I am in the thick of the gift giving season. The YM’s birthday was on the 30th. Friend Julie’s birthday was on the 1st and Christmas is right around the corner. Yes, I am holding on to my hat!
Purple Dot Project Bag
I finished the project bag for Julie back in November, but as with a lot of gifts, I couldn’t show it until now. I did put in a 26 Projects post, but didn’t make a big deal out of it.
I made Julie one of these before. This is a little different. It is the Jumbo size, which just looks large to me. It is, however, larger than the large.
The quilted construction of this is the same as the Ultimate project bag, so next time I’ll just quilt a certain size of fabric sandwich and move on. The directions for that part of the project were long and somewhat tedious. I know they have to plan for any type of bag maker and Annie thorough, for sure.
Julie received her package after some drama at the post office, which is a relief. I thought for awhile that she wouldn’t get it. She also wrote about it on her blog and said some very sweet things. I was very pleased hear how she is using the smaller version I made her last year (??).
I was able to finish my Project Bag while I listened to a presentation at work the other day. You might think I was cheating on work, but I find that if I do some handwork, I can pay better attention to the presentation.
I was going to make Mom another one for Christmas, but decided on something else and made this one for myself with some of the fabric Colleen quilted for me. It is already in use for the EPPic bag pieces I cut out at Sew Day some time ago.
I realized, after posting yesterday’s ‘in the wild‘ post, that I had never posted about the project bag I made for Gerre.
I made this one at the same time I made one for myself, Mom and Julie.
Despite my concerns about the size, both Gerre and Julie said they really love these project bags. Using mine for the Metro Twist has been really useful. I said I would try making the larger size and let them know how it turned out.
I have mentioned Gerre using the bags I make her in one or two posts. I always find it nice when people are actually able to use the bags I make. Sew Day was an ‘in the wild’ bonanza!
Sugar Skull bags in the wild
Julie and Gerre , as you have read,were both there and are both regular recipients of some of the bags I make. Gerre had three bags there screaming with Sugar Skulls.
They look really nice all together and the stripes and dots are good compliments tot he Sugar Skulls
Gerre and Julie both said they love the ByAnnie project bag, which you know I was a little annoyed with,but only because of the size. The large didn’t seem very large to me.
I actually found my project bag** useful for the Metro Twist pieces and patterns. There is something good about it. Both Gerre and Julie said that they could use many others. They thought a row of them hanging up in their workrooms would look really nice. Maybe I will make them each another for a gift. We’ll see. I do want to try making the larger size (extra large) as well.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
I don’t know if I will actually make another one of these bags, but Mrs. K has graciously gifted me the full finishing kit for this pattern.
Yes, that is some Tula Pinkerville fabric. Do I sell the fabric and make a bag that matches the Running with Scissors folio I made for Mrs. K or do I make the bag as is?
In September I did a gift inventory as I worked on various projects for the holidays. It takes time to make gifts, so I do periodic inventories so I am not scrambling at the last second. During this excavation, I found that the zipper on Julie’s Take a Stand bag had the same problem as mine! Fortunately, I realized this in September, not November 30, and took care of the problem right away. It really only took me a few minutes, since I had already fixed the issue on my bag.
Take a Stand – Fixed Zipper
I took 15 minutes while DH made dinner and fixed the zipper. I was able to tighten up the size of the zipper tab at the same time, which made me feel better. I don’t like zipper tabs that are big and floppy. I realize that the one on the end was not big and floppy before I fixed it, but it was not the right size either.
Take a Stand opens wide
Now the bag opens wide. Yay!
And I was able to admire the inside again, which came out very well. I am very proud of it.
I really felt irritated with myself. What was the deal with those two zipper heads? If I did it twice, there had to be something in the pattern.
This poor bag’s post has been juggled around for at least two months now.
Julie’s Take a Stand Bag
I finished this bag back in May after I finished my Mom’s Take a Stand and before I finished mine. This was originally scheduled to be a gift for Friend Julie’s birthday. That meant I couldn’t show it to you until at least December 2. This state of affairs was terrible enough for me, but then I decided to give her this gift for Christmas and give her the Ultimate Carry All Bag for her birthday. That meant I had to wait. Then our New Year’s plans to go out with Friend Julie and our DHs were postponed, because of terrible weather. It is hard for me to wait to show you what I am making. It is so fun to read what you think. Also, I get to think about what I made when I am writing about it. Anyway, we made it through.
Finally, I gave her this bag over the weekend. I had filled it with a lot of little gifts.
Usually, I choose purple fabrics. Julie and I were out together and she mentioned this fabric, which gave me the idea to make her a bag from it. It won’t exactly go with her other bags because I usually choose a darker purple. I hope she likes it anyway.
