Barrel Bag Blunder
I’ve been searching for a nice round barrel bag pattern for a while. I really like the look of bags that are in a circle and thought it would be a nice bag for someone like me who likes to tuck smaller purses under their arm. I looked around for a long time and couldn’t find what I was looking for (don’t sing the song). There is a bag in the Sew Sweetness Minikins Season 1 that I thought I could enlarge and add straps to, but decided that it wasn’t worth $80.00 for the bundle just for that pattern. I finally found one on Etsy from an unknown pattern maker. Now, I’ve been burned by random Etsy pattern makers before and have stuck to pattern makers that I know have a large following and where I can hear about other bag makers’ experiences first. But I just couldn’t resist getting this one because I couldn’t find it anywhere. This pattern came with three different sizes. The small one would be perfect for me but I decided to make the medium first because it would be easier to work with and get me used to the pattern.
All started well except that the design called for the patterned fabric to only be on the zipper panel and the sides. I really wanted to feature the patterned fabric so I decided to make the sides out of the patterned fabric and just add a bottom accent panel. That modification worked out well. Basically I didn’t really need to cut out the zipper panels as separate pieces except that I didn’t want to mess up the sizing of the bag and not have the side panels match up in the end. I also decided to avoid the drop-in lining and finish the inside with binding instead. I’ve been wanting to try that method since I watched a video about it.
Things got dicey when I got to the assembling and the lining panels were way bigger than my finished exterior panels! Thank goodness I hadn’t sewn the piping onto the side panels yet. I was able to cut down the lining panels but was worried that the side panels weren’t going to fit…and they didn’t. I decided that I could fudge it, because cutting down the circle side panels with the pockets already attached seemed like a bad idea. I decided to sew the piping in further on the sides so that I had less circumference to worry about. Now, piping and I aren’t really on friendly terms at this point so I seriously considered leaving it off completely. But I figured it was already questionable how this would turn out so I might as well get some more reps of installing piping. I think you can guess what I’m going to say next.
I had to really scrunch the side panels to fit and, unfortunately there was a lot of rippling which affected the snugness of the piping. At this point I was ready to throw the whole thing in the trash but decided to put it in the corner for a while instead. Things are never as bad as I first think. I was able to seam rip part of the seam and line it up better so that the piping didn’t look as bad. I think I’m done with using the pre-made piping. It’s really convenient but the way they sew it together looks sloppy. I’m always trying to sew super close to the piping to cover up that bad stitching. I either sew too close and get the piping stuck in the seam or I sew too far away and the piping is loose. Also, most of the patterns call for 1/2 inch piping and this is 1/4 inch piping so I’m constantly trying to measure the edge of the piping further in to account for that seam allowance. I think it looks really cute and professional when done right, but I’m obviously not doing it right. I thought that it would just take some practice to pick up but I haven’t been able to get the hang of it.
It’s been a few weeks of avoiding this bag but I finally completed it! I’ll call it a win just because I was able to push through and finish. This bag will just be my personal purse for a while. I think I will try and tweak the pattern to work for me. I might just be better off buying the other bundle to get the pattern I know will work. I’m not going to include the name of the pattern company on this one because I really don’t want to bad mouth anyone trying to make a living in this business. I think I’ll just be staying away from unknown pattern makers from here on out.
The Details:
Pattern: Will remain nameless
Zippers: #5 black with rainbow metallic coil by My Handmade Space
Interfacing: SF101 and Fusible Foam
Finished bag size: 12.5”w x 6.5”h x 7.5”d
Fabrics
Exterior: Smol Them Apples in Pistacio by Kim Kight for Ruby Star Society
Interior, straps and bottom accent: Sangria Stripes by Marisol Ortega for Figo Fabrics
