We are jumping around in making order with this post. This is actually something that I just recently finished (whaaat?). The deadline for this project is June 7th, so I wanted to have all the particulars posted by then.
This project came about due from the Something Old, Something New Make Along hosted by Tayler Earl of Wool Needles Hands. In honor of Earth Day being last month, she wanted this to be about repurposing and using what we have - both things I love to do. The prompt was:
- Not a garment or wearable accessory
- Made with stash yarn
- Incorporate something repurposed (i.e. yarn from an unraveled sweater, etc)
- 1 month to complete
I love a challenge and a precise framework, and it just so happens that I had a great idea. I had learned about the Stonecrop Tote from a different podcaster, The Copycat Stitch (can you tell I like watching knitting podcasts? lol). It looked very cute so I had it on my wish list already, but having a challenge come up that was mainly about making bags made me look at it closer. I used Ravelry to hunt my stash for appropriate yarn and came up with 2 skeins of James C. Brett Marble Chunky in the purple colorway. This yarn had been given to me by a woman who was destashing her sewing supplies to me, but she tried knitting once and decided she didn't like it. So she gave me a big handmade duffle bag with about 5 skeins of bulky and super bulky yarns. I so rarely use yarn that big that I had no idea what I would do with these gigantic skeins, so when I saw that they would work for this pattern I knew it was meant to be.
I did make some alterations to this pattern on the fly. It has you create the bottom and then just crochet in the round up from there, but when I made the prescribed bottom piece I knew the bag would be much smaller than I was wanting from the example photo. I am a notoriously tight crocheter - I make toys, after all - so I don't fault the pattern for this size discrepancy. I decided to just increase the bottom until it had 11 stitches between each short corner and then follow the directions from there. As the bag got taller, the sides seemed to splay out more than I wanted, so I did a decrease at each corner about 5 inches up from the bottom, then kept on going. Toward the top, I noticed it was still a little too wide open, so I decreased 4 stitches again about 5 rows from the top edge, and this certainly seemed to do the trick. My repurposed element would take care of the handles, so I just crocheted this baby until I used up all the yarn, which is great because now a yarn that I had no idea what to do with is not taking up room in my stash and it is a useful item. Perfect :)
Now for the repurposed part. I had planned on using some of the creamy colored leather pieces that I scalped off a couch that was in the trash at a condo I lived in years ago. I've used it here and there for a few handles, but barely made a dent in the stash. Perfect opportunity to use some more! BUT when I pulled out my box of leather, I discovered several belts that I forgot I had thrifted at some point. I had 2 other options, but I decided to go with a brown belt (originally from The Limited). I unpicked the seaming to hold the buckle on, gauged how big I could make the handles, and cut. I rounded the exposed edges and then used a heavy duty upholstery thread in my stash and started off just using the old stitching lines from the buckle and then matched that by hand on the other ends to attach it to the bag. Because of the size I wanted the handles to be, I decided to just incorporate some of the original belt holes on one side, and honestly I really like this as a feature now. It's a nice little nod to what this originally was.
Once the handle was on, I could have just stopped and had a useable bag. Being me, I couldn't just let it lie. I didn't want to the bag to stretch out over time, and I knew a lining would greatly help with that situation. I went through my stash of fabric that was given to me (by a different person), and after much deliberation, I decided on a dark paisley print cotton. I was feeling a little of the ~dark academia~ vibe from the bag in general, so I felt that this print complimented that idea.
To make the lining, I laid the bag out on the fabric and cut around (accounting for seam allowance). Then I cut out a pocket. I sewed the pocket first, then top stitched it to the lining, then put the lining together. Next, I wanted to add a magnetic closure to the top. I was given a lot of these as well, so why not? I added the closure to the lining, interfacing the area where the tabs to secure the closure. I did have to add some tucks in the fabric to account for my decreasing as the bag got taller, but I just did that as I hand stitched the lining below the top edge.
So this is truly the most repurposed project I could muster - all the materials were pre-owned, most of which were destashed to me. The only thing I bought was the belt YEARS ago, and that was only $1. I'm pretty ridiculously proud of that. I could have gone a step further and used an old sweater worth of yarn, but realistically with my schedule and how crazy my life has been, I know I would not have been able to make that happen in the 1 month time period. I'm very happy with my new bag :) So much so that I've been carrying it to work everyday since I finished it. It works great to carry my lunch, my knitting, a book, etc. I was worried maybe the handles would need reinforcing, but they've held up great. The bag gets a little lumpy sometimes, but that's just the nature of anything crocheted or knitted, you know? It holds everything I need and it contributes to my general librarian-esque aesthetic. What's not to love?
I'm so glad that I found out about this Make Along. I had a lot of fun puzzling out this project and just as much fun making it up. Now I have a bag to use that I'm sure I would never have made otherwise. Thanks to Taylor of Wool Needles Hands for such a great prompt and excuse to make this up!
Summary:
Yarn: 2 Skeins of James C Brett Marble in Purple - Free
Fabric: 1/2 yard paisley cotton - Free
Notions: Leather belt (thrifted) - $1.00, magnetic purse closure - Free
Time: 1 week
Total Cost: $1.00
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