My Fabric

I bought my fabric yesterday. I couldn't decide on one, so I got two options. I can't wait to get started. One is a hemplike canvas for the top and a rusty orange/red linen for the lining, and the other is bright yellow canvas for the top and a zebra print linen for the bottom. Has anyone else gotten their fabric yet?

Buying your fabric

I went out to buy my fabric today and was a little confused by the materials list given in the instructions, so I wanted to explain some terms. First of all she mentions that your main fabric should be a fat quarter. I'm not a quilter so I had no idea what that meant. Here is an illustration/definition:

fat quarter: A 1/2 yard of fabric that is cut in half between the selvages so you end up with a piece of fabric that is approximately 18" by 22".

so if you had a yard of fabric the following dark yellow region is the fat quarter.



So when you are buying your fabric you will most likely just buy a 1/2 yard which will give you two fat quarters (make a second one as a gift.)

Her instructions call for a fat quarter used from a 54" wide fabric. A lot of fabric comes in a skinnier 44" width. If you buy the skinnier fabric you can either make 2 skinnier bags or cut the fabric down to 26" wide and make one bag with some leftover scraps- it just depends on the look you are going for.

So here is what you need to buy:

1/2 yard of main top fabric
3/4 yard of lining/accent fabric
thread

Project # 1 : Modern Tote

For our first project we thought that we would start with something simple and chic - a modern tote bag. The tutorial is free and comes from the very talented Cicada Daydream blog (who hand prints that amazing fabric).

To see the tutorial click here.

We thought that because this is a pretty simple project it should only take about two weeks. So go get your fabric (and preshrink it). I would recommend that your outer fabric is an upolstery fabric or something of the same thickness such as canvas if you want the bag to stand up straight on it's own.

Please post any comments, questions, or photos of the process. I can't wait to see what fabric everyone picks.