Obsessed with this bag by Laura Martell at Creative Thimble
Are you a serial seamstress? I know I am. When I find a pattern I love I make it again and again! The bag from my last blog post is my 7th Professional Tote. For the first, large size Professional Tote I made I used a purple/grey, value, quilting cotton paisley from Joann’s and that bag lasted about 8 years. I still have it but recently shelved it to give it a much needed rest from my carry rotation. It was a long time favorite and I received many compliments.
In the beginning this was my favorite, handmade bag. It was great for carrying my laptop, files and date book. Look at that value, quilting cotton from Joann’s!
The pattern has an option for a luggage band. That grey band fits over a rolling luggage handle and stays securely on top of your rolling bag as you navigate the airport!
The pattern has two options for side bottle pockets. One option is to run elastic through the 1/2” contrasting band at the top of the pocket. Another option is to use cording and cord locks. After having made several bags both ways I prefer the elastic option. While this is usually a bottle pocket it also doubles as a reading glasses pocket. I can never find them when I need them and when I do find them and don’t need them they all end up in this side pocket.
Once I made this bag for myself and loved it so much my daughter also wanted one. She went through a phase in high school when carrying books in backpacks wasn’t cool anymore. She picked fabric out of my stash, again from the quilting cotton, value shelves at Joann! Her bag became a favorite for both of us as well as several of her friends. A proud moment for me was when her friends told her during lunch one day, “Your mom makes the coolest stuff!” Up until that point I only made leggings for her but a whole book bag/tote was the ultimate in cool! YAY FOR MOM!!
Making bags is even more fun when working with your favorite colors! I love these jewel tones! Man are we gonna miss the value, quilting cottons at Joanns! (I can’t even guess the number of surgical masks and face masks I’ve seen in this marbled Jewel tone fabric! I’ve even seen this fabric in a surgical scrub on Gray’s Anatomy!)
The interior pockets for The Professional Tote are good for everything. This time I made the bag with several pen slots, a Velcro sanitary napkin pocket on one side and several pen slots and a slip pocket for the phone on the other side. There is also a zipper pocket in the lining above the pen and slip pocket. The center divider is a padded zipper pocket for tablets. This pocket is not big enough for a large laptop but the main interior definitely accommodates a large laptop.
The outside pockets are pretty cool too. There’s a large slip pocket on one side and a zipper pocket and slip pocket on the other side. If you need it there’s a pocket for it. And because I love to overdo a very good thing I made this matching Swoon Della Wallet clutch. Swoon Patterns need their own blog post! Check them out if you haven’t already. https://themakespace.uk/
I’ve often told my friends you know you have the perfect bag/tote that when you pop open the top of the bag, lights shine forth and you can hear the angels singing. The tunes coming from this bag are definitely bright!
What are the features you think make a perfect bag? What is your favorite bag pattern?