The year is still brand new and I’m proud to have my first sewing project done today. It doesn’t look as I expected – I was really concentrated and thought it would turn out perfect. Well, it did turn out ok but I will not give it to my friend as her birthday present because it’s not quite the way it’s supposed to be and so I will keep it to myself (that’s actually the first thing I’m keeping) and right after this post I’ll try another one.

Back in December I bought some metal frames at Etsy and as I have 3 girlfriends this month who celebrate their birthdays I thought it’s the perfect opportunity to try it out.

So first I gathered all things together. I had some nice Amy Butler leftovers that I wanted to use and the nice lady at Stoffwerk Taunus recommended to use a stabilizer as well.

I traced the metal frame onto a paper and added some seam allowance (something inbetween 0,5 and 10 mm). To make it look exactly the same on both sides was really a challenge….

Tracing and cutting all the fabrics….

After I cut the fabrics I ironed the stabilizer on the exterior fabric.

I made a mark where the hinges end on both sides and sew from one side to the other.

To create the puffiness I flattened the corners of interior and exterior bag and formed triangles. Then measured 3 cm down from the tip and stitched along. After that I trimmed the excess fabric with 0,7 cm seam.

THEN actually I realized I forgot to leave some space open at the bottom of the lining and ripped it open again. Something HAD to happen…. :-)

I turned the exterior fabric with right sides out and slipped it into the lining bag so that the right sides of the lining bag and the exterior bag would touch each other. This was the right moment to stitch in my cute little label as well.

Sewing the flaps of the purse together was a little tricky. The stabilizer is very stiff so I couldn’t insert it into the machine properly. After sewing the exterior bag had to be pulled through the hole in the lining. Took me some time to do this… but in the end it turned out like this. TADAAA

Ok.. now the sewing was done and then came the part I was very afraid of. The glueing. You’re supposed to find the perfect amount of glue to hold the fabric in the frame but without making it leak out while pressing the metal frame together at the end. Yeah right… For my next try I already know – I will take a clear glue!

Getting the fabric into the metal frame wasn’t soooo difficult… but as I thought… the glue came out from all over the place. With a bunch of Qtips and acetone I tried to clean up as much as possible and then pinch the frame together trying not to leave any marks on the metal.

That’s what I’ve meant… drove me NUTS!

Finally done. I have really no idea why it’s not symmetric and that’s actually the main reason why I’m keeping the purse for myself. The glue was under control after it dried a bit but the shape is not good though. But I will not give up, try again and the little tiny things in my purse have a new home, too. :-)

6 Comments

  1. Liebe Lou,
    den Terminus „Arschlochtasche“ werde ich für diese Börsen-Sorte gedanklich patentieren. Dein Beitrag tröstet mich aber ein bisschen.
    Sei geherzt. Nina

  2. Naaaah! Ma dai! Di dove sei??? (Non lo avevo capito, il tuo inglese è molto buono!).
    Allora non sono la sola studentessa Italiana!
    :)
    Ciao!
    .-= Suze´s last blog ..I won! I won! =-.

    • admin Reply

      Grande!! Sono nata a Francoforte in Germania e vivo anche qui. Mia madre è della Sardegna è papà della Calabria.
      Questo corso mi piace troppo!! Meeting so many different people. Soooo great.
      A presto!!

  3. admin Reply

    Ah Suze,
    I just realized you’re in ITALY. :-) Casa mia!!!
    I’m italian as well. Hihi. Just not so good in writing. Che belloooo!
    Tanti saluti e grazie per il tuo commento.
    Luisa ;-)

  4. Lovely pouch and fab fabric!
    And here’s my question. How did u print (?) your label? I’m not sure how to print mine for my new little project and I’m looking for a good (wahable) solution… Any idea?
    Mine would be bigger, more ink and for a completely different type of project, but yours really looks well done, so if you could give me a suggestion it would be great!
    Cheers, I’m off reading more on your blog and see u in the classroom! ;)

    Suze
    .-= Suze´s last blog ..I won! I won! =-.

    • admin Reply

      Hello Suze,
      Thank you for your comment. It’s really nice to hear.
      The label that I use is actually woven. I ordered them here http://www.namensbaender.de where they offer all kinds of labels for all kinds of purposes.
      You can customize your label as you want. Choose color, size, text font, icon. It’s really easy.
      Google „woven label“ or „clothing label“ or something similar and you should get something that suits your project. You can contact me anytime again.
      Have a lovely day, Suze.

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