I’m not completely out of my creative slump but I’m making some progress. So I’ve been thinking about my next project and buying stuff I think I’ll need for the direction I’m going.
I bought this book several years ago and just love the stuff that’s in it.
I’ve followed this woman on Instagram for a few years. The stuff she makes is relatively simple, or maybe she just makes it look simple. But it’s all really nicely made and she has lovely taste in fabrics… although she tends to use a lot of neutrals. But I find her stuff really attractive.
Here’s a couple of bag patterns that are in this book. Simple. Incredibly well made. Impeccable.
I bought another bag pattern from her that wasn’t in the book. It’s similar to the one with the blue print above. I’ve never made it but want to.
Earlier this week she posted a link to a YouTube tutorial she did for a very simple tote bag. I decided that I’m going to make one just to see how it feels when it’s done. Here’s her tutorial.
I’m going to make it out of some denim I have on hand and will line it with a piece of fabric a friend of mine gave me a few months ago.
She said she uses the Pellon SF101 fused to the outer body of the bag. It’s a woven fusible interfacing. It should be a little more rigid and structured than the non woven fusible interfacing I use in my Frankenbags. So I bought some online today and picked it up at the store this evening. I think I might use it on the outer bag and the lining because I like that extra structure.
I also did some other online shopping this week. First, I bought some 1/2 inch metal snaps and some rivets.
That’s a lot of snaps and a lot of rivets! I’m guessing they may last me the rest of my life. I really like snaps. That click when they’re all nestled together is so satisfying. And I love the finished look that rivets give an item. So expect some rivets in my future. There’s just something about the look that the metal hardware brings to a bag that I love.
I also spent some time looking at various types of straps and webbing to use for bag handles. I couldn’t make myself pull the trigger on any of these because they don’t feel very high end to me. And I want something that feels a little nicer. Also, I’m hesitant to buy webbing online because you just have no idea how it feels, how substantial it is, or what the actual color is.
So I had an idea… biothane. If you’re not a dog person, you may not have any idea what biothane is. It’s a synthetic leather type material that’s used for dog leashes and harnesses. It’s also commonly used for horse bridles and lead lines. It’s water proof and cleans easily with soap and water. It should hold up really well to washing.
It’s a lovely material. It’s soft and pliable and comfortable in your hand. And it’s really durable. I have a feeling it will make really nice bag handles. At least I hope so since I just bought 100 feet of it! You can buy it in any color in the rainbow but I went with the brown to mimic the feel and look of leather.
I’m guessing I’ll probably use this with more practical fabrics, like denim and maybe some canvas, and not with KFC fabrics for this type of tote. But you never know. If I like it I might have to end up buying it in every color they have!
The snaps and rivets should be here tomorrow. The biothane won’t be here for a week or so. I might just use some black nylon webbing I have on hand for this first one. Maybe wrap the webbing with some of the denim. I probably won’t be able to wait until the biothane delivered.
I had an idea the other day for a fabric combo for a Frankenbag that I’m going to make for a friend. She loves teal and pink together. So this fabric came to mind immediately.
My friend also loves Aboriginal fabrics. So I’m going to dig into my stash this weekend and see if I can find a combo of some KFC fabrics and Aboriginal fabrics that will work with the pink and teal color way. It might really be fun. Or it might really be awful. I’m going to hope for really fun! I’m planning on doing more of the curved blocks I did a few months ago, like in this bag.
In fact….. just picture this bag but in pinks and teals instead of purples and greens. It will definitely be bold. It will be interesting to see what fabric combo I land on.
We’ve had lovely weather this week but it’s getting hot again this weekend. We’re supposed to hit 100 again on Sunday. So it looks like I’ll be spending Sunday at home… but I might get out early and play some pickleball before it gets hot.
Rico has his regular herding lesson tomorrow morning.
I might actually do the tune up on my Featherweight tomorrow! A friend of mine said it should take an hour or so. That sounds like a good project for a hot weekend. I’m itching to get going on making a lap quilt for my friend who gave me the machine!
agilejack 
I can’t wait to see what the colours look like together on your friends bag with pink and teal. I’ve neither heard of boithane but will look it up as I’ve never quite found the right handles for some of the bags I make and I’m making one for my Granddaughter which I want to look a little special. I will eagerly wait to see how your bag looks if you make one with the boithane straps. Thank you for all the help and tips you have given me from your posts.
