a new tote...

One of my sisters asked for a tote she could take to work, big enough to fit her lunch along with her purse items and other stuff.  I was happy to oblige, especially since this is a sister that I haven't made much for in the past.

The pattern is from the Winsome Baby book by Nancy Halvorsen. The only changes I made were using a magnetic snap closure instead of velcro, making the straps a bit wider and adding more stitching lines, and skipping the accent strip on the outside of the bag.  I also added a layer of fusible fleece to the lining, which made for a bit of a challenge when sewing the bag together in the final steps - thankfully I own a walking foot and a jeans needle.

It turned into quite the thrifty project. My sister picked the blue fabric from my stash, which also happens to be a fabric that was given to me by another sister of mine (she decided she didn't see a future in sewing and gave me all of her fabrics one day). The black fabric is a home-dec weight, and came from my mother-in-laws stash, and the fabric used for the pockets inside were left over from another project.

This was also the first project from start to finish done in my new sewing room!  My fabric is all on shelves now, and I'm pretty happy with how the room is set up.  I just need to hang some things on the walls yet.  I'm also hoping to make a design wall for my quilt blocks - I have a bunch of high-loft batting laying around, but I can't seem to find an online source that says if this will work or not?  Otherwise, I think I'll be wrapping flannel around a board to make one. I just can't see myself using warm n' natural - I'd be too tempted to rip it down when I have a quilt to finish...