The Sunburst Clutch

What could possibly be more fun than a paper piecing project? 
A new little  clutch purse pattern,  by Mrs H  ... COMBINED with a paper pieced flap!  That's what!!

Samantha, of Sewing Patterns by Mrs H,  and Kerry, of  Pennydog Patchwork,  collaborated to create this  super cute pattern ... a clutch with a fun flap! 

As Samantha explains in her pdf pattern description:  

"If you're a bag maker wanting to give paper piecing a go, this is exactly the pattern for you, with just a small amount of paper piecing to dip your toe!

In fact, let's just say this is an excellent pattern for anyone who wants a cute clutch, for a date night, a wedding (it is wedding season after all!) or even just running errands when you only need your wallet and phone!

The finished bag measures approximately 8.5" x 6" x 1.5" (22cm x 15cm x 4cm) and features mitred corners, a sunburst paper pieced flap and a magnetic clasp closure.  "

Go to buy here

I am lucky to be a pattern tester for Samantha. When she showed us this cutie clutch, I knew I would MAKE time to test out this  pattern!

The Fabrics:

Black Denim    (bottomweight) from JoAnn Fabric
Barcelona   charm pack  by Zen Chic  (5 inch squares)

Magnetic Snap

Dimensions:   8.5" x 6" x 1.5"  approximately

Now, I won this Barcelona  charm pack.  It is not in colors and designs that I normally choose for myself.  It sat in my "Charms Box" for probably over a year.  It is very modern and darkish.

photo courtesy of Emerald City Fabrics

However, I was determined to use something from my stash.  So, I began sorting out the fabrics into piles of similar colors.  
This is what  I came up with.... and I LIKE it!!

The Sunburst Clutch          Susie's Sunroom version 

Some of the rays in the sunburst pattern  are longer than 5 inches.  I simply sewed sections together.  (Patchwork piecing !)   The inside lining of the flap is pieced...
see below.

The flap lining and the inside of the clutch.   Yep... it's all pieced from charm pieces!

 Samantha's purse pattern directions are written clearly, with lots of pictures . It is a pleasure to make bags from patterns made by Mrs H !

This pattern took longer for me to choose my fabrics, than to sew up the clutch!  
You can see all of the different fabrics that the other testers used to make their Sunburst Clutches...  Here      I love how this clutch can be made to be dressy or casual.... fun and funky or traditional.

If you'd like to make your own Sunburst clutch, you can buy the pattern in Samantha's  Etsy store here.
*  For this first week only the pattern is 15% off using the code NEWPATTERN15 .

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linking up at:             Let's Bee Social @  Sew Fresh Quilts   and
                                         Sew Cute Tuesday @ Blossom Heart Quilts  and
                                   And Sew We Craft Together @ And Sew We Craft

A Duel Personality Bag and A Giveway

The " Is It a Diaper Bag or Is It a Travel Bag? " Giveaway !

The Nappy Bag Pattern   pattern available at Sewing Pattens by Mrs H

One thing  (oh, and I admit there are alot !)  that I can't refuse, is the opportunity to  test a new pattern by the talented designer, Samantha,  of  At Home With Mrs H blog.

Samantha,  or Mrs H,  is expecting a little baby soon, and decided to design her own diaper bag.   (They call them Nappy bags, in Wales where she lives.)  Since I won't be expecting any babies (that was 24 yrs ago!) ,  I made my Nappy  bag with just a few minor changes. This will be perfect for me when I am traveling. 

My Nappy Bag - 

The Nappy Bag        in Joel Dewberry' s Bungalow fabrics

Pattern:  The Nappy Bag      by Sewing Patterns by Mrs H
Bag Dimensions:      18 " wide x 10 " high x 5 " deep

Fabrics:   Joel Dewberry   Bungalow-  Dahlia Grass ,Chevron Lavendar & Hive Pink
               Quilters Linen Print Pink
Long Strap : Adjustable, over- the- body with swivel clips (optional)
Bag Top Zipper:      22 " long
Pockets:      outer front  - magnetic snap closure for the flap
                  outer back -   optional velcro closure, with hidden zipper pocket inside
                  outer side pockets -  2  - elastic- edged
                  inner lining zippered pocket
                  inner large slip pocket and divided slip pocket on other side
                  inner bottle holders(elastic)- optional

Stablizer:   I used Annies Soft and Stable.  It is a pleasure to use... lightweight , flexible and  easy to sew!

