It had been too long since I’ve made one of these, so I made this Spring Crescent Tote! The other day one of the places I’ve taken photographs before had their lawn covered in these beautiful blue Spring blooms. I’m not sure what kind of flowers they are, but they only last about 24 hours or so.

Inspiration Strikes

I got to work sewing up this Crescent Tote using See You At Six floral canvas (purchased from StyleMaker Fabrics) that I had on my cutting table. This combo was pulled originally to use on another pattern, but it felt like a good opportunity to sew up the Crescent Tote instead! I was hoping that it would be fun to take pictures with the little blue flowers, but by the time I sewed up the tote it was high noon and I didn’t really end up liking how my pics turned out. Then I was busy that evening so it was too late to take more later. Oh well! It was a fun burst of inspiration and I’ll take it!

So I took the rest of the pictures in my studio and tried not to be too disappointed that I missed my opportunity with the little blue flowers. Next year?

Fabrics and zip!

Carolyn of Sullivan’s Trim kindly gifted me a handful of zipper-by-the-yard cuts. This minty blue/green color match too perfectly not to use! I paired the floral canvas with a yarn dyed canvas for the lining. And my Cookie color webbing (from my shop) for the handles. The lining canvas is one of my favorites. It’s one I purchased from Fancy Tiger Crafts and am kicking myself for not ordering more. I don’t think the manufacturer makes it anymore! It’s a really nice weight hemp/cotton blend. Hope you find this Spring Crescent Tote inspiring!

Project Details:

• Pattern: Crescent Tote (available in my shop in both paper and PDF form)
• Fabrics:
  • Exterior is See You At Six Canvas (purchased from StyleMaker Fabrics) that exact print is sold out there, but here’s a few more options
  • Lining is a cotton/hemp blend canvas (no longer sold), this Yarn Dyed Essex (in Aqua) would be a close swap
• Zipper by the yard from Sullivan’s Trim
• Webbing (1.5″-wide) is available in my shop (this is the Cookie color)

I know, it’s been slow going here on the blog. I’ve been busy not taking pictures of my final projects; even worse, I take them and then don’t even post them. I’m not sure why. I’ve been blogging since 2009 and I still really enjoy it. I guess it feels like it matters less with everything social media. So in steps this pre-quilted Oxbow Tote!

Fabric Buying Slump

I’ve also realized I haven’t been buying much fabric. Honestly, fabric inspires me to sew, so it makes sense that if I don’t have as much fabric, I sew less.

One of the reasons I like browsing fabric shops that carry more than quilting cotton is that it feels more inspiring. I know there are many fabric shops (online and brick & mortar) that carry all types of fabrics! But the ones that have lots of different garment fabrics are especially inspiring to me. I think it’s a different perspective than the quilting focus that attracts me. And I like thinking about how I can incorporate them into bag making.

So when I was sewing up samples for the Oxbow Tote I spotted this pre-quilted fabric over at StyleMaker Fabrics and promptly scooped some up! I love looking through their shop when I want to feel inspired! I had it on my cutting table and my youngest daughter liked it, so of course I made it for her! The Sea colored webbing in my shop happens to be a really great match to this fabric, and I found a great canvas print to use for the lining. I love it when projects come together like that!

I did add a more medium-weight interfacing to the canvas lining. Just to try and beef it up a bit. The pre-quilted fabric is great, but it doesn’t have a ton of structure on its own. So I ended up adding Emmaline Bags medium fusible woven interfacing on the canvas (Medium EB Fuse). And for the Reinforced Base, I used a scrap of waxed canvas and I was all set. It’s still lightweight and easy to store in her closet, so that’s a win win.

Project Details:

• Pattern: Oxbow Tote (available in my shop as a PDF and paper pattern)- this is the Overnight size!
• Fabrics:
  • Exterior: pre-quilted coating from Style Maker Fabrics, I bought some of this type too if you’re looking for more (comes in lots of colors)
  • Lining: canvas by Lissie Teehee for Cotton + Steel (from her Summer Folk collection)
  • Accent: waxed canvas from Fabric Funhouse (I’m pretty sure I used the Coyote Brown)
• Zipper is from Zipper Valley, with a leather pull I made myself from some scrap leather
• Hardware kits available in my shop
• Webbing is available in my shop (this is the Sea color webbing)

Hope you had a great weekend! I made another Buckthorn Tote in Riverbend during my sew along this past fall and haven’t shared the finished bag yet! Check out my other Buckthorn Tote in Riverbend here.

I recently got a new camera after having my other one for the past 9 years. Some parts of the camera were falling off and the screen had pixel fallout which was becoming more and more frustrating. So I tried grabbing a few shots of this Buckthorn Tote and then ended up having to switch back to my old camera to finish up! It’s been tough learning a whole new set up, and since then, I’ve spent little pockets of time getting to know the new camera – and am excited to keep learning!

Anyway, I loved being able to use my Riverbend Big Sur canvas for this tote. It was so easy to pair it with a print from my Riverbend Essex collection. Love it when things work out that way. I hope that if you are interested in sewing up a Buckthorn Backpack or Tote, you check out the full video sew-along on my YouTube channel. And check out the full sew-along blog posts here!

I just wrapped up the majority of the design work for my next fabric collection. I’m very excited about it and it should be released for shops to purchase in December. I’m already excited to sew up samples using it!

Lastly, I’m headed to Sewtopia Milwaukee in just a few weeks. I’m excited to see my friends and get to know the other attendees.

Project Details:

• Buckthorn Tote pattern (in PDF and paper), includes free video sew-along
• Fabrics:
  • Riverbend Big Sur canvas for exterior
  • Riverbend Essex for lining (both designed by me for Robert Kaufman Fabrics)
• 14″ handbag zip (I used the Sand color from my shop)
• 2 yards of 1″-wide webbing (I used Acorn from my shop)
• waxed cord (lots of colors in my shop)