More Sakura Crossbody Bags

 

Sakura Crossbody Bag

A few weeks ago I went to my local furnishing shop looking for linen fabric. And as I browsed around the shop, I saw piles of faux leather in one corner. The shop keeper said they are on sale! And before I realized I came back with linen fabrics and few yards of various faux leather. I mean, how can you resist a sale, right? 

I've been making faux leather based keychains for my Etsy shop and I was on the trial phase of making Sakura crossbody bag. So the faux leather really came at the right time and that too at 50% OFF! The faux leathers are of high grade quality. 

Crossbody Bag - fabric faux leather combo

The red bag, I made with Kaffee Fasset's fabric and combined it with the faux leather. The KF Fabric I bought from a shop in Jakarta last year and I love how vibrant it turned out.  The bag size is approximately 7" W x 9" H and it has 3 compartment so it's very handy to keep your stuff organized. 

This bag actually inspired by my trip to the UK in summer . While traveling, I always like to carry a small crossbody bag to keep my phone and a few essentials. And as I get older, I prefer more simple bag that I can keep my phone, cards and few essentials like tissue, or sun glasses. I noticed many women of my age carry similar bag like the Sakura bag. This bag is not bulky and you can keep it close to you during the flight. 

Japan Linen Crossbody Bag

I also made crossbody bag with only fabric. This cute Matryoshka print bag is made of Japan linen. I did not use batting for this one and the fabric itself is thick. I only use all purpose interfacing. I happened to have this multi color zipper that match perfectly with the fabric! What do you think?

Matryoshka Crossbody Bag

Working is faux leather is not difficult. You just need to be more careful while sewing and of course use Teflon or plastic based sewing foot. I started buying faux leather just before the pandemic in the end of 2019 and early 2020 (it feels like along time ago!!).  I did a lot of trial and error and even made bad purchases a couple of times. 

If you want to start making bags with faux leather make sure to buy a good quality one. It maybe a little expensive but in the long run, it will benefit you more. I usually asked for sofa leather when in the furnishing shop. Some leatherette are pretty stiff, make sure you buy the softer one. I have not checked the gsm weight, but it should not be too thick. 

I made this pouch set which my son took it to college and still use it till now (4 years later) and it's still in good condition!  This crossbody phone bag I made for my mom and she loved it. She like to use it when she goes out because it's very handy to carry her phone when she moves about. 

Don't be afraid to try especially if you just starting out making bags and wallets. There will be bad results ( and I have plenty of them) and you will also learn a good lesson. 

ALSO READ: Sakura Crossbody Bag Sewing Pattern

Sakura Crossbody Bag Pattern

If you have any questions, write it down in the comment below, I'd be glad to help:)

Happy Sewing!

Elvira

Large Pouches

Hello again, 

Here is my report from my DIY Block Print experiment. Verdict: I LOVE IT! I am ordering more wooden blocks and can't wait to make more! 

Many asked me if the color stays after washing. I tried washing a small piece and the color stayed. The thing is you have to follow the manufacturer's instructions. I waited for 24 hrs before start ironing the fabric.  Yes, good things come to those who wait, Bon Jovi said so :D. 

So what did I make? 

I made one large pouch with the red floral one and I really love how it turned out. Even my boys loved it! The rest are all ready to sew but after I finish a couple of custom orders. 

This time I am using my metal zipper. I always feel wary to sew with metal zipper, but I think maybe I just lack practice. After a couple of pouches (scroll down for more photos), I can confidently sew metal zipper without breaking my needle. 

  

The above photo is to show the approximate dimension of the pouch. The phone is 6.5" phone and all those fit in nicely into the large pouch. 

Isn't that great, I mean we always need a pouch, small one, medium one, a large one, quilted, waterproof, cute, etc. I always picked up a few pouches whenever I travel as a gift and keepsake. And everyone loves it. More so if it's handmade, right? 

So, the past few days, I've been making few pouches using different of material and they all turned out unique and beautiful. I used heavy interfacings for these pouches and love the result. The pouch feels sturdy and you can carry it as a clutch, like when you go out for lunch or going for an errand. 

The yellow pouch is made using kalamkari mud cloth fabric. I prewashed the fabric and really love the vintage look of it. 

This chevron fabric is one of my faves. Sometimes I feel that fabric also has its own destiny. Just like this one. The Chevron Pouch has 2 different print on each side. 

The above brown Ajrakh pouch is another story. The fabric was a gift from my facebook friend, Madhu Mathur of Betukbandi, when I visited her in Jaipur.  She is one talented lady, I really admire her quilts and quilting innovations. Really inspiring. I am so happy to finally able to use it. I still have few more of the fabrics with different prints. Can't wait to use them!! 

Stay tuned for more pouches from my Indian Fabrics collection. Sometimes, you don't need a fancy pattern to turn your fabrics into a pretty pouch. Let the print speaks for itself! And making simple pouches can be a skill-building project for a beginner. I really recommend it. Don't be afraid to make mistake and experiment with new materials. 

Until then,

Happy Sewing

Linky Party: Bagmaker Tuesday on Sotak Handmade

Simple Zippy Pouch and another Heidi

Remember I made Shibori Heidi foldover clutch last week? I simply love white and blue shibori, so I decided to make this simple zippy pouch and combined it with blue denims

Sometimes this simple thing that can make you happy. 

this zippy pouch is perfect to carry in your big purse. I always keep at least 2 pouches in my purse. It's so handy to keep your bag organized. 

I added this simple pouch in my Etsy shop and the shibori fabric is available in my fabric shop.

And I finished another Heidi in Japanese linen. The fabrics were from long ago. I found it when I was looking for another fabric. That was some kind of aha moment. I thought of doing similar to the previous one with the accent at the bottom. But as I was ironing the interfacing I was thinking why not using 2 different fabrics? Et voila, la Heidi with vintage floral linen and newspaper print linen. 

For the strap, I cut my genuine leather sheet I got from my last trip to Indonesia. I simply cut 3/4" x 115 cm and added swivel hook at both ends. I didn't have a slider yet, maybe I should get some. 

This is the smaller size of the Heidi pattern by Swoonpatterns. It's perfect size to make sling bag. I still have enough fabric to make another one. 

I know I'm going to make more Heidi, maybe a little variations. 

That's all I finished this week, until next time

Happy Sewing