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I’m not sure when my biothane will be delivered but I think it might be actually walking here! It will be a while before I can play with some.
Thanks for reading!
Anne
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All great inspirations! I go down a rabbit hole considering snaps. Could you provide a link to the snaps you like? Also the booth and, this sounds like a nice option for handles.
Cheers!
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Biothane not booth. Gotta love autocorrect.
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Here’s the snaps I bought: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089R1QZQ6?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Keep in mind that I haven’t actually used them yet so I can’t vouch for them.
Anne
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I’ve been following Svetlana on Y.T. for quite a while now and saw this tutorial the other day. She does do fine quality work and a pleasure to watch. Looking forward to seeing your pink/teal bag – you also have good combinations of fabrics and I loved the curved bags you made. Have a good weekend 🙂
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I’m having a hard time seeing the pink/teal bag in my head. I need to dig into my fabric and start pulling to see what will work.
anne
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I follow her too. I’ve always admired her fabric selections and yes , her little videos make it look simple. I’ve never tried any. Let’s see what you come up with it. I’m confident your creative process will have a positive outcome.
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My first bag will be essentially according to her pattern, but I’m going to use all the width of a half yard… so just a little bigger. After that, I’ll start adding features.
Anne
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I totally get your intrigue with the clicking sound that snaps make!! I love the sound of the click/tap when I set my purse down on a table and the four little feet on the bottom of the purse hits the surface! “clicking click”!
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These little things make a difference!
Anne
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I’ve also been following Svetlana for quite awhile and I agree with what you and the others say- her projects are quite lovely! Do provide a link for your snaps- I’ve been using another brand and they just aren’t performing well at all. We are having a hot and very sticky day here in Wisconsin today- very oppressive! I don’t do well in the humidity so inside it will be! There’s always something to do in the sewing room!
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Here’s the snaps I bought. Keep in mind that I haven’t used them yet so can’t vouch for them.
Anne
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I was also looking for some webbing for some bags I was making. I went to a local craft store and I couldn’t believe how thin and hard it felt . The quality had really going down since I last bought some. So I went back to my go-to place. I ordered online from scrapworks.com. Their strapping is quality. You can get it in a lightweight or heavyweight. They also have many colors and I think the price is reasonable. I, too, have been thinking about getting rivets. So maybe I’ll give that a go. Can you post a link for where you got the rivets?
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I’ve used Strapworks in the past for the webbing I used for my animal feedbag totes. I want something a little more high end than nylon webbing for these bags.
Anne
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I also love sotak patterns. I recently made the Lola pouch pattern.
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they’re really nice patterns.
Anne
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I love Svetlana’s patterns made a few things, and do you have a link for the biothane that you picked, quite a jungle out there looking for it.Thank you. I love your frankenbags , I have made many of them in my own version.
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Here’s the link to the biothane I bought, I did buy 100 feet! It’s a bit of a commitment. https://www.twohorsetack.com/p-3559-any-width-medium-brown-br522-super-heavy-beta-biothane-bulk-100ft-roll.aspx
they have all kinds of colors and widths. you can go crazy there.
Anne
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Love her patterns! I have a few I have been sewing up!
I ordered a load of strap material through Sailrite. Really nice products, great CS and turnaround. I chose the polyester webbing in 1″ and 1.5″. Beautiful, nice hand and not cheap looking.
I cannot wait to see your creations as you always add your personal flair to the project!
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Oh wow. they have a lot of stuff! I’ll have to remember this for the future.
You can be confident that I won’t execute the pattern as written for very long!
Anne
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I also bought Svetlana Sotak’s book after discovering it in my public library. Your review of her work is RIGHT ON!
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There really is something impressive about her work. it’s all really perfect. And her videos are so easy to follow and make things really clear… demonstrate how easy it is to make these things!
Anne
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What are KFC fabrics?
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Kaffe Fassett Collective. It’s all the bright prints I use.
Anne
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I also love teal and pink, but a darker pink like raspberry. I like the idea of biothane’s washability. Sounds perfect for totes. And I remember you making the aboriginal curves bag and I STILL love it! Gotta try this. It’s officially “on my list”!.
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I’m having a hard time picturing the teal and pink fabrics in my head. Might be challenging to find the right fabric but it will be fun!
