The most fun part of making the bag is opening up the Honey Bun Roll!   I love how they come packaged with each strip on top of another.   Lots of little Honey Bun “crumbs” all over now, but they can easily be cleaned up.  Just look at all this fabric!

I’m choosing assorted colors (thanks Dianne!).  It’s a gift, and I’m not sure of her favorite color.  Love the scrappy look and sure hope she does too!

 

Here’s what I picked for the bag: 

For the gusset strips I selected slightly darker colors. This becomes the bottom of the bag, and i don’t want light colors on the bottom.

Handles:

 

Binding:

 

Lining & Pockets:

I have all my pieces cut out, including interfacing, lining and pocket fabric and I’m ready to sew.

Note:  On the first printing the yardage amounts for the Timtex and the Craftfuse Interfacing were reversed on the pattern back.  It should read 1 yd of Timtex and 1  1/2 yd Craftfuse. 

If you only purchased 1 yard Craftfuse do this:

Cut 4 strips 1” wide x width of the Craftfuse and overlap two strips on each handle. Repeat for the gusset measurements. It will work and you’ll have enough interfacing.  

Sew all the strips together following the directions and then press the seams. Press from the front and then flip your strips over and press from the back.

And speaking of pressing…

Here’s where I iron!  No one ever gets behind this door unless they work here!  I have a built in wall ironing board in my large walk in closet that folds down!  The iron fits on the inside shelf when it’s closed up.

 

I’ve sewn the bag  and the gusset strips together, pressed the seams and I’m ready for the Craftfuse Interfacing! 

Next post:  Craftfuse, gusset, lining and pockets

Stay tuned…

What’s that stuff inside the Carry Me Bag called Timtex?   Well I can tell you this…without it, the Carry Me Bag would be wimpy and limp.  I left it out on my first prototype.  Oh my what a disaster!  Had to stuff the bag with paper to make it stand up!  LOL!

Can’t have that, so in came the Timtex!  It saved the day! If you haven’t used it, you may find it a strange beast at first, but believe me it can be tamed. 

Timtex is VERY stiff and almost feels like a soft cardboard.  The good news is that it’s 100% polyester, washes like a dream, and can be pressed into almost any shape with a hot iron.  

Some thought it had been discontinued and rumors were flying.  C & T Publishing picked up the manufacturing of Timtex and saved the day.  Why on earth would a publishing company manufacture interfacings?  It’s necessary for a lot of the projects in their books!  Look what you can do with it!

C & T is also manufacturing a lot of other  interfacings.  Some sound very interesting like the Fast2fuse Interfacings.  I’ll have to give them a try!

Normally when you are working with Timtex you cut off the seam allowance.  Notice in the picture above the seam allowance shows.

The cutting measurements in my pattern are minus the seam allowance, except at the very top of the bag.  I tell you to stitch it into the binding seam allowance for stability.  That’s the only reason.  You don’t stitch it into the side seams or the bottom seams.  I’ll show you in a bit…

Before I go onto my next post and start sewing my bag, I had to show you these photos sent to me by Diane Brown of Richmond Texas.  She has the cutest blog here!  She picked the “Sultry” Honey Bun and mixed all the fabrics.  I LOVE the look, don’t you? those Honey Bun rolls from Moda are so much fun!  One roll will make 3 bags!  3 not 2 like I say on the pattern.  How exciting is that?  One for you and two for gifts! 

 

Thanks Dianne!  I love your bag.  Now I’m off to start sewing.  Back in a few…

I’ve been working all day on my web site.  Never even realized that the day was gone until I looked up and saw that it’s 9PM!   I’ve been loading lots of trims again.  I keep getting emails asking if I still have them and now I do!

I’m making a Carry Me Bag tomorrow and I’m going to post tips as I make it!  I added all the strange little things you’ll need, like Timtex, to my web site and I’ll be give you tips and take some photos as I go along. 

But for now my doggie and kitties are calling.  Bitsy just finished sharing my artichoke heart and Chelsea is asking for a treat.  They need a bit of attention!

I took these photos with my IPhone the day after I returned from market.  Thought you’d like to see what my  IPhone dogs and cat look like! 

Bitsy’s hair is almost grown in over her surgery.  I think the artichoke hearts help.  She likes them with a bit of butter.  Her photo is now the background on my Iphone. 

 

Mooch looks strange through my IPhone, especially close up.  I think she was mad at me for not taking her to market.  

The good thing is Chelsea looks skinny through my IPhone.  Think I’ll send this one to the vet. 

So tomorrow I’m sewing a Carry Me Bag.  It’s going to be a gift for someone special!

If you have a pattern, get your Honey Bun Roll out and we can sew together! 

Hugs,

Anne