I love Flickr. And I love swapping on Flickr. For awhile, I was trying to manage six to ten swaps at a time and it was just too much! I wasn’t able to really put in the thought and effort I wanted to, so I decided to simplify. I try and stick to only one at a time right now, and I chose the ‘Goodie Bag’ swap for this round. My partner seems to love linen and love Anna Maria. She has a lifestyle a lot like mine and needs to have a bag that can keep up. With that in mind, I tackled the ‘Expandable Pack It In’ Bag from U-Handbags.
What do you think?
I signed up for an advanced bag, and I feel like this pattern fits the bill. The directions are very clear and there are a lot of great photos. The only thing I struggled with were the markings for the casings. I swear I measured, but once the bag was sewn together, the markings and the ties didn’t match up. But, no worries. Since the bag hadn’t been sewn shut, I was able to make it work!
This tote bag has a zipper (which I am woefully out of practice on). It also has eyelets, which I had never before tried. But, what is life without a little excitement, right?
The eyelets went in fine (after I bought the right tool) and then I got to tackle magnetic snaps (also for the first time). These were a breeze.
And overall, I am happy with the resulting bag. I am only sad I have to send it away! But, it would be greedy of me to keep it, since I received this amazing parcel from Kelly:
See that mermaid notebook cover. I saw it in her photostream and swooned. And now its mine! I am one very lucky duck!
I love the way that linen pairs with the prints! You did a great job. 🙂 I’m on vacation, but cannot wait to get home and hopefully have a goodie bag waiting for me!
Holy moly! 6-10 swaps at a time? That is something! Love that bag though, fantastic job. The eyelets are adorable. Do you need special fabric eyelets or will regular eyelets for paper work?
The linen with the prints is *gorgeous* – very stylish indeed. 🙂
Phew, at 6-10 swaps at a time no wonder you decided to cut back lol
Looks like you picked the perfect swap this time though, great haul from your partner, and love the bag you created to send out too, obviously you’ll need to make yourself one now ;o)
I love the combo of linen and Loulouthi! I have been sewing with Loulouthi this week, as well — I LOVE it!!!
wowsers! i DO love that bag! I bet it is so convenient and awesome!!! good job girl!
The bag you made is lovely. So, so nice! My only question is – can you lift it once you fill it up?
And, I just want you to know that I’m expecting some help on the magnetic snaps next time I visit.