Saturday, August 17, 2013

Mice love reading

I've been wanting to make this bag from Sew, Mama, Sew for ages and ages. 

Who doesn't need a library bag?!

Starboy is crazy for these mice. He really wants me to make PJ tops that match his pants...but I don't know how to make buttonholes, and I'm not ready to learn yet. Time. So a lined bag it is. The original pattern didn't have a lining, so I merged the pattern with this great one from Sew Grown (I've made that  bag too and it's awesome). If I were to make another, I think I would do squared sides like that scavenger bag, but extend them all the way up as a strap, to support the weight of the books. We'll see how long this strap lasts with only about 1/4" reinforcement, and lots of bag width to fit a whole stack of books.

Both projects come together really quickly. The library bag can easily be completed in an evening, even with the distraction of really bad television I was able to do the whole thing in a couple of hours. The scavenger bag took a little longer, especially with the hangup of trying to turn a stiff denim strap inside out.

The library card is a photocopy of our library card with his photo and signature added. He loves that his face pops out of the pocket!

As you can see, the bag is a little long since it was designed for, like, a third-grader, so I did this high-class modification with diaper pins. 

This would be a great application for a couple of buttons, and buttonholes....

He loves the bag. We took it straight to the library—which was closed.

The liner fabric is sweet Heather Ross' Nursery Versery Country Mice (Kokka Fabrics/Japan). It really outshines the crap denim from Joann that makes up the rest of the bag. It's flimsy and really affects the profile and shape of the bag—makes it slouchy. Ah, well.

Bags like this are a fun project, and would make a great gift for a little one!

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