Sorry, I lied

Sorry, gals, I lied. The little strawberry print bag was not my first bag. I actually made this bag last fall, but the "bag bug" hadn't bitten quite yet, so I had forgotten about it. It is made out of leftover kool-aid pouches. After the kids drink them, slit the bottom with a knife, wash it out with soapy water, and let them dry. Stitch them together with regular thread and needle on a regular sewing machine. Sometimes the needle gets a little gunky from the adhesive used to hold the seams of the pouch together. Cut pouches in half lengthwise then folded in half and sewn toghether to make the long straps. I used three total pouches for the straps, so that is three halves of a pouch to make each strap. There are approximately 22 pouches. With 10 pouches per box, I decided to go ahead and make them out of three different colors. I had seen them around and have heard that they sell on ebay for about $20 to $25. It has been a really fun purse.

And, here is a photo of my latest bag. It is a soft sided tote. I used blanket binding to make the straps. I threaded each end through a button hole and tied a knot to secure it. This is a gift for a friend with a real casual look, but several children and all their stuff to tote around.