semi-tutorial: Goodwill purse

So here it is. My Goodwill purse. I spent $3.49 on the skirt and 99 cents on the tie. Luckily, I already had a matching fabric for the liner and lots of thread.

To begin, I took A LOT of inspiration from U-handblogs tutorial for her Pleated Pouch of Apples.

First I cut out a pattern. Mine was a bit larger than the one from the tutorial. It was 14in at the top, 17in at the bottom and about 12.5in tall.

Then, I ironed my fabric... After the dog got out of the way.

I cut out 2 pieces each of the lining and a heavy felt that I put between the outer layer and the lining.

I ended up tearing apart the skirt at the seams. I was going to try to make the waistband work in my favor, but it was just a bit too wide.

Then I cut out two pieces based on my pattern.

I pinned the lining pieces right side in and then the heavy felt to the outer fabric. Then I started constructing the bag. This is definitely a good time to refer to U-handblog! Otherwise, this would be the longest post ever. ;)

When I was finished constructing the body of the bag, I moved onto the tab and straps. Above is where I cut off the tip of the tie to create the flap.

The most difficult part of this step was getting the folded tie and the bag to fit under the needle. Next time I would add this to the outer layer BEFORE sewing in the lining. Can you tell this is my second bag ever?

After the tab, I sewed on the strap. I decided to keep the top of the tie looking like normal instead of hemming it. I thought this looked pretty cool.

Here is the finished product. Not bad! I definitely learned a lot about bag making during this process.

Although it only took me a few hours to complete, I think I've learned a few tricks to speed up the process. And next time I will invest in 2 straps to make the bag sturdier and I will add an interior pocket. But for a beginner bag, I think it looks pretty cool.