Tuesday, November 13, 2012

The Unexpected Weekend


Last Friday I was so excited about the long weekend we had ahead of us. My husband was looking forward to three days of fun with me and the girls, and I had all my pieces ready to sew together for my Weekender in plenty of time to write my post. Everything changed, of course, when Bear came down with a violent case of stomach flu on Saturday morning. With seven of us in the house, we've learned to expect that if one person gets sick, everyone is going to get sick. As Mouse, my dad, and my husband all came down with symptoms during the next few days, I tried to work on my bag as quickly as possible during any free minutes I could spare so that I wouldn't miss my deadline, but unfortunately I just ran out of time before the flu hit me hard on Monday night. The bag as you see it here is almost finished -- it's just missing a lining. In my haste, I'm afraid I wasn't quite as neat and tidy as I normally like to be -- you'll notice plenty of imperfections here and there. The photos you see in this post were taken by my dear husband who stopped me before I tried to hobble outside to take them myself. As I look at them now I can see all the loose threads and wrinkles that I forgot to deal with before the quick photo shoot, and the perfectionist in me is mortified. Sometimes you just have to do the best you can and let it go...


When people say that this bag is a challenge, they aren't kidding. The cutting and prep work are endless, and you're fairly worn out before you even get started. Once you start sewing, though, it's not so bad. Things didn't really become daunting for me until I hit the dreaded step on the directions where you sew all of the exterior panels together. Yikes. I had to rip out seams more than once. A denim needle is well worth your money -- mine never broke even though I was sure it would a few times. You'll do well to go slowly and take your time, both as you sew and as you read through the directions. I read each step through at least twice before plunging ahead.


It's a nice sturdy bag, which I like. I followed several people's advice and made my handles longer than the pattern suggested, sewing them in a little more firmly down the sides as well. Since so many people were going the quilted route in our blog hop, and since I had recently made a quilted bag when I put together my Retro Library Case, I decided to try the standard Peltex version for mine. I used a lime green linen for most of the bag, accented with linen Nursery Versery prints by Heather Ross and some colorful scraps thrown in for good measure. I really love the way the paper pieced section turned out, and I hope to be making a pillow soon using this same pattern. My piping was store bought, and I have no regrets about that. It was easy to use and one less thing to have to make ahead. If you do use premade piping, be sure to cut carefully. It takes two packets to do the job, and each one has just enough for the one large pocket and the distance around the main panel. I almost had to go buy another pack because I wasn't as careful as I should have been at first.

Once I'm feeling a bit better, I'll be finishing the lining and passing this on to my sister who will be using it as her new diaper bag. I'm so glad that I had the chance to finally try this pattern -- it's been on my to-do list all year long!

Drop by Taryn's blog tomorrow for our last stop in the series before you can link up your finished bags at Lori's website. We can't wait to see what's in your Weekender!

33 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh Heidi! Feel better! The stomach flu is terrible.

    Your weekender is too cute! I love the green linen. :)

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  2. It is lovely. I love the fabrics you picked and the paper pieced panel is wonderful. This will make the best diaper bag, plenty of room and the outside pockets will be so handy for baby stuff. I sure hope you feel better soon.

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  3. This turned out great and what a fun diaper bag for your sis! Too bad you've all been sick - hope you're better SOON!

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  4. Your bag is fabulous, I dont see any imperfections :) Hope you are all better soon, my son just got over food poisoning, it was awful, he's fine now thank goodness.

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  5. My goodness, feel better! I had the stomach flu that leads to respiratory cold four weeks ago and I have only Just stopped dragging. Haven't caught the bad bug yet, but when I do, I will keep this in mind as (threads and all) yours came out just lovely. And your straightforward assessment is very welcome!

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  6. Beautiful bag! The little pictures are so funny on the front side! Cute! I hope you`re all better!

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  7. so sorry you're ill. But stop being a perfectionist, the bag looks gorgeous to me, I LOVE the patchwork.

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  8. This is gorgeous! Definitely one of my favorite weekender's I've ever seen - probably because I love green :) Did you use the regular small piping they have available everywhere or did you find premade piping in the larger size? Great job!!

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  9. I love your bag, well done. I started mine today and have blogged it. I wasn't going to do the piping but might go nd see if I can get the premade stuff. Hugs

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  10. Your bag turned out awesome. Well it appears that even over on the other side of the state we are having the same problem. I have had the flu go through my house over the past two weeks with me finishing it up. I hope you feel better and your bag does look really really cute!

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  11. It looks so great even with your crazed, sick rush. I am sorry for your household, that sounds miserable!
    I had a lot of time to work on mine, and maybe I just didn't take enough care, or something...but my corners on the middle panel are all bunchy and sad. =(

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  12. What a shocker! Here s hoping you can all recover and holiday together again soon. Brilliant tip to buy piping. This bag is very cheery. Well done.

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  13. My sister came down with the stomach flu last week, too... Tis the season, I guess. Hope everyone is better soon! That is a lovely Weekender :)

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  14. Oh my goodness, I hope you feel better soon! Your Weekender looks so good! I love those blocks on the pockets and their fussy cut centers. I like how you did the handles too. I was doubtful about how well the handles would hold, sewing them in as stated in the pattern. Don't worry about imperfections. One of my favorite parts about The Weekender is imperfections are really unnoticeable, because the bag itself is so impressive!

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  15. Hope your family is all feeling better now. Love your new bag!

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  16. Beautiful bag Heidi! I love how it turned out:) I'm sure your sister will love it!! Hope your family feels better soon:)

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  17. HI! OH MY GOODNESS! WHAT A NICE BAG! SO MUCH WORK FOR YOU+IT TURNED OUT SO ATTRACTIVE-LOVE THOSE FABRICS TOO! THANKS FOR SHARING!

    msstitcher1948@yahoo.com

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  18. I'm so in awe of you still making the Weekender Bag with everything that was going on in your home and when you were coming down with stomach flu yourself! I love your paper piecing and think it looks really classy using a solid alongside the prints. Well done and I really hope everyone is on the mend now :)

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  19. Your bag has turned out really beautifully, the pipng gives it that professional finish, and really points up the seams. Lovely, lovely work!

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  20. Your bag is fab-u-lous! I can hardly imagine making this bag much less expecting perfection. Yours is just beautiful!

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  21. Your bag turned out beautifully! And those are the perfect colors and prints for a diaper bag!

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  22. Your bag is just beautiful! I love it!

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  23. Oh my. The bag is beautiful. I hope all in your household recover soon.

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  24. Oh no - I hope you are all feeling better!!! Your bag is wonderful! I love the lime and all the fussy cutting!

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  25. Hope you areLl felling better, the bag looks amazing - slightly too advanced for me though...

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  26. Heidi I hope you feel much better. The bag is amazing, I'm sure your sister will be very happy with it.

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  27. Lovely bag Heidi - it looks lovely - perfect in fact. Hope you feel better real soon and that the family all recover well. xx

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  28. Congrats on a long-awaited finish. The bag is beautiful. Feel better soon!

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  29. Your bag is wonderful Heidi! I love the little Nursery Versery blocks on the pocket. Your sister will absolutely adore it.

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  30. Your bag is fabulous - love the lime green linen and the cute fussy cut prints especially!

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  31. I noticed none of the "imperfections" you pointed out until you mentioned them. Go easy on yourself ma'am! :) It is so adorable and super cute! What a great diaper bag that will be. Did you use a particular brand of piping? My mom and I are considering tackling this bag over my Christmas break, and I am absolutely not too proud to use pre-made binding (especially since it would only be white, even if I made it myself.)

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  32. Where can I find instruction/pattern for this awesome bag?

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