Craftiness =)

I love, love, love to sew. Heirloom sewing, historical costuming, drafting patterns, altering, sewing for myself, teaching others how to sew... I especially love creating unique things that would cost me a fortune to buy elsewhere. Stef and I adored these handbags on Etsy, but not wanting to spend quite so much in purchasing them, I searched for a similar pattern to make some ourselves! At less than 1/2 the price and a little less than 4 1/2 hours of sewing later, this is how they turned out...

You can tell what my favorite colors are, can't you? =)

The buttons on this bag are adorable floral shells from the Philippines

And these buttons were carved from coconut shells

It was a little hard to snap a picture of someone wearing the handbag on their shoulder when I was the only one around to both model and take the picture =)

Viola. These turned out to be super easier to make than I though they'd be! And they're the perfect size for my "survival pack," right Skyler? ; )

Things I might try differently next time: larger buttons, longer or adjustable straps, magnetic fasteners, pleats instead of gathers, something other than florals and stripes.~