WIP Wednesday – The pattern making process

Yes, my room is a hot mess. Yes, I have a lot of bags. You should see the bags NOT in the picture! HA!

I’m writing a bag pattern.  Well actually, I’ve written a TON of patterns, but most are in a binder or in various stages of thought.  This one is going to be an actual PDF e-pattern that I will release into the wild.  I’ve shown some snippets of it on Instagram and many of my bloggy friends know what I’ve been up to. But to many of you, this may be the first you’ve heard of it. So here are some shots of what I’ve been calling *Pattern oo1*.

The idea comes from a slouchy tote I owned many years ago.  I loved the shape and size of the tote, but I wanted it to  have more structure to it.  So after the bag passed slowly away, I took it apart to see how it was made.  All I could say was “ew”. The things I discovered about mass produced bags! Ew, again.  So I saved the basic shape I liked and made it a bit bigger. I added a unique zipper closure and added more pockets. A few sturdy straps later and by Annie’s Soft & Stable and we had a winner!

The picture directly above was my first go-round.  I tried a zipper/liner installation method I was iffy about and have been carrying it around with me for a few weeks now.  Sits nicely on the shoulder and feels great.  I made a few adjustments and tried for round two. (The one above this one)  Winner! I need to alter the pocket a bit inside but besides that I am totally loving it.

Do you pre-wind a million bobbins of your thread and have a tag ready to go before you start a pattern?

With two prototypes under my belt, I started cutting fabric Monday. I got the camera ready to take pictures and work on the actual pattern writing.  It’s going slowly, but I think that’s how it’s going to be with me. I have a nice balance at home with kids, activities, etc. so it works for me. And that’s just fine.

I have managed to take a TON of pictures for the pattern, so tonight and tomorrow I plan to edit and see which ones make the cut. So wish me luck and hopefully I can find some testers to give me a good critique soon!