So Knot Over It!

Last week I tried my hand at a Japanese knot bag after having it on my ever-so-long-and-growing sewing list. The beauty of the Japanese knot bag is that one handle is longer than the other. The long handle slips through the little one (hence "knot") and then slips on your wrist. I was making it for a friend and couldn't wait to be done because I wanted to make one for myself. (friends first, then self...someday I'll put myself first) Sorry I'm digressing...

One of the hardest parts of a project for me is picking out the fabric. There is just too much to choose from and I love it all. I love it all so much that I don't want to cut it, but want to make a project out of it, but don't want to cut it! (Enter my world...) Finally I had decided on the fabric and started cutting it (GASP!). I cut two pieces of each fabric for the handles and one of each for the base. Insert error: I cut TWO of the SAME pieces for the handles and didn't flip the pattern for one of them! DOH! Did I mention that I was making this out of a fat quarter and I didn't have any more?! Oh I didn't? Well I was making it from a fat quarter and didn't have any to spare. What did I do you ask? Well I said that's ok and kept sewing it together like it was meant to be just hoping that I was right by wrongfully cutting it and it would all magically work out in the end...(Enter my world again...)

I bet you can guess what I'm going to say next. I wasn't right. It didn't magically all work out in the end UNTIL I made it work :) The problem with how I cut it out was that the long handle didn't line up with the other long handle and the short handle didn't line up wit the other short handle, thus the knot bag wasn't very knotty. I decided to forget the whole one slipping through the other and just use up some extra ribbon I had lying around from Bug's tutu I made her (that she REFUSES to wear) for the handles. I know, there's too much talk and not enough pictures, so here:

 

I meant to make it like that all a long. I just wanted you to think I messed up.

 
 

Did I mention that it is reversible too?

Yay, so I rescued the bag. (sorta)  The problem is that I don't LOVE, LOVE it; it's just alright. If you want it, you can have it! This isn't an official giveaway because it's too "crappy" to be one. I'm not being a brat; I'm just saying I didn't really put the love into the ribbon handle sewing as much as I normally would. It was a quick semi-sloppy fix. I am kind of thinking of cutting the ribbon at the tops, using some anti-fray stuff, and then tying them into bows that can be make shorter are longer arm holes.

Japanese bag, I'm so not over you... Tuesday was our last day of our President's Day break (two days) and I took that as an opportunity to tackle this bag once and for all. It REALLY is an EASY and QUICK sew, if you cut the pieces correctly. Here is the bag I finished in about 30 minutes from cutting to sewing, that is for the friend who was supposed to get the first one. I LOVE, LOVE this one!

 

Here she is! Standing all pretty in her Vera Bradley paisley fabric!

 

 

See what I mean about the handles?

 
 

The knot. (It really isn't THAT skinny of  a bag, just empty and pushed in to make it stand pretty)

 How cute is it? I want to make one for myself now. Before I can do that though I have to make a matching wallet and coffee cozy to go along with the gift. :) Be looking for those soon.