Purse Frenzy

Amy introduced my newest obsession in a late night purse class. I decided to take the class at the very last minute. I hadn't really had a chance to take a close look at the samples prior to the leaving for the retreat so when I saw them I went a bit CRAZY and bought lots handles to make lots of purses. It was so exciting and you could feel the frenzy from all the ladies waiting anxiously to get the right handle in the right color.

Amy assured all of us that she had plenty of handle choices and she felt like everyone would get at least one of their choices and then she'd open it up to get a second, third or fourth handle. I can hardly explain how much FUN it was!!!! I was practically hyper-ventilating I was so excited!

It was definitely one of my favorite classes! On the last day I dropped everything I was doing just to make my purse. I was really happy to finish two and a half purses before I came home.

This is the purse I made for myself. It is made using black wool with a cotton red paisley fabric on the inside. The rose and leaves are also made out of wool. Everyone was having a hard time sewing with the clear mono-filament thread so I decided to try sewing with black thread and it worked out great. I was happy with how it turned out. I doubled the thread and took it through each set of two holes 3 times. I think the thread adds another bit of texture to the purse. If you click on the above picture you can get a better look at the stitching.

You all know how much I love RED so I wanted to put a red fabric on the inside. I had this beautiful red and white paisley in my possession so I decided to use it. I really like how it turned out. You may also notice the chain. It's a long chain that hooks to the purse and allows you to put it over your shoulder for a "hands free" experience. I love going "hands free" when I'm shopping.

This is the mini purse I made for Kenna. It's the perfect size for her money, lip gloss, and any other small items like her iPod or future cell phone.

The inside green coordinates with the fabric on the outside. I also used light green thread to attach the handle to the fabric. This size worked up really fast.

The larger purse handle is to make another type of handbag. I just need to decide on the fabric I want to use before I make it.. There are so many choices that it might be difficult to decide. The smaller handle is what I used for Kenna's Large Coin purse.

Here are two of the 4-5 color options.
I can't remember every color but there were several choices.

There are some patterns on the market for the fabric purses and I'm sure that Amy will, at some point, have patterns available to purchase. For those that live locally, Amy will be offering a Purse class in her store. So, keep an eye out for her upcoming classes. I'm sure you could call the store (American Quilting in Orem, Utah) and ask for more information.