Purse Making Kick

[knottie.livejournal.com]

Hi All! I've been reading and commenting for awhile, and thought it was time to share something of my own..

I promised Mom a purse back in the fall, and I'm finally done! I made two, and I'm pretty proud of them, actually, as I tried a few new techniques, and my skills are improving. They're my own designs--I spend a few days drawing out my ideas, thinking through the construction techniques I'm going to use, and measuring purses I like. Then I draw my pieces out on tracing paper, double check the size, and go from there.

I welcome constructive criticism :-D



The first one is basically a large pouch to hold clothes or shoes when she goes to work out, or just the general stuff that a Mom tends to accumulate. The front has a pleat or tuck to add a little extra volume, and it has side gussets that also form the bottom.



The strap is removable so that I can make her more bags and she can just swap the straps however she wants. I really like the effect of the v-shape and the pleat.



The second one has nice wide bamboo handles and a circular cut out so she can carry it over her shoulder if she wants. It has a central zippered section to keep her wallet and cellphone secure, and pockets front and back for receipts and things.







I also made one for myself, following the same basic idea as Mom's, but with curved sides and bottom and leather handles. I really like the way it looks, but am not totally happy with the handles when I'm using the purse-they're a bit stiff and in the way when I'm trying to get things out of the zippered section. Further design iterations are in order!