Julie’s Take a Stand interior
I am REALLY pleased with the inside. The fussy cutting came out really well. Also, the construction of the ByAnnie bags means the linings are really taut, which I like.
A happy accident is the lines at the end of the pencil points. The bottom matches up with the sides! The pencil fabric is from Crimson Take and I am really glad it is highlighted.
Julie’s Take a Stand front pocket – interior
I used an old Moda Marbles light purple for the main part of the bag. This is fabric that will mostly be covered. I found that to be true with the APfE v.2 as well, that is that most of the outside is covered by pockets so choosing a tone-on-tone rather than a special fabric makes more sense. This Moda Marbles light purple fabric ties the bag to her other bags.
I used the Tula Pink Scissor ribbon from the Homemade line for the interior of the front and back pockets to cover the zipper join.
Again, I used the Tula Pink webbing for the strap (see above). Mom’s was kind of my test bag so the strap for this one went a lot quicker. I am pleased with how well the webbing color fits with the colors of the bag.
I am still calling this the Without a Trace bag periodically. And I still don’t know why!
Yes, another bag as a gift for Julie. I actually finished this in September, but couldn’t show it until now, after it was presented.
I chuckled to myself as I cut out the bag at Super Sew Day right under Julie’s nose! She may have noticed the fabric, but I just didn’t make a big deal out of it.
I didn’t have a good sense of how large these bags would be. I hope this one isn’t too small. It will work for a bag or accessory project for sure, but probably not for a large quilt project. Julie doesn’t knit or crochet, but she does have embroidery projects and this will work for one of those as well.
It is, as I may have mentioned, a fairly easy project. I think the ByAnnie patterns seem overly complicated sometimes. The directions are very complete and I have grown attached to the binding instructions, but in general I think they seem overly complicated.
I made a bunch of these project bags as Christmas gifts. Here is one I made for Mom.
Of course, I used the paint tube fabric. I still have a lot of it, so there are more bags in Mom’s future. The ByAnnie pattern** includes four sizes. This is the large size, but I don’t think it is very large. It is about half again as wide and tall as a sheet of notebook paper.
Mom’s project bag back
I was kind of surprised at the size, actually, though I do have issues with understanding how big something is in real life when I look at an image online or check dimensions. If I had known the size, I would have made the extra large, which is also included in the pattern.
I am not sure I’ll make this pattern again. While it wasn’t difficult, once the quilting was done, I am not sure it is useful. There is no gusset, so how much stuff could actually fit? I don’t know. I haven’t tried one. Maybe for EPP pieces?
Two project bags for Mom
I hope these are useful despite the size. My Mom always finds good uses for the bags I make her.
**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need at quilt shops, I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
I have been wanting to try this pattern. I was thinking that a project bag might be a good gift for my bag recipients, but I wanted to try it before committing to another ByAnnie pattern. I think, in general, ByAnnie patterns seem overly complicated, but the projects usually turn out well.
I cut out the pieces at Super Sew Day, then finally sewed it together. I used one of the pieces of zipper I got for my birthday. I love it. It is so pretty. I also used more of the Philip Jacobs Chrysanthemum fabric like in the Without a Trace/Take a Stand bag and the APfE v.2.0. I am pleased with the binding, too.
Recently, we took a long weekend and visited Lake Tahoe. Our nephew was getting married. We tacked on a few extra days to make it a long-ish weekend. The YM flew in to see his cousin get married. That means we got to spend a few days with him as well. It was really great to have more than a day to catch up and get more of a sense of how our YM is doing.
Without a Trace/Take a Stand tote filled with La Pass
I wanted to take La Pass with me on the trip so I could work on getting Month 13 finished. Month 14 had been shipped and I needed to get back on schedule. As shown, my pieces were in hearts and cones, so I needed a bag that would keep them flat during the drive and general chaos of travel. I also needed space for my Sew Together Bag and my Inside Outside Pouch, which contain various tools and supplies for La Pass. Eventually, I landed on the Without a Trace/Take a Stand Tote. Since I fixed the zipper and sewed the zipper tab closed, I have been looking for a use for it.
Unlike my trip to Portland earlier this year, travel was much easier with the rosette not yet sewn together. I keep working on combining the smaller pieces into larger sections. Once each rosette is fully complete, it is a bit of a hassle to transport until I remove the papers.
It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but worked. I am really pleased!
Take a Stand/Without a Trace Bag finished & repaired
I wrote about my unhappiness with the Take a Stand/Without a Trace zipper a few weeks ago. In a way this is the project that keeps rearing its head. Finally, though, I think it is finished, repaired and available for use.
