The Start of the Long Weekender Bag

When I started sewing about a year and a half ago, the first pattern I bought and used was Amy Butler's Style Stitches.  The Cosmo Bag was probably not the easiest beginner pattern but I jumped in and never looked back.  I have heard a lot of criticism lately concerning this book but since I started with it, I became used to it and everything else seems fairly easy compared to it.  Looking back I'm glad it worked out this way :-).

 

The point of this story is that after doing a couple of the projects from that first book I became somewhat obsessed with Amy's patterns and bought all that I could find (this includes her other books).  I then became distracted by other patterns as my sewing radar expanded and never started, not to mention finished, most of the projects I had originally intended to make.  I even went as far as to cut out the pattern for the Weekender Bag before I got pushed to the side. 

 

Enter Heidi at the Farbic Mutt and Lori of Lori H. Designs (please forgive me ladies, I still haven't figured out a lot of this blogging stuff-linking back to things being one of the things on my list):

 

http://www.lorihdesigns.com/2012/10/the-long-weekend-event-and-giveaway.html

 

The perfect way to hold myself accountable and actually finish the bag!  This is what I have so far

 

 

 

It may not look like much but it took me about 5 hours last night.  Improv piecing is so much harder than it looks!  I discovered that I need a pattern.  I have yet to come across a pattern that I couldn't figure out (there was one close call involving a pattern that had missing pieces and horrible instructions, but you don't want to get me started on that!) but put some scraps in front of me and tell me to piece them with nothing to look or go by and I'm lost, lol.  Most of the exterior is finished.  I only need to piece and cut the top and bottom panels - so about 3 more hours :P.  I'm thinking a nice, soft gray for the lining and piping.  I will most likely end up changing up a few things on the pattern - I have no idea what cording is or how to use it, so I will probably use piping instead. So far I'm optomistic and eager to get back to work!