My adaptations to make this a travel bag:

  
I didn't add elastic to the top of the lining pockets, or on the outer side pockets.

Top View     see the outer back pocket and the hidden  zippered pocket !

The outer front pocket easily holds a tablet.
 Notice the  stylish flap that closes by a magnetic snap

Back outer pocket with my cell phone

                 

The outer side pockets -  holding my cell phone in an otter case

Now for the giveaway:   Who would like to win this Nappy bag Pattern? 

Simply leave me a comment-   tell me how you would use this bag if you made it ?

      Drawing open until Friday August 29 at 11 PM EST.

If you you'd like to get the pattern or any other pattern ...Samantha, of 

At Home With Mrs H,  is generously offering all my readers a 10% discount on any purchase from her store, patterns & hardware...just use the code

 ATHOMEWITHMRSH10 for the discount!

I'm off to my sewing room!

PS
Whiskers wanted me to tell you how she'd use the Nappy Bag-

Whiskers
There's another use for the bag.... travel  kitty bed

Linked up at-    And Sew We Craft Together @  And Sew We Craft  and
                       TGIFF  @ Devoted Quilter    and
                      Can I Get A Whoop Whoop! @ Confessions of A Fabric Addict  and
                    Sew Darn Crafty Party @  Sew Many Ways

The Sling Bag

A New Purse Pattern

Remember that I gave you a little peek of a purse , in my blog from Tuesday,  that coordinates with that cute  Little Cell Phone Wallet...

The  Little Cell Phone Wallet.... with a new mystery purse

Today I'll tell you all about my new fun and  favorite purse.
It's called " The Sling  Bag"  ....  and it is designed by Samantha ,  At Home With Mrs H  .
Samantha likes to call it , "  The Super Simple Slouchy Sling Bag ."
Did I mention that Samantha is super generous...and has this downloadable Craftsy pattern for FREE?!!   

The Sling Bag   Designed by Samantha  , Sewing Patterns by Mrs H
Click here  for this free pattern

The Sling Bag    Susie's Sunroom

Fabrics:      Kaufman Essex Yarn Dyed Linen Blend Black
                      Denyse Schmidt   by Free Spirit  from my stash   
Closure:  a magnet snap
Handle strap:    I made mine with the two fabrics, and opted not to have the longer across -the -body strap

I love this Essex Yarn Dyed Linen fabric!  I wanted to have a strip of some color show on the outside front , so I added a 3 inch strip to the outer pieces.    I used  Pellon Fusible Fleece 987 interfacing for the outer and lining fabric.  It gives just the right stiffness to stand alone, and yet allow the bag to slouch!    

The Sling Bag     Susie's Sunroom

A zippered pocket , and 2 slip pockets in the lining help keep my things organized

                                            

The pattern is very detailed , easy to follow, and has lots of pictures, making this a quick bag to make.  

The  Sling Bag... one of my favorite purses!

Hop on over to Samantha's blog,  At Home With Mrs H,  and see  the cool bag hardware she has in her etsy shop,  and all of the marvelous  bag patterns she has designed !  

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linking up to:   Can I Get a Whoop Whoop!  @  Confessions of a Fabric Addict

The Convertible Bag

A New Bag of the Month Pattern

You can join this bag of the month club... for 6 new and exciting bag patterns
at Sew Sweetness blog

Since I love to make purses and bags, I signed up, last December, to get into this fun club at Sew Sweetness . We get a  new bag pattern each  month, for 6 months.  These bags are designed by 6 super talented and creative bag pattern designers.   

March's Designer is  one of my favorites... Samantha  from At Home With Mrs H

Samantha from Sewing Patterns with Mrs. H. is a Welsh pattern designer with a group of pretty yet practical bags in her pattern library. She also sells the perfect hardware to go along with her bags.

The Bag:   The Convertible Bag  

The Convertible Bag pattern   by Samantha  of Sewing Patterns by Mrs H

 
I love the bold and contemporary fabrics that Samantha used in her bag.  The solid pink color is actually a front pocket!