It is a good, medium sized bag, so I hope to put it to good use in some way I can’t think of right now.
Take a Stand/Without a Trace Bag zipper tab updated
I changed out the zipper tab to match the binding. I haven’t checked the pattern to see if it calls for exterior (my first choice) or binding fabric for the zipper tab. I am pretty sure I cut what the pattern suggested. I like the zipper tab matching the binding better.
I also adjusted the size to match the width of the binding and the zipper. I don’t like the zipper tabs being larger. The Quilts Illustrated Tool Tote pattern calls for a larger tab and it bugs me every time I see it. now that I have changed the zipper for the Take a Stand/Without a Trace bag, I might change that one as well.
I talked about finishing this bag back in May. The problem was that the zipper wasn’t working right. The bag is supposed to open wide, but the double zipper I had installed was preventing it. I don’t have a photo of this problem on my bag, but I do have a photo of what it was supposed to do. You can see from the photo of Mom’s bag that the whole bag is accessible. Mine didn’t do that.
Apparently, my subconscious was working on this, because one night last week I kept waking up in the middle of the night dreaming/worrying about this damn zipper. I didn’t even remember thinking about it during the day, but my subconscious was clearly dealing with the problem.
I shouldn’t even really call it a problem, because I could still use the bag. I wasn’t, however, actually using the bag.
Take a Stand – zipper tab removed
After that night of dreaming about zippers, I looked at the zipper on the bag. If I needed to remove the zipper completely, which I didn’t want to do, it would require a lot of ripping. I thought I could take off the zipper tab, remove one of the zipper heads and put one zipper head back on.
I don’t know why I put two zipper heads on. I didn’t do that on Mom’s Take a Stand. If I had, it would have had the same problem, but you can see from the photo above that it doesn’t
Take a Stand – zipper tab removed annotated
During Craft Night, I started by removing the zipper tab. Then I removed both zipper heads. I could have just removed one, but they were not in the right orientation for one zipper head. I, then, followed my zipper head tutorial. I am so glad I wrote that tutorial, because I always forget I have to put the head in the towel holder** upside down and insert the zipper tape upside down as well. This was a little challenging since the zipper tape was already attached to the bag. I had to do a bit of wrangling, but eventually got the zipper head on.
It works perfectly!
Now I just have to sew the zipper tab again and we should be in business.
**Obviously, you should shop at a local quilt shop. However, I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
I finally finished all the Take a Stand /Without a Trace bags I was making. This one is mine and it matches my A Place for Everything bag. I don’t know how I am going to use this bag, but I am sure I can figure something out.
I am kind of happy to be finished with the ByAnnie bags. She has great shapes and useful patterns, but they seem to unnecessarily complicated.
Take a Stand Front pocket- inside
There are also things I don’t like about the bags. ByAnnie doesn’t always finish the inside of her pockets. It might seem stupid, but I don’t like any raw edges showing.
After seeing Tula Pink cover the zipper joins with ribbon, I now do that, which also covers some raw edges. You can see the with grey dots ribbon at the top of the inside of the front pocket. ByAnnie does say to seal some of the edges, so I did that with the bottom before I assembled the whole back. I don’t consider those raw edges to be completely covered, but they are ok.
Take a Stand inside
I didn’t do anything very special with the inside of this bag. I used some Zen chic fabric I consider to be a background fabric. I like it and I have used it for other bags I made for me.
The inside is light and airy and I will be able to see whatever I store in it.
I keep calling this bag the Without a Trace bag rather than the Take a Stand Bag. Do you remember that TV show, Without a Trace with Poppy Montgomery? I liked that show. I started the three on April 30, finished Mom’s in time for Mother’s Day and am on my way finishing mine. Yes, this one uses the same fabrics as my APfE v.2. They are a set. Will I make a Running with Scissors to go with them? I don’t know. I am done with ByAnnie patterns for awhile.
I was able to spend enough time on Saturday and Sunday getting the pockets on, concealing the strap holders and generally fiddling with the details.
I had to pay attention to covering up the strap that holds the shoulder strap. You can see it above because a triangle ring is hanging off the top. I originally cut those pieces of webbing too long. I couldn’t figure out what was going on when I attached the first one, on Mom’s. I finally did realize that it was too tall. I ripped it off, trimmed and resewed. Then I trimmed the straps for the other two. I checked the directions and know I cut them properly, so there was something I didn’t understand.
Take a Stand – pockets on, side view
With that whole escapade fresh in my mind, I carefully placed these straps. Note they are placed so the end is covered by the pocket. That means that I had to be sure the end WAS covered by the pocket.
I eventually succeeded and now need to put the ends, the top zipper and bind everything.
**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops. However, I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
