Archive for handmade purse

Handmade Purse Secrets

14 Aug 2009

5 Comments  handmade purse

  Have you ever wanted to create something that is practical and useful and gives you your own sense of style?  Or maybe, you are looking for a great gift idea for your mom, daughter, or sister.  If so, you’ve come to the right place.  I would like to share with you some of the handmade purse secrets, hints and tips for making handbags of your own that will make a statement and have all your friends asking where you got such cute handbags.

If you’re ready to make your own handmade purse, there are some important things you need to know before you begin.  Just follow these five secrets for having fun making your first handmade purse.

  1. An important factor when you start to making handbags is to make sure you that you select the right fabric for the right style of handmade purse.  The reason why this is important is because your finished handbag will be affected by the weight and flexibility of the fabric and materials you use.  If you don’t select the right fabric for the right style of handmade purse, then you run the risk of a lot of frustration when you can not even finish your project because the fabric layers are so thick you cannot even sew them without breaking a needle, or so flimsy the finished purse just lies in a heap.
  2. Another important consideration for making a handmade purse is that you decide what style of handbag you are making because that will determine the type of materials you use.  If you make sure you use the right fabric for the right kind of handmade purse you have in mind, then you’ll be fine. 
  3. You don’t have to spend a lot of money in order to make a handmade purse.  All you need to do is limit your use of expensive fabrics, and make sure that you don’t overspend on the accessories. 
  4. Instead of complicating your making handbags efforts by purchasing expensive fabrics, try it this way:  look in your closet for that favorite dress that you know you will never fit in again and then use the fabric from that dress to make your handmade purse.  In fact, if you recycle your old dress, then you will find that you enjoy your finished handbag that much more.
  5. Have you considered making quilted purses?  It’s not as difficult as you might think.  What you need to do is quilt two layers of fabric with a layer of batting in between for each piece of your purse.  To do this you can simply sew straight lines across the layered fabrics an inch or two apart and then sew those quilted pieces together to complete your quilted purse.

So if you really want to make cute handbags, follow these tips to enjoy making a handmade purse of your own.

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The Making of a Whimsical Handmade Purse

13 Sep 2009

4 Comments  cute handbags, green handbags, handbag making, handmade purse

I am making handmade purses for the upcoming craft fair and have decided my next project will be a whimsical handmade purse.  What’s a whimsical handmade purse, you ask?  What comes to my mind is something fun, cute and fanciful.  Perhaps a princess would carry such cute purses.  To get a clearer picture in my mind I spend several hours getting lost between sites like Mary Frances Collection, which is full of fabulous whimsical inspiration. and tutorials like Threads Magazine’s posting of a drawstring bag, which is where I find the style of purse and the pattern I want. 

Now I have a somewhat clearer vision of my whimsical handmade purse in my head.  Since I make my bags from recycled fabric, I check my stash and find some drapery fabric that has the right weight and body but it’s white — pretty and may work but I keep looking.  Next I find a blouse, it’s black with kind of an oriental pattern on it, that will work with the pattern but it’s not going to quite give me the whimsical style I’m looking for.  I think I’ll go with the white and add some sort of embellishments to fancy it up. 

For embellishments I have a little trouble locating anything that I like in my stash so off to the dollar store I go.  I come home with several things I can use, a toddler’s tutu made out of blue netting with sparkles on it, a couple of doll clothes accessories that have boas attached, some plastic butterflies, some silk flowers and a sheer purple polyester camisole.  I decide that I will make the outside of the purse from the tutu and line it with the white fabric, perhaps adding a butterfly or two on the outside or maybe between the layers.  I’ll save the camisole, boas and flowers for another pattern I found.  Stay tuned and I will post my results soon.  In the meantime, you can check out my other handmade purses on my etsy site at http://stufffrombarb.etsy.com.

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