purses are finished!

Soooooooo, I told you I was participating in a Simplicity Summer Tote Sew-Along using this pattern?

Well, I have completed the purses I started last month.

The fabric was part of my mom's stash from way back. (Pretty sure there's a '70s caftan or muumuu out there with this print goin' on...) I lined it with a color reminiscent of the bridesmaid dresses I forced coerced made lovingly asked my sisters to wear in 1992. I found shank buttons off a vintage jacket to use for the closure. I monogrammed the inner pocket with each sister's initials.

Here's a blow-by-blow pictorial of my process. (You can hang on for the entire ride -- or jump off now...)

Prepare by selecting fabrics & trimming pattern pieces.  Cut out pieces from chosen fabrics (exterior, lining & interlining) and interfacing. Apply interfacing to appropriate pieces and transfer markings.  Because I was planning on monogramming the pockets, that needed to be finished prior to assembling the pockets. From there I went ahead and attached them to the lining.

After making the little pleats & attaching the body to the band, I realized things would look a little more "finished" if I were to top-stitch there.

The pattern called for the button to be sewn on after the bag was finished. I don't know about you, but I like my lining to look nice & neat; which it would not with little stitches for the button hanging around. I chose upholstery thread to stitch the buttons. 

I also decided that since I was using a shank button for the closure, I would need to back it with a flat button so the stitches would not pull through through repeated usage of the closure. 

Doesn't that look nice against the top-stitching?

When attaching the lining to the body of the bag, one must be sure not to catch the handles in the stitching in the wrong place! I might or might not have had to rip out a couple stitches to free up a handle or two...

After the lining is attached & pressed, then the entire opening of the bag is top-stitched.

Now, just sit back & admire your bag(s) from all angles!

I'll be linking this post to Laurie's Tip-Me-Tuesday @