep your snacks/water cold, or just hold the snacks themselves.

It can hold quite a lot, actually. Here it is holding a few things I had handy, but it could hold plenty more.

It wouldn’t even have to be insulated, and it could have a multitude of uses. I know of someone using hers to hold her taller cosmetics.

This was actually a pattern test for Dog Under My Desk, and the SnackPack pattern can be purchased here. Now would be a great time to buy it as well as other patterns, because everything in the shop is discounted 20% through Halloween!

The fabrics I used are from Jess’s Typography collection of quilting cotton that she designed for Cloud9 Fabrics a few years ago. The hardest part of making the bag was choosing the fabric/zipper/zipper pull/elastic combo from supplies I had on hand. That always takes me almost longer than making the bag itself!

I’ve had my bag done for a while, but just as Erin was about to launch the pattern, she and her whole family got covid. Ugh… covid! But thanks to being vaccinated, no one got overly sick. Hurray… vaccinations!