Big-City Bags...the Final edition

This month for the BigCity Bags SAL (button on my side bar) we could sew up any of the bags in the book.  Since my favorite bag in the book is the Chandelier Swing bag,that is the one I chose to make.

All year long we have been sewing the bags from the book and not once have I used any of Sara Lawson's fabric.  Until now anyway!  For this one I broke into my FQ bundle of Jungle Avenue that I had been hording petting and trying not to drool on ;)

Normally I am not much of a "pink"girl,but I really love this text print!  Not to mention that some of the bundle made a Sew Together bag for someone for a Christmas gift.

The main reason this bag is my favorite is because of the size.  It just holds the essentials,which is what I usually pack around.

A peek inside,love this street map print too!

How about one with an exotic flair?  This one was made with a piece I cut wrong for the Sound Check bag.

I need to stock up on zippers before the month ends and the discount runs out!  I was hoping to use a gold or black zip,but since all three of my black zips went into the Sew Together bag...

The goldish print inside does not really match,but since it is inside it is okay.  This has been such a fun year with lots of bags!  My skills have grown exponentially since the beginning of the year.  Hardware has been tried and some of it mastered.  Some still needing more practice runs.

I hope you will join me next year as my bag making (and sewing in general) continues!  I heard recently Sara has sent a new book to her editor...and I have already signed up for the next edition of The Bag of the Month Club!

Swing & swap

This month for the Big City Bags SAL we can make either the Lucky Denver Mint bag,the Chandelier swing bag,or both!  So far...

I have finished one swing bag!  For this one I used a couple FQ's of Flea Market Fancy and a coral blender for the exterior top of the bag and the strap as well.

A peak inside...

The back side has a zippered pocket,since I only had a 7 inch zipper I just altered the pocket size accordingly.
This is the second swing bag I have made and although it is a smaller bag I love it.  The one main issue for me making this bag has been sewing in the bottom of the bag exterior and lining.  That being said it has not been a huge issue.  My feeling is that with more practice I will eventually get the kinks worked out,and then this bag will be a breeze to sew up!

Swap:

This is the 241 bag for my secret swap partner.  Last month I joined a couple swaps over on flickr,this one is for the Secret tote swap round 5.

My partner requested a bag made in fall colors or earth tones,she has been pretty quiet,so I am crossing my fingers that she likes the bag created for her.  It is hard to see in this photo but,I added a little bit of beading at the center of the bag and along the top edge of the exterior pockets.

Along the bottom of the bag I included four grommets with a bit of blueish fabric peeking out to accent the blue dots on the main fabric.

She also requested a longer handle/strap then the pattern calls for.  While rummaging around for some hardware to include on the bag I found this belt with rivets all down the center,so the hardware search was abandoned.  I think it ties in nicely with the grommets across the bottom of the bag.  Personally I am pretty excited with how this one turned out!

If you have this pattern and have not sewed up a bag with it yet,you should!  Even though I didn't get the placement for my exterior zip correct,that is okay because it lets the bird print take center stage.

Lucky Denver Mint & Chandelier Swing Bags

This month for the Big-City Bags SAL we are eligible for Double(prize) Entries if we made both the July bag and the August bag,due to a little mix-up!  So I got busy last week and...

First July's bag,The Lucky Denver Mint bag.  This bag is kind of a mini version of the Bye Bye Love Bag,in that is has a similar shaped top.  This bag is nice,but just simply not my style.  I used a scrap to make the bag and so was not able to get the design centered on the bag.

A peek inside shows off the Ice Frappe Kona solid,which goes perfectly with the accent color that outlines the design on the exterior of the bag.  My pockets are a little smaller than the pattern calls for,because again I used up a couple scraps!

For The Chandelier Swing Bag I used a scrap of Little Kukla for the main part of the bag exterior and a DS Flea Market Fancy print for the top and strap.

The backside has a zippered pocket,which I debated on omitting,but in the end I went ahead and included it.  Since the inside has no pocket,and a bag should have at least one!

This bag has a recessed zipper,this was my first time ever inserting this type of zipper closure in a bag.  I am happy to say that it went smoothly.

For the inside I used a super orange pop of a print!  It was the only orange I had enough of and even though it is a much more vivid color than the other oranges in the Little Kukla print,I like it.

You can probably tell by the amount of photos,that this is my favorite bag of the two.