An awesome tote/purse

Happy Friday! I am so happy the weekend is here. I am slowly trucking away at all my projects in the hopes that I can get them done in the next 2 weeks. Did I mention that 2 weeks from now I will be on a plane headed somewhere beautiful and relaxing? I. Can't. Wait. Even though I am still a bit nervous about leaving my little love bug for a week....

Anyway, as I mentioned on Wednesday, I am finished my purse that I made to bring with me. I love it so, so much. It all started, like most things, on pinterest. I saw this.

Source: etsy.com via Cassie on Pinterest

And I fell in love. So much in love that I briefly considered buying it instead of making it, but in the end, there were enough small things I wanted to change that I decided just to do it myself. It is really close to that bag though. The dimensions of mine ended up about 12"x12"x4.5" and it seems like it will be the perfect size for my "pursey" things plus some things to read/eat and whatnot. I added a pocket on the back and inside there is one big pocket and one smaller pocket. I used pretty much the same purple fabric for the exterior and used a gray floral print for the lining.

In place of the feathers, I did a reverse applique flower on the front and I love it. It was my first time trying it, and it went really well. I used fusible fleece (thermolam or something actually) as the interfacing since it is light and sturdy without being too stiff. I love all the handle options for holding it as a tote, over the shoulder with the strap shortened or lengthening the strap to go across the body. I think that will be super handy for traveling. It was my first time using the rectangular rings/slider rings for the straps and it was easier than I thought it would be. I mean I guess we'll see how it holds up and that will tell us how well I sewed them in there, but it looks nice and professional and that's all that matters, right?

I think this weekend I might have to pack everything up and see if it all fits in my bags. I am aiming not to check any luggage so I need to see if everything can fit into my carry on.....we'll see how that goes. I think this weekend my parents are coming to visit so not so much sewing will be going on, but it should be a good time. And it's okay, I am mostly avoiding triangles at this point. You would think I could just give up on this quilt since I clearly don't want to make it, but it will be so cool if I can push through and make it.....have a lovely weekend!!