belated

The curse of the do-it-yourselfer strickes again: I want to make something meaningful, cute, and earth-friendly as a gift for someone I love-- in this case, my sister Erin. So I do.



Trouble is, it gets finished 4 months too late. Her birthday was in July.



Sorry Erin, will you ever forgive me?

All the components for this bag came from the thrift store: a cable-knit sweater that I felted, a silky polyester blouse (for the lining), and a thick braided leather belt. Oh, and the magnetic snaps came from an old purse I've had for years and recently started cannibalizing for parts.

The hem of the sweater became the top edge of the purse. I left the buttons on the blouse-- thought they'd be a cute reminder of the origins of the purse.

Minor detail: I still need to take it to a shoe repair shop to have the strap sewn on. If you look closely at the second picture, you'll see a pin poking out. Yikes! I purchased leather needles for my sewing machine and got one in and ready to go, only to find that my presser foot won't lift high enough to get a few layers of sweater and leather in there. So, the the shoe repair shop we go...

But I'll have it done this week Sis. Cross my heart and hope to die.