Handmade Handbags

So, this weekend Em and I decided to make handbags.  Em needed a new one, and I am always ready to sew something new.  Em decided to make her bag out of painters cloth that we had purchased at Lowe's for about 4 dollars.  I used one of my wonderful Goodwill fabric finds.  Both linings were also from the Goodwill fabric pile.  (On a side note, I always seem to make my bags out of blue fabric.  I am determined that the next one I do will be a different color!) We searched the internet for a free handbag pattern and found this one that we really liked:  http://lamaisonreid.blogspot.com/2010/08/burlap-purse-with-shabby-rose.html.  We loved the burlap look and while Em's is pretty close to the original, I decided to change mine up a bit.  I made mine a little bit smaller.  Em attached a really cute metal accessory that says, "joy" and I stuck with the original design and tried my hand at a shabby chic rose and placed a button in the middle of it.  I found the directions for it here:  http://tutorialboutique.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-fold-burlap-rose.html.  We are quite happy with the results!  

Em's Purse

Deb's Purse

Shabby Chic Rose