My first (pattern-less) bag.

I have a huge pile of WIP/mending/projects to do. So every time I finish two or three of these *yawn* projects, I reward myself and make something new and exciting.

I made this bag without a pattern. Without making a muslin first. Or thinking about pesky things like how tall I wanted it, or how deep. And it was new! And exciting! And I wasted a bunch of fabric! But I keep telling myself that that is okay. I had fun doing it.

I love this fabric by Timeless Treasures. It is called "Allover Trees". I wanted to feature it in a bag with a linen-look but without the linen price. I used osnaburg from my local Joann's, and I really like how it turned out. It's soft and squishy. To me it looks just like linen. The next time I will add some kind of interfacing to make it a bit more substantial, shorten the handles, and line it with a more neutral color. This is my first attempt at patchwork. I used three different fabrics to frame the tree fabric. The patchwork was time intensive, but I think well worth the effort.

I even made my first zipper pocket, thanks to a tutorial from Natalie at Cinderberry Stitches! (And look! My first links too!)