Coastline Blog Tour - Sharon Holland Designs for Art Gallery Fabrics

Sharon Holland's new line for Art Gallery Fabrics is Coastline - and I get to share the knit skirt and canvas tote bag I made with fabric from this line.  This is the second day of the Coastline Blog Tour - so be sure to visit Sharon Holland to get all the information and full schedule for the tour which continues through February 19.  Heidi at FabricMutt kicked off the tour yesterday with a Brass Ring Pillow quilted with Coastline fabric and tomorrow you can see the mermaid maxi tutorial and Sugar Pop top from Lisa at Mabey She Made It.

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Handbag Christmas Gifts

I made three handbags as gifts to give at Christmas.

The first was a Jenna Tote bag I made for my mom.  The pattern is from SOTAK Handmade.  I've made it before (see it here) and love the size and construction.  I used pre-quilted fabric remnants from Joann Fabric and webbing for straps.  I was really happy with the way this one turned out.

A photo posted by Bethany (@sewnotperfectbethany) on Dec 26, 2015 at 9:38am PST

The second bag was this embossed leather clutch for my sister-in-law.  I purchased the leather as a remnant from The Leather Hide Store.  I love how unique it is.  It is a fairly stiff leather, so maybe not ideal for a foldover clutch.  The pattern was a basic design I drafted myself.  I used fabric from Cultivate by Bonnie Christine for Art Gallery Fabrics for the lining.

A photo posted by Bethany (@sewnotperfectbethany) on Dec 26, 2015 at 9:47am PST

The third bag was for another sister-in-law and was another foldover clutch that I designed myself (tutorial anyone?).  It is larger in size, has a straighter zipper (instead of the angled edges), and a hand strap.  I used Cotton and Steel (Stampede in navy from the August collection) fabric for the exterior and a solid cotton or the lining.  This leather is also part of a remnant from The Leather Hide Store.  It is super soft and was great for the clutch.  Sadly, my picture of it stinks. 

Giveaway Day at Sew Mama Sew from Sew Not Perfect

It's Giveaway Day at Sew Mama Sew!  Thank you for stopping by (if you aren't familiar with Giveaway Day - follow this link!)  I've got an easy giveaway entry process in the Rafflecopter below for the items pictures above.  No hoops to jump through.  I know it's a frantic time rushing to enter all the giveaways, but I'd be so grateful if you took a couple minutes to read my post.  We could be new blogging or social media besties - you never know (especially if you enjoy tutorials, garment and handbag sewing, or are considering starting a bit of quilting, like me)!

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Jenna Tote Bag from S.O.T.A.K. Handmade

What a great tote bag Svetlana from S.O.T.A.K Handmade has designed!  The Jenna Tote pdf sewing pattern was released last week and I had the opportunity to help test the pattern.  Although I am not usually one to carry around a tote bag, the spacious front pocket, roomy back zipper compartment, and interior pocket make this medium-sized tote bag easy to keep organized; so I've been carrying it every day since I finished sewing it.

*Disclosure: I received this pattern for free for the purpose of pattern testing.   The only testing requirements were to sew the bag and submit comments, suggestions and one picture.  The views expressed here are my own and not required as part of testing or influenced by the designer.

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Swoon Coraline Clutch from Green Corduroy Pants {Upcycle}

The Coraline Clutch from Swoon Patterns (*affiliate link) has been on my "Want to Sew" list for quite a while.  I finally sewed one and love it!  Hopefully someone likes her as much as I do, since this bag is headed to a local silent auction as a donation.  The outer fabric is corduroy, upcycled from a pair of pants that a friend gave to me thinking I could use them for a sewing project (thoughtful friend!).  I love the color and the way the corduroy gives shape and stability to the clutch.  I used a metallic gold zipper that I bought at JoAnn fabric, which is also where I purchased the lining fabric.

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Ethel Tote Bag from Swoon Sewing Patterns

Do you Swoon?  (As in, do you love sewing the handbag patterns designed by Alicia of Swoon Sewing Patterns?)  I do!  Ethel is free tote bag pattern from Swoon and a great way to try out a pattern from Swoon, if you haven't already. (Swoon has several free patterns here)

*this post contains my affiliate links for Swoon.  I received this pattern for free - because everyone can!  If you use my links and make a purchase, I will receive a portion of the sale.  If making money were a motive for this post, I would not be reviewing a free pattern (ha!).  UPDATE Sept 2015 - Alicia at Swoon has updated the Ethel pattern since I sewed this version.  The newer version features a higher pocket, new diagrams, and different interfacing (with the introduction of Pellon's new Flex Foam)  You can see her post about the new Ethel here.

Sewing Ethel is not difficult.  I would not say handbags are my forte, but I've made a few other Swoon bags (but just realized I never blogged about any of them!  You can spot a picture of one of my Glendas in the collage in this post).  I think Alicia does a great job making the illustrations and instructions clear to follow.  The only modifications I made for this bag were to lengthen the shoulder straps a few inches and sew the lining with a larger seam allowance.  The lining and main fabric are cut from the same pattern pieces, so I find that it helps to keep the lining from bunching up inside if I use a larger seam allowance when sewing those pieces.  I forgot to do this for the bottom, and I got a ripple which I am not proud of (and a blurry picture of it, too).

The Ethel tote from Swoon is designed with a front slot pocket, an interior zip pocket, and an interior slot pocket; but, you can easily add, modify or remove pockets to suit your own vision for the bag.  I sewed a divison in the interior pocket, to hold smaller items in place better, such as a cell phone or pens.

This particular Ethel tote was a thank you gift.  The recipient's daughter helped me pick out fabric she thought her mom would like and after I sewed the bag, I stuffed it with snacks and little gifts.  I was really impressed with how much the bag held.

The free Ethel Tote bag pattern is designed to be made from quilting cotton, but I used home decorator fabric and still used the interfacing and fusible fleece that the pattern calls for.  The finished bag is very sturdy.  When I cut this bag, I cut three others, which are now in my UFO pile.  I'm eager to finish those as well as a few other Swoon Sewing Pattern handbags I have on my to-do list.  Any guesses how long it will take me?  I cut them in February.  Interfaced them in May, I think.  Am I the only one who does that?!

You can read more about Alicia from Swoon in my interview with her and you can join the Swoon Sewing Patterns Facebook group to share ideas and tips.