Bag Lady

I seem to have gone bag crazy recently, with DOs Pirate Swag Bag and now this one and two more in the pipeline. The pattern was one of those MUST. MAKE. NOW! items, I saw it and fell in love with it instantly. It's the Brea Bag from Berroco in their free patterns section. The green is a DK mystery yarn from my El Cheapo supplier, I think it's some sort of cotton blend. I'd been eyeing the yarn up for weeks, but felt the green was a bit much for clothing. As soon as I saw the pattern I rushed out to get some.

It's a pretty easy make, but the base and sides are a long moss stitch strip and do I not like moss stitch. I decided to use a belt for the handle so I can double it and carry it by hand, or use it single to throw over my shoulder. I couldn't get D rings wide enough to take the belt, so I dug out a few old wooden curtain rings which do the job quite nicely. I did have a big wooden button in mind, but couldn't find anything suitable and went for the bronze heart instead, the loop is a crochet chain worked double for strength.

The lining. Don't talk to me about the lining. It was a nightmare to do. I finished the bag about two weeks ago and have been avoiding sewing in the lining since. I managed to break two sewing machine needles and have learnt in the process that sewing is not my forte. It's in though and will do the job. I had wanted a stiffer fabric that was a bit more interesting than what I found, but now it's in I quite like it. Due to the strange shape of the bag I didn't put anything in to steady the base, but it's not like I'm going to be carrying bricks around in it.

I've been a bit distracted all week and haven't picked up any knitting for days, so it may be a bit of time before I have anything to show. Scout died on Tuesday and I'm still a bit shell shocked. I keep wandering around the house looking for something to do, but can't concentrate on anything. I miss him terribly.