Wednesday, September 23, 2020

It's In the Bag Blog Hop with Island Batik and ByAnnie.com



I do hope you've been hopping along with us.  There have been so many gorgeous projects and chances to win fabric.  Welcome to my day on the hop, featuring Sunset Plumes designed by Kathy Engle.  When we were offered a choice for bags, I went BIG!  I had already thought about doing a ByAnnie bag, and had purchased Got Your Back pattern. and started a backpack.  I thought it would be fun to do another challenging bag, and Round Trip Duffle was my choice.   Annie provided all the hardware, strapping, and wonderful Soft and Stable for the bag, as well as the plastic base and zippers.  I was so excited to see which fabrics from the collection she chose for my bag.  We received this amazing bundle in the July Ambassador box.  Many of the patterns have a series of videos available, for free if you purchase the pattern.  The videos help with many of the steps involved in making ByAnnie bags, and will be very helpful as you read the directions.  
My first step was to watch the videos and familiarize myself with the pattern and steps.  I loaded the green swirl/leaf fabric and the pink feather square fabric, along with Soft and Stable on Vanna, my Handiquilter Amara, and picked a dark green Aurifil 40wt thread to quilt the layers.  When choosing a quilting design for the Prostitcher, I looked at a few, but the Climbing Ivy Edge to Edge by My Creative stitches seemed like the best choice.  The green fabric, the face of the bag, has swirls and leaves.  While that was being quilted, I took Sally Manke's advice and copied the back label page of the pattern onto shipping label paper that I use for my Etsy shop. It made fast work of labeling the pieces that I cut.  I could just stick the label on the fabric, and not worry about pins.  I pinned a few "two" of the same together.  Excellent idea, Sally!  Bags by Annie have lots of great features, but that also means lots of pieces and parts.  But reading the pattern and watching the videos makes it so easy.  


You can see the strap and the Fan accent for the pockets, with the edges of pockets bound in the burgundy color to match the straps. 
After cutting the pieces, I would a bobbin for the 2 colors I was planning to use, both Aurifil 40wt threads.  I have purchased a number of spools of 40wt because I like it for my embroidery machine as well as garment and bags.  It's a little thicker and sturdier for things that get more use.  I loaded a Schmetz Embroidery 14 needle, as well.  First you sew all the components and then assemble, and finish with binding and zipper pulls.  I've made many bags, and finishing the inside with binding was new to me.  But it makes sense, and leaves a nice finish in the bag, plus adds to the stability of the shape.  

You will need to take it slow, and use a walking foot, Jeans or Topstitch needle and single hole plate, if you have it.  At some points, there's over 19 layers in this bag, and I was having issues until I remembered using the single needle plate and walking foot on my Janome Horizon 9450.  My old machine didn't like sewing the layers, which is why the backpack was only finished this month. I had forgotten, but others were discussing the challenges on the Ambassador private Facebook page, and that jogged my memory.  But persistence and patience are good skills. And the results are worth it.
Progress.
Sewing in the main zipper. I used my serger to overcast the raw edges, as well as the directions Annie shares to use the edge of the zipper to cover the raw edge.
This was a frustration point, but remembering to use the walking foot and single needle plate made the next photo possible. 

Sewing the side pieces on, and you can see the lining and quilting design.
Adding the binding to finish the interior.  Almost done!  Yes you'll need to do some smushing and manipulation to make it work, but you can do it! 

I now have a very pretty and classy duffle bag, that will hold enough stuff for a weekend away. 

Outside zipper pocket, and slip pocket, and padded shoulder strap. 


Inside there's 3 slip pockets and a zippered full size mesh pocket (Annie had provided orange mesh, but I had pink and thought it looked better, so used my purchased By Annie mesh, which is really fun to sew.)
The hard plastic base is in the fabric sleeve at the bottom.  It's removable, so you can wash the bag, or store it folded. 

Back side has a slip pocket and a trolley sleeve to go over the handle of your wheeled luggage.  
I was so happy to get the antique brass hardware, and thought it was the perfect choice for these fabrics.  Great side pockets, too.  Perfect for smaller items and tickets. 
Ready to go on my next adventure!
12”H x 19½"W x 7½"D is the finished size, and it's plenty big enough to hold a weekend's worth of clothes and toiletries, as well as book or tablet, and more.  

Perfect for a train trip to the city. Or a weekend get-away by car or plane!  

Thanks for reading.  I'll be giving a few FQ pieces of some of the newer collections to someone who comments.  Please tell me if you have or will be making a ByAnnie bag of any type.  I plan to make a few more, including something to coordinate with this bag for toiletries.  

