This is my fourth Sew Sweetness bag and all the patterns have been easy to follow with great results! Sarah and Sew, Mama, Sew are sponsoring a bag-making contest using Sew Sweetness patterns. There have been dozens of gorgeous bags entered! Check them out here.
Here is my version of the free Sawyer Bag tutorial from Sew Sweetness. This is a simple, tote style bag that measures approx. 16"L x 14"w x 3"D. It has long accent handle strips and O-ring hardware for some detail. It would be a great beginner bag or quick gift. This bag took about 4 hrs to sew because of the quilting, but otherwise would be about a 2 hr project.
I like to have a bag closure and decided to add a recessed zippered top panel. I used a technique similar to this tutorial from Charmed Liebling. It would also be quick & easy to add a magnetic snap closure instead. No pockets are included in the original pattern, so I added a double patch pocket and zippered pocket inside, along with a key clasp. I also substituted D-rings, as I could not find O-rings locally.
I am a very novice quilter, but I was inspired after seeing some Quilt-as-you-go blocks, as shown in this tutorial (also a great bag pattern!) and this one. I had purchased a big bag of designer scraps from the Michael Levine Loft store in LA for only $2 and thought this would be a perfect chance to use them. Most of the fabrics I chose were in greens & blues from Free Spirit designers. Both the front and back panels are quilted.
The quilting was done on cotton batting. I used Pellon 70 to add stiffness and shape to the lining and a heavy interfacing for the straps. I like to use one of my older, mechanical sewing machines, a Viking 1010 or Pfaff 360, for bag-making. They are great for sewing through heavy fabrics & interfacings, something my low-end Janome can't handle.
If one can ignore the not-so-straight quilting and imperfect rectangles, this is a fantastic bag! I am really happy with it. It will be hard to give away this Christmas!
Check out more free Sew Sweetness tutorials here and Sarah's pattern shop here. I just bought her Big City Bags book and would like to sew one of everything!