And have you noticed the cool hardware she incorporates into this slim and sophisticated messenger bag?

There are swivel clips on the handle strap, which is an adjustable across- the- body handle strap, and  on the front flap.... there's a thumb catch!  (There's a pocket hiding underneath it!)

Hardware Note:   I was able to get my hardware:

Swivel clips - 1 "  JoAnn Fabric  in the store

3/4 " D rings    JoAnn Fabric     4 in a pack in the store

Thumb Catch   Michelle Pattens   (several sizes available)

Triglide buckle- 1 "  Michelle Patterns

Samantha also sells them in super convenient hardware kit , at her Etsy shop... for about $20 including shipping to the US.  

Stabilizer for outer bag:   Annie's Soft and Stable   I got it at Annie's

So here is my Convertible Bag...

The Convertible Bag     Susie's Sunroom

Fabric:  Swallow  in Teal     Bungalow  by Joel Dewberry
              Zigtone Grass    Bungalow by Joel Dewbery

The colors are actually more teal in person....   I love this fabric!!

Finished size:   11 1/2 " tall x 10 " wide x 2 1/2 " deep

The back side   has  a zippered outside pocket.
There is a strap tunnel above the zipper.... for converting the bag into a back pack!

Inside of the back zippered pocket

The front with the large slip pocket

Side view  of The Convertible Bag    Susie's Sunroom

There are pockets galore in this bag.... inside a zippered pocket and a big slip pocket!

There's room for a tablet or Ipad,  and still room for more!!

Opening up the flap

A selfie of my hand , reaching easily into the back outer zippered pocket

My observations:

•  Samantha's directions are clear and easy to understand, with lots of pictures
• The Annie's Soft and Stable gives it a nice stiffness, and it "stands" alone.
• It has Pockets !  Pockets!  Pockets!     and Pockets!!   4 of them in all.  
• the  Outer pockets are very convenient for easy access!
• It has a cool Thumb Catch fastener!
• It has the across-the-body adjustable strap, and it is skinny!
• It can hold a tablet (mine is an Asus) and you'd never even notice that! There's still room for regular "purse stuff", too!
• It can turn into a backpack style bag in a minute!

I am pretty sure this won't be the last Convertible Bag that you'll see on my blog...

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linked up to:   Can I Get a Whoop Whoop @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict   and
                      TGIFF  @  Sew Giving  and
                       Sew Darn Crafty @ Sew Many Ways

Purse and Pouch Passion

Purse and Pouch Passion:  Part 1

It's no  secret that I LOVE to make bags, purses and pouches.  (You can add several  a bunch of other things that I like to make, too...)

Recently, I have made more purses and pouches than I could blog about !  (When I started writing this blog about 17 months ago, I worried that I wouldn't have enough things to blog about!)

I'd like to share with you some of the cutest things ever...

First purse:     Little Bow Pleat Party Purse Clutch Bag Pattern
Designer:             Samantha @ At Home With Mrs H

Such a cute clutch!   click here for the pattern

         Fabric:  Michael Miller    and black blender

         Closure:     magnetic snap

Little Bow Pleat Party Purse Clutch Bag   made by Susie's Sunroom

This bag made up quickly and easily, thanks to Samantha's clear directions and great pictures!                            

I decided to make my little clutch without a chain.  The next one I make, I will put the little loops inside the bag, as I have since purchased a nice metal chain for another clutch!

Samantha has directions for this, of course!

Can you see the pleat in the middle?
 (I know my fabric is busy, so it is hard to see in my photos.)

  

I like this clutch because it easily holds my cell phone and glasses .

This clutch may look small and elegant, but don't let that fool you!  it really does hold a lot!

  Cell phone, glasses, blush , and keys

I love the ease of this bag... an intermediate sewist can whip a pretty  little bow clutch in an afternoon or evening,  and match her outfit for the event!   Hop on over to At Home with Mrs H and see how cute it looks in many different fabrics.

When you want to make one...the patterns are available as PDF files at  Samantha's Craftsy store!  

I"m ready to go.... where should I go??  ;)

I'm off to my sewing room!

Linked up at Can I Get a Whoop Whoop @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict