The Handbag Project started with one quilt - roughly 40" x 60" - that I didn't know what to do with anymore. You can see how much room it occupied in the picture above. Behind it is a double size round robin quilt in beige, pink, and blue. With a round robin, the owner makes the center block and then any number of people in a group add to it border by border until it's finished and returned. Four people worked on this one. Obviously, I started it off wrong because it is so beige, so pastel, so NOT me. It's been sitting in my cupboard for close to twenty years. Instead of finishing it, I'm using it for...
... batting. Any time that I need to layer and quilt a section for one of the bags, I use a chunk off the quilt. For some of you, that's sacrilegious. Oh well! To me, it feels purposeful. The quilt was sitting around unloved, unwanted, useless and now it has purpose and meaning. And I'm recycling. And I'm not spending money. This is PERFECT.
Remember when I talked about scraps breeding in the night? This is the pile of "stuff" after making the first two handbags. It was sitting on the floor between my work station and the closet. If this is after two, can you imagine the mess after nine? I can't work - and I get really crabby - when my studio is a mess so I'll be cleaning up after each bag.
The second bag is for Ruth S. Her hands were both on the beige section of the background and close to the outside edge. I started with the shapes above and then barely used any of it as you'll see in the finished project. The scraps were added back into the pile.
In my stash, there was more of the striped batik she had chosen for one hand so I used it for the lining. The inside pockets were made from a pink/blue/dotted batik print that I quilted for the sides and used un-quilted for the pockets and the inside of the handles. The outside of the handles is denim with pink stitching.
The bag is finished except for the closure. I've been trying out different ideas in my mind and think I've settled on sewing a button center front on each side with a snap inside. That way, the bag can be used with either side forward. The finished size is 13 1/2" x 16 1/2" which is large enough for a beach, shopping, knitting, or project bag and most likely too big for a purse. The design is based on McCall's 5822 with some modifications.
Tucked inside the pattern envelope was the sales receipt which tells me that MaryAnn was on cash the day I bought it because she always tucks the receipts inside. It also tells me the date - June 2, 2009 - which leads me to wonder why did I buy a pattern two and a half years ago that I never used until now. While it's nice not to have to purchase it at this point, why did I then? PLUS... it's not a difficult bag. I didn't really need a pattern, not even for the instructions which are pretty basic. All so strange and makes me ponder my pattern buying habits once again.
Talk soon - Myrna
Grateful - creative company
I think most of us have patterns in the stash we,ve never used. I know I have but like you can't remember what the original purpose was. I do like the handbags you are making and think reusing quilts that you will not use in any other way is very creative and sensible. Love to read what you are up to.
ReplyDeleteBrenda in the Boro UK
You are daring to cut up that quilt. And good for you!
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