Stella Has A Secret

And the secret is...

I finished up my Stella Bag for the sew along last week. WooHoo!!! You're getting the first sneak peek! I think she is so pretty! Next week I'll include pictures of me carrying the bag to give you a better idea of the size. In the mean time, pop over to Swoon Patterns. If you like the Stella Weekender Bag, I bet you'll like lots of the other patterns too. 

This week's post is up on the Sew News blog and you can find it HERE. We are diving head long into all the pockets.

There's a front zippered pocket. In the post I talk about reinforcing the bag prior to inserting the zipper. PLEASE do not skip this step. 

We also attach the cargo pockets. This is one of those projects where you may initially feel a little intimidated, but once they are attached...nothing but pride :) 

We also attach the handles as the handles should be attached prior to putting the bag all together. I did not use the stiff interfacing in my handles that the pattern calls for. I don't like anything in my hand that feels too hard. Just a quirk. So I used the fusible cotton interfacing on both sides of my handles and I feel that the handles have plenty of stability.

I took Bunny of La Sewista's direction on reinforcing the handles. Not only does it help to secure the handles, I think the "x" design looks rather pretty as well. Thanks Bunny! You can take a glimpse of Bunny's Weekender Bag HERE, HERE, and HERE.    

When I was asked to put together a year of sew alongs for Sew News, I knew that they would like a bag included in the line up, so I began to search for something that I thought was special. For the life of me, I don't remember how I found Swoon Patterns, but I'm glad I did. The patterns are well thought out and the results are amazing!
If you are making a weekender bag, I hope you too are enjoying the process.