Anne
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Funny, I’ve been thinking about heavier bags. Even considering learning how to work with leather for handles. I’m interested in making bags out of the waxed canvas materials with leather accents… some day! I love that teal and pink together! I’m sure your bag will be beautiful and your friend will love it! Thanks for the information on Svetlana! I will definitely watch that video and look her up. Her book looks amazing! Hot, hot hot here in MA. Our garden is really struggling. I don’t think we’ve mown the lawn in over a month. One good result is we’ve had hardly any mosquitos! Jan in MA
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I love the waxed canvas. But it’s really expensive and impossible to find a selection locally where you can actually feel it and have a good selection of colors. I wish I had a good local source for it.
Anne
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I know you are going to ‘suck me in’ to the new bags you are interested in making like you did with the Frankenbags. Just love them. I haven’t used rivets or grommets so I’m patiently waiting for your expertise with the new products.
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I’m going to make a few really simple ones first, then start thinking about alterations… pockets, zippers, handles, etc…
Anne
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That red/orange fabric is fab! Did your friend dye it? I don’t know why I’m in such an orange mode lately!
Thanks for showing us the Sotak book. I have purchased a number of her bag patterns lately (Elliott, Norfolk, Lola, Sheridan, and The Essential Pouch) but haven’t made any yet. I’m halfway through making these vintage fabric bags for my cousin, and then I can choose what I want to make next. Yea!
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My friend did not dye the fabric. it’s printed but looks like a batik.
I’m going to dig into that simple Sotak tote today!
Anne
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Can’t wait to see what you come up with! I just found a bag of grommets and the tool in my cabinet when I was looking for something. I have never used them and not even sure where I got them lol. Probably in a thrift store bag.
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I have hundreds of grommets! Several years ago I was making drawstring back packs. Only made five or six and lost interest. No idea what I’ll ever do with all these gromets!
Anne
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I used to make western shirts for my dad back in the 1950s-70s and used lots of snaps. Also used them for baby clothes (inside seam of legs) for easy diaper changes. Back then it was pounding them on with a hammer with a block of wood underneath. Then they came out with the plier like tool. I’m not sure how your new tools for then will work. I will be looking forward to seeing how you like doing the rivets. They intrigue me.
I recognize that red/rust fabric your friend gave you, I wonder if I still have any of it.
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I already have a bunch of the snaps with the pretty colored glass faces, but the pounding tools came with them and I couldn’t get them installed without cracking the glass top. The tools that came with these snaps is the same type tool but I’m hoping it will work better with all metal snaps.
That fabric my friend gave me has Andover PATT2889 on the selvedge.
Anne
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I used the pearl top snaps on some of my dad’s shirts and had to be very careful to not crack them. All metal ones are more successful.
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Yup. that’s why I bought the all metal ones!
Anne
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How do you think your Bernina will hold up to sewing biothane?
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I don’t have any issue sewing over the vinyl handles I make so I’m confident it will be no problem. But I won’t know for sure until I get it and can give it a try.
Anne
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Good answer! Blog about it or let me know please. I’ve been leery of putting my Berninas through tougher substances such as vinyl, thin leather, biothane. Good thought tho, let me ask the repairman!!
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Good idea to ask the repairman. I’m going to be getting some leather needles.
Anne
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Where do you buy biothane?
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You can find it by the foot on Etsy. I committed to 100 feet and bought it a Two Horse Tack. You can find them with a Google search.
Anne
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Good luck with the bags, hope the creative slump quickly disappears and you get back into the swing of things.The Philip Jacobs fabric you show is one of my favourites, I bought far too much when this was released but it will certainly be used!
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I’m feeling better. Actually wanting to make SOMETHING so that’s good!
I actually don’t have any of that fabric! And I can’t figure out why. So I’m going to need to order some to get moving on that idea.
Anne
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I buy fabulous ‘climbers’ webbing from R.E.I. it comes in beautiful colours and perfect for bags I use it a lot and highly recommend it. The machine sews it just fine also.
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I’ll have to check it out. I used to buy cord and rope there that I used to make dog leashes. it tends to be somewhat expensive.
Anne
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Hi… just in case you don’t know that piece of fabric is from a designer in phila area who did beautiful fabric designs .. sadly she closed her shop a few years back. Her name is Lonnie Rossie.
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Thanks! These wasn’t much info on the selvedge.
Anne
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