Hydrangea Bag Quilt project Finished!

Ahh.. *sigh* I can finally sigh relief because this blasted project is finished and now I can get onto the next thing! Woohoo!!!

A while back, my friend took me to Dragonfly Quilt Shop, that was new to me and absolutely fabulous. There were many fabric lines that I had been unable to find elsewhere, and if the shop was not such a drive, I would go much more often.

While there, I purchased a pattern and material to make this bag and I was so excited. It says that it is "carry-on" rated, and I was going in a few weeks to help my sister after the birth of baby #4. (He will be two this April...) I never got very far in this project until this week.

I almost do not want to tell you what the pattern was, because the instructions were HORRIBLE! But I do not want anyone to come back and accuse me of not giving credit where it is due... This is the only pattern I have tried from this group and I have no idea if this is typical of their quality or not. Regardless, I was able to figure things out, and adjust for the parts that were not apparent until too late. The final project is still wonderful, but I was and am deeply disappointed with the quality of the instructions. As my friend said, it seems that the person who wrote the instructions was so familiar with what they were doing in the steps that they left out some key elements. Anyway, the pattern is from Tammy Tadd Designs, and the pattern is the "You Go Girl Bag".

And now, after $51.67 in fabric, plus batting, plus interfacing, plus a button (that I have yet to buy) and four full days of labor... I present to you, my Hydrangea Bag.

*drum roll, please*

Hydrangea Bag (front view -still needs button)

Side view, both sides have this cute pleat and tie straps.

A close up of the straps, front, and back.
(Would you believe these things took an entire afternoon to put together?!? - fold, press, pin, slide, stitch, repeat)

Just a closer image on the fabric, *sigh*.

Back side, big pocket!

Just so you have some sense... this bag is relaxed at about 16 1/2" in height!!

The outside of the bag has a big pocket on the front and the back. The front even has a fancy key fob for keys! (That also was not on the supply list for the pattern, but never mind...) On the inside there are also pockets, bunches of pockets lining the entire sides. On one side a giant pocket, and then two smaller. On the other side, two pockets that will easily fit a 400 page trade paperback book each and the two smaller pockets. *grin*

Thoughts? Was it worth the money and effort? I am still not sure, but you can bet this bag is going no where after all that effort! (Meaning, it's mine and all mine).