Also, please check out the other Ambassadors and their bags, and stop by the Island Batik blog for more info.  They're giving away a gorgeous bundle to 2 lucky people using the Rafflecopter post below.  There's another give-away for next week, too!  Make sure you follow Island Batik's blog for the reminder to enter.

Today Denise Looney shares her bag with Sunset Plumes as well.  

29 comments:

Quayquilter said...

I always enjoy seeing the ambassadors rise to a challenge especially for making this bag. Its ovely but such hard work and some machines wouldn't cope. How wonderful to have videos to help you.

Anonymous said...

Kathy,
The duffle is beautiful. Reading about all of the bags being made is an inspiration to look into a new project. petuniakr@aol.com

Elizabeth said...

The duffle is great. I have also used a few of By Annies patterns

For the love of geese said...

Beautiful and wonderful post. I love your bag adventures.

Gene Black said...

I have not yet made a "By Annie" bag but I have a free pattern and some Soft 'n' Stable so I plan on making one.

Joyce Carter said...

Very beautiful bag! You did an awesome job making it. The fabrics are really gorgeous and I love the colors. Thank you for sharing today.
Although I love all the bags that have been shown, I don't think I would try to make one. There are too many pieces to deal with and I just don't have the patience Thank you for the chance.
jrcarter727@gmail.com

Lori said...

wow this really turned out gorgeous. I agree a toiletry bag to go with would be perfect. Thanks for sharing and inspiring today.
quilting dash lady at comcast dot net

Christine Martinez said...

The bag came out great! The fabric is beautiful!

Emily said...

This is beautiful!!!!! What a lovely bag for a weekend getaway!

Sharon Aurora said...

Fantastic bag!!! I would love to make a ByAnnie bag. I've never made one but seeing all these wonderful bags has me wanting one for myself.

martha said...

gorgeous bag and great size!

martha said...

gorgeous bag and great size!

Cindy Shelley said...

Love this Round Trip Duffle bag

Quilting Tangent said...

Wonderful weekend bag! I haven't made a bag but I'm getting inspired. 24Tangent@gmail.com

Rochelle aka Bella Quilts said...

A great bag and the fabric is lovely. The quilting motif was just right and all the pockets look so professional. You make it look easy and from what the other ambassadors are saying, the patterns are so well written that following them and using the videos practically ensures success. I'll be giving it some though if I decide to make a new bag.

Kathy E. said...

This is the bag I'd like to make...the Round Top Duffle...if I make one of Annie's patterns. I love the roomy inside and extra pockets. It is perfect for a short getaway or road trip! You did an outstanding job on yours!
duchick at gmail dot com

Diantha said...

This is a great looking bag, and looks useful too! I have never made a "byAnnie" bag, but they look so nice, and well constructed. I think I'd start with a simpler one, though.
Thanks for the chance at the giveaway.

cghundley said...

Fabulous work on this bag.
I love the colors and bag
design. I haven't made any
bags yet, but might try out
one of them.
Carla from Utah

Michele T said...

Quilting is my way to be creative, relax, and make pieces for others.

Delaine said...

I am really enjoying this blog hop! I have not made a ByAnnie bag yet, but after seeing all of these gorgeous bags, I definitely am going to! Thanks!

Dawn F said...

I haven't made a ByAnnie bag yet, and while I hope to someday, I don't think it will be very soon as they seem time consuming and I am mostly working on quick projects due to limited time right now! It's been fun to see the variety of bags!

adele said...

Great bag, love the picture of it hanging on the Garden City sign. Quilting is a and has been for me a creative outlet, stretcher and teaches a heck of a lot of math!

JANET said...

I would like to make a travel bag, but have a couple quilts to finish first. Covid has curtailed my traveling for a while anyway.

Cindy Shelley said...

I would love to make a By Annie bag.

Sally said...

Your bag is just lovely and so practical. The pink handles just make it sing! My only byAnnie bag ever is the one for this challenge and the directions and finished product are top of the line!

Beth said...

Up until now I have made only simple zipper pouches. The blog hop is really getting me ready to give more complex bags a try, especially since the By Annie videos and instructions seem to be such a big help in walking through the aspects that had previously made me nervous about the bag-making process. Yours looks great!

Pamela said...

Your duffel is just gorgeous! Thanks for sharing this and all the other beautiful work on your inspiring blog. I've made the Take a Stand bag and I found the video very helpful too.

Jennifer Fulton Inquiring Quilter said...

Beautiful bag. Loved seeing it on the road! Great fabrics in this collection. Yummy!

Jennifer Schifano Thomas said...

Mary, your bag came out so, so, beautiful! Another one to add to my to-do list! And the fabric, I love it. I need some of that, too! Have a great weekend.