Margaret bag

A few weeks ago L told me she’d seen a cute purse pattern online for free! I’m trying desperately to convince her to get a sewing machine because I know she’d love it and really use it, so I suggested we get together to do some purse making. My plan is to talk to her so much about sewing that she caves to my masterful manipulation.

When we got together, we both had purchased our fabric, so we began by cutting fabric, lining, interlining, and interfacing. She used my mom’s machine and I brought my machine so that we could both sew at the same time. It took us all afternoon. I was busy fiddling with my own modifications for the first several hours, but L steadily made her way through the pattern as written. It’s times like these I’m jealous of L’s smart strategy of simply sticking to the original scope.

Project Details: A girls’ afternoon of sewing up a cute, quick, and easy sling bag.
Pattern: Oh frannson’s Margaret Bag.
Fabric: 100% cotton duck (#10) with a retro green and blue geometric print from my fabric stash.
Lining: outdoor cotton canvas in solid navy (scraps from another project).
Notions: a big button, interfacing, flannel for interlining.
Pattern Description: lined, sling bag with inside pockets and button closure.
FO looks like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope? Yes.
Were the instructions easy to follow? I’ll be honest, I didn’t really read the instructions. I tried to insert an interior zipper at first, but it took several hours of unsuccessful sewing and ripping. By the time I gave up on it, L was so far ahead of me that I just copied her. The instructions seemed to have clear photo descriptions, but the color printer didn’t work, so we checked the photo instructions on my iPhone as we sewed.
My particular likes / dislikes about the pattern: I like how easy the pattern was to put together and I especially like the gussets. We did not need as much fabric as the pattern called for, but we used an awful lot of interfacing! I like the size of the final FO and mine is quite sturdy. I’m not terribly happy with how my button and button loop fasten, but I could modify it to suit me.
My pattern alterations / design changes: I added an extra interior pocket with zipper. It looks like crap, but it’s fairly functional. I also used a twin needle for the first time when doing the top stitching on the strap and opening.
Would I sew it again or recommend it to others? Yes, I do recommend this pattern. It’s clear and uncomplicated, would work with lots of different fabrics.

L’s bag is really cute, but I forgot to take a photo of it. She did the facing in black and white sprial-ish print with a pink lining. Maybe she’ll post a photo on her own blog.