Had to Make It — Poolside Tote

Do you ever see a new pattern and just know that you have to make it?
That’s how I felt when I saw Anna’s (noodlehead’s) new pattern, the poolside tote.

I bought the pattern last night.  Eager to begin, I printed out the pattern pieces, loaded the instructions to my iPad (I use google drive to transfer and archive files), and I read through the pattern before going to sleep.

Today, on my way to the studio, I stopped in Joann’s and picked up a zipper and some green thread to match this strawberry print I had stashed.

I pulled out the white print from my stash to be the lining and then hopped over to Pink Castle Fabrics (next door to my studio) to pick out a fabric for the handles and the facing. Then, I started sewing.

And by the time I came home to my doggies?  I had a bag to show them!

Don’t they seem impressed?  (Actually, they are wanting me to pet them and not sure why I’m standing there with a camera.)

And YES, the bag stands on its own, but this is because I used different interfacing than what is in the pattern.  All of my fabrics are quilting cottons, but the pattern suggests using something sturdier.  To compensate, I interfaced the main part of the bag using Sew Lazy Dreamy Fusible Fleece Interfacing (it’s 45″ wide, so you only need 1/2 yard, which costs about $5.)  I also put a 1-inch strip of the fusible fleece inside the handle so that it would be more stiff and because I didn’t have the Pellon 101SF on hand for the facing and handles, so I had used Pellon 906F, which might be a little flimsier than the 101–I can’t recall and am not an expert–I figured a little more heft couldn’t hurt.

Anyway, overall, a really pleasurable sew.  The cutting out of the fabrics takes longer than the sewing and the pattern comes together without any issues.  I don’t have any notes except to say that I attached my handles with four or five rows of stitches just in case I end up using this bag to tote as many books as towels!

Details:
Exterior: Strawberry in Green from Briar Rose by Heather Ross
Straps: Mockingbird in Turquoise from Up Parasol by Heather Bailey (fussy cut from a yard)
Facing: Family Unit in Cherry from Pretty Potent by Anna Maria Horner
Lining/Interior: not sure what that is…either a vintage sheet or a piece of fabric my Aunt Mary destashed to me
Ribbon loop: pretty sure that’s a piece of Tula Pink ribbon I had from a Camp Stitchalot swag bag
Interfacing on main body pieces: Sew Lazy Dreamy Fusible Fleece
Interfacing on pocket, facing, and handles: Pellon 906F (plus a strip of the Sew Lazy in the handles)
Time to cut and sew: Around 4 hours

If you need me, I’ll be at the pool!