And you shall be called the GRRRRR purse.

I liked the bag I made for etsy so much that I decided to make one for myself. My mom bought me a pattern book from Indygo Junction and I really liked some of the purses in it, but I can't sell those, so I decided to make one for myself using the same fabric, but using plastic handles instead of making fabric ones. I had attempted plastic handles one other time and had a lot of trouble, so I thought that following someone's specific directions instead of winging it using common sense might make things easier.

Um...Not really.

I followed the directions exactly, except that instead of using velcro to close it, I used magnets, and I didn't have any plastic stuff to put in the bottom so I didn't do that step either.

Positives: I think that Indygo Junction has really cute patterns and they show you lots of different possibilities for one pattern. The pattern pieces are very easy to read and understand and the first 15 pages of the book explain things like purse stiffening and things very well and in great detail. Negatives: If you are a novice sewer, this is NOT the book for you. The instructions are very direct, and unless you know what they are talking about, it doesn't make sense. If you are a mid-level sewer this book will frustrate you. I am guessing that maybe I need a specific foot to sew these plastic handles? I used a zipper foot (I think) so that I could put the needle as far to one side as possible and the foot wouldn't go over the plastic, but it still looks like I lost my sight before I sewed the top seams and did the whole thing by feel. Hence the GRRRRRR purse. I'm thinking that a big part of the problem was that the tabs to connect the handles to the purse were only 2-3/8 inches long and there is no way that was going to work well...but I was FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS. There is no way I could sell this, aside from the copyright issues, because the stitching around the top is so crooked. But, I did learn to use heavy interfacing (interlining?), and I installed my first magnetic closure. I like it, drunken stitching and all, and I will use it, but it will shame me on the inside. =)