More Bags in Progress

I've really grown fond of my denim circle tote bags—they're fantastic for shopping—so when I found a stack of old jeans I decided to make more. Although they're quite time-consuming to make, the effort is definitely worth it.

I've already devoted a full day to cutting up jeans into circles and I found I had enough for three bags. Sewing these pieces together, along with securing the flaps, usually takes another couple of days. I’m currently done with one of the panels and have two more to go.

After I sew the fabric into the panels, I sew them into tubes, then add the bottom and top pieces and attach the handles. Then, because I don't think these bags are strong enough, I make another bag from heavy fabric to line it. Once finished, these bags hold a lot of weight and my husband really loads them up when he's shopping.

I probably have at least another three days work on these bags to complete them. This process would no doubt be quicker if I had written down the measurements during my last round of making these bags. This time, I am.

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Put Your Foot Down

Still Playing With Denim

I'm not sure why, but I'm still in the mood to play with my denim scraps. I decided to make three more of these circle denim tote bags. I've finished cutting out and sewing together the panels but I haven't decided what fabrics I'll be using for the "windows." I'm not sure why I'm struggling to decide this time.

While I was trying to figure it out, I saw the big pile of odd-shaped scraps that were leftover from cutting out all the circles. I was inspired to start sewing them together to make crumb blocks. I'm not sure what they're for (yet). Maybe I'll use them as external pouches on more of the insulated shopping totes.

We've signed up for Costco so now we'll be doing less frequent, large shopping trips so it would be handy to have at least a couple more totes. I'm starting to run out of tired, old jeans so I might have to use other fabrics.

Ultimate Travel Bag Finished!

I finally finished the Ultimate Travel Bag, and what a journey it's been! I started this project back in January 2024, aiming to create an insulated shopping bag. I used the Modern Peacock pantograph by Kim Diamond for quilting and, as I recall, it used a crazy amount of thread: 5 bobbins for just 1 yard of fabric. I went all out with the batting—using one layer of Pellon Insul-fleece and a layer of Quilters Dream Blend 70/30. This combo made the bag really thick and insulated, which is great, but sewing it? Wow, that was an unanticipated challenge.

Getting those thick layers under the sewing machine foot turned into my own personal sewing ordeal. It was so bulky, I couldn't even fit it under the foot of my old machine. In my quest to find a machine that could handle it, I ended up buying two used machines this past year, but no luck—neither could manage the job.

Then came the Sailrite. Even with this new beast of a machine, it was tough. I mean, it could squash those layers down enough to sew, but I had to wrestle with it every step of the way and use some really heavy thread. After all that, I’ve decided I'm not going through this again with the same insulated batting. But hey, now I have a travel bag that's ready for just about anything!

And it's already been put to the test! My husband took it on a business trip to New Jersey and it worked out great. He was really impressed with how much he could fit in it and how well it held up through the trip. Looks like all that wrestling with fabric and thread paid off!

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Brag About Your Beauties
Finished (or Not) Friday
Off the Wall Friday
TGI Finished Friday

New Sewing Machine

I found a machine that will sew bags! It's a Sailrite Ultrafeed LSZ. I'd never heard of this brand before, but I saw it on Adam Savage's Youtube Channel so I ordered one! This was the third machine I've purchased because I want to make bags.

It took a bit of time to get it all set up. (Sorry, I haven't yet managed to get a good photo.) The machine is crazy heavy, over 50 pounds, and I don't trust it won't break my sewing table if I put it in the cutout, so I am still waiting for the new sewing table to set it up in a permanent location. 

I decided to give it a test drive by sewing a new purse. I spent a couple of days measuring my favorite purse and reverse-engineering the pattern. I decided to cut up some old, dead jeans for the fabric.

I made a few minor changes from the original purse but I think it turned out really well for the first try. And the sewing machine performed great. Now that I've figured it out, I think I'll make another in purple, my favorite color.

Downsizing My Sewing Room

My husband and I have decided to move into a smaller, one-story house so I am trying to downsize my sewing gear. We don't have a house lined up, but it is pretty clear to me I won't have a whole bedroom as a sewing room. So, I am starting the process now.

I am selling my tables and my excess sewing machines. I will miss these tables. I've loved having them.

Another Shopping Bag

The bag is based on Sew4Home's Zippered Thermal Picnic Tote. This was actually my third time sewing this pattern and it went much better because I didn't follow her directions for putting in the zipper and instead did a recessed closed-end zipper. It was so much easier to sew into the bag because those bulky tabs weren't in the way. I also didn't bother to sew in the interior pocket since I won't need it.

By the time I had finished building the bag exterior, I was out of the denim rectangles (I actually had to cut a few more) so I just did the pockets with a larger scrap I had lying around. The lining is some leftover trigger cloth from many years ago. The batting is Insul-Bright Mylar/Poly Batting to help hold in the cold when we buy freezer items. (I actually bought a bolt of it a couple years ago, so I'm happy to finally be using some of it.)

Now that I've gotten the hang of making this bag pattern, I might just make a few more as gifts. These really are great shopping bags. And I found a couple more canvas remnants while spending the last week cleaning up my sewing room/closets.

Linking up with:

Brag About Your Beauties
Finished (or Not) Friday
TGI Finished Friday

Thermal Shopping Bag

I finally finished one of my long term To Dos: An insulated shopping bag! This was my third attempt and I finally got one finished with the zipper!

I'd been sifting through all the stuff that's been dumped in my large walk-in closet and I found a tall pile of rectangular denim scraps. I don't remember why I originally cut these, but they inspired me to start sewing them together to make fabric for this attempt at the tote bag. I also found a remnant of red canvas that I used for the lining and binding.

I went ahead and tried the Zippered Thermal Picnic Tote pattern again, but this time I didn't wing it and followed the directions as closely as possible. It definitely went better, but lining it with canvas certainly caused problems as it is a lot more bulky than the lighter fabric recommended.

Now that I've figured it out, I'm planning to make another one, but I'm going to revise the pattern. The pattern for the zipper doesn't work very well with canvas so I'm going to try an make an Enclosed End Recessed Zipper for the next bag.

Linking up with:

Brag About Your Beauties
Finished (or Not) Friday
TGI Finished Friday