Thursday, July 9, 2009

Modern Diaper Bag as Beach Tote



So I made this diaper bag that I love. It's the Modern Diaper Bag pattern from Amy Butler's "Little Stitches" book. The shape is so unique and it is what drew me to the pattern in the first place. Another bonus? Nothing ever gets lost at the bottom since the sides angle outwards. It's roomy and big enough to carry everything I need. As big as it is though, I actually scaled the pattern down 25% to make it. The original is even bigger.

But for a beach trip? I feel like we have to haul half our house when we go. I need a BIG bag. So I decided to make the full size Modern Diaper Bag. I skipped all the pockets and just added a single simple pocket. Really all I need is a pocket for a phone and keys so that they don't get lost in the bottom.



The result? BIG!! In the picture above it makes my original diaper bag look tiny and it is anything but. Below I have the "Little Stitches" book inside for size reference. Tons of room of towels, sunscreen and toys I think!



When I made my diaper bag I tried to line up the pattern on the closure flap but messed it up in the end. I put the magnetic snap in the wrong side of the flap! This time I was more careful and I think I did a darn good job!

8 comments:

  1. Hi Jaime -- saw your comment post on Stitches by Sara -- saw your fabric swatches on your profile pic and knew you had to be crafty!

    I love the fabric you chose for this bag and the pattern placement is spot on -- very attractive!

    I have to follow you now...

    Dee :D

    http://newenglandnanny.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I noticed the matching closure immediately! Great job, it looks incredible!

    ReplyDelete
  3. would you consider taking orders??
    seriously. i made one for my cousin for her baby shower and now my sister in law wants one for hers and it was just SOOO much work!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks J and M :)
    I work and have 2 little boys so I almost have no time to sew at all, and definitely no time to take orders.
    Believe me, I KNOW all the work that goes into this diaper bag, my first one did had all the pockets and all the interfacing. It's a huge job! What about using home dec weight for the outside and inside - it cute down tremendously on the interfacing required.

    ReplyDelete
  5. oh, man - the interfacing is the most daunting part!

    i did all the interfacing on the first one, too. i used the amy butler home dec fabric (i think) and still used all that interfacing!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi there! Your bags turned out great! I LOVE the way the closure matches up. Very sleek :)I know this post is a little older, but I am almost finished making this bag for my sister's baby shower and I am sort of confused about the very last step... wondering if you could help me out. I already top stitched around the outside edges of the handles and the top of the outside edges of the bag. I need to just close up the insides of the handles and the top of the bag on the insides of the handles. She says to sew a "stay stitch" on the tops of the side panels and around the inside of the straps. Wouldn't sewing a stay stitch make it difficult / impossible to turn the raw edges in and then topstitch? I am tempted to bypass the "stay stitch" and just tuck everything under and topstitch. Do you remember how you did it? The wording is a little confusing and I want to make sure I do this right after all of my hard work. Any input would help! Thanks, Suzanne

    ReplyDelete
  7. Suzanne,
    Stay stitching means to stitch where the seam line WILL be, through only one layer. Then clip the curve inside the line of those stay stitches and they act as insurance that things won't fray further and gives you a target for when you turn inside out and need to hand stitch the last seam closed. Make sense?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Makes perfect sense. Thank you so much for getting back to me. I didn't realize the stay stitch would only be through one layer. Going to give it another go tonight after work :)

    ReplyDelete