Lighten the Load with a Cross body Bag

Fashion & Wearables Completed Projects
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I was told by my physical therapist to stop carrying around a too heavy handbag on my shoulders. It is causing me to lean a bit lopsided on my new hip. So, I decided to make a cross body bag, using some favorite aboriginal designed fabric. There is an inside pocket for my cell phone and enough room for my wallet, glasses, and tissues.

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Because I only had fat quarters, I had to use different fabrics for each section. I like the scrappy look anyway. This is the other side of the bag.

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Also, the pattern called for grommetsā€¦after trying a few times, I gave up and crocheted around some rings and sewed them on over the botched up holes I madeā€¦turned out to be my favorite part of the bag!

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I really didnā€™t like that I had to cover the inside seams with bias binding so I am looking for recommendations for a better pattern if you have used one!

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That fabric! Wow, really special. I like the grommet solution, very smart & looks great.

What pattern did you use? The seam bias binding is not my favourite either. Itā€™s a good technique when needed but ya, I prefer the other way too.

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That is one gorgeous bag! And beautifully made, like the one you made for me years ago ā€” Iā€™m still using that. Loving the way you made the grommets!

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Your solution for the grommets is genius! Love the fabrics you used.

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It was an old Noodlehead one I had in my pile of patterns to tryā€¦I did use purchased bias binding that I had in stashā€¦seemed like a waste of a good fat quarter to make my own when you truly canā€™t see it much at all! I have a few others that I am going to make to find one I really like!

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This came out fantastic and really lets the fabric shine! I also love your grommet solution!

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I love this! You picked stunning fabrics, and the piecing really is very visually engaging. I love your eyelet solution. I will absolutely have to remember that for future projects! :two_hearts: :cherry_blossom: I hope it helps relieve the pressure on your hip!

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love those fabrics! and the grommet upgrade is perfect.

If the bag is lined, you could ā€œbag outā€ each main piece of the bagā€“sew on all pockets and details, then put the outside piece RST with the lining, stitch around the edges and turn right side out. Then when you assemble the bag, there are no raw edges to bind. It will make the bag just a bit smaller.

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You and these fabrics made a fabulous bag! And your grommet fix is brilliant and beautiful.

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Love that crochet grommet fix. Adds a touch of elegant to the bag. I love that it is different patterns too.

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Congratulations! Your amazing bag is a FEATURED PROJECT!
Thank you for contributing to our community. :green_heart:

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Absolutely STUNNING bag my friend. Iā€™m not sure that Iā€™d call the results scrappy. I see that you used different fabrics for each part, but because they are so close in color, they really create a very harmonious look. If you told me it was a designer bag youā€™d bought in a fancy boutique, Iā€™d totally believe you. But of course itā€™s a thousand times better because you made it, and it has such beautiful touches.

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Gorgeous and I love the added touch with those crochet rings~!!!

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oh, trueā€¦I purposely selected the same color family fabrics that coordinatedā€¦so I guess it is just a pattern mix and not random scrappy. I have similar fabrics but in the burgandy family. I will be doing a different pattern, thoughā€¦I did not like using bias tape to hide the seams on the inside with this pattern.

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