BrambleStitches

Until I married, I never carried a purse. I can’t remember if I even owned one. I had a small wallet, only a few keys on my key ring, and chapstick. They all fit into the pockets of my jeans. But then I started carrying a checkbook, and I knew that my purse free days were numbered.

I only had a few requirements, but I guess I’m a bit demanding, because I never found a purse that had it all.

A purse should be:

Secure. This should go without saying. I should be able to put my valuables into my purse, and not worry that they’re going to fall out. A zipper pocket is a bonus.

Small. I still long for those wallet-only days, but until then, I’ll take a purse that feels like a wallet. It should be small, and not get in my (or anyone else’s) way, but still have room for a wallet, check book, keys, business cards, and maybe a sippy cup.

Convenient. Because if it’s not, I won’t use it. When I’m paying for my groceries, I want to be able to get into my purse without taking it off my shoulder. That means no hard-to-manage clasps or flaps, and a long enough strap that I can actually see into it while it’s still on my shoulder. Conversely, the strap should be short enough that the purse rides next to my ribcage, and not on my hip. I hate that.

Anything after that is all gravy. Cute would be nice, and maybe something other than black.

Enter the perfect purse.

I spent a good part of the weekend designing, drafting, and sewing this purse.
The result is pretty dang close to perfect.

The body of the purse is a mid-weight cotton twill. I really like the feel of it, and it comes in such beautiful colors. I’ve been using it a lot for baby shoes lately, too. It’s really durable, and ages gracefully.

The poppies are just appliquéd motifs cut from the lining fabric. (I really love poppies. They’re so easy to grow, they re-seed themselves
like crazy, and for a few days each, they explode into the most vivid
colors imaginable in nature.) I straight stitched around the edge first, trimmed the fabric very close to my stitching line, then satin stitched around the edge again. The next time I do this I’ll use something like steam-a-seam fusible web, too, but I was too impatient to wait
for my order to arrive for this go around. I

think a fusible of some sort is important here, for durability, especially. If this purse ever rubbed up against something, it’s possible that the fabric of the appliqué could tear away.

After the appliqués were in place I ironed fusible fleece to the back of each body piece (two sides and gusset). I only discovered this stuff a couple months ago, but I really like it. It gives nice body, but it’s still flexible.

The lining uses the same pattern pieces as the body, plus a zippered pocket, which is big enough for wallet, check book, etcetera. I used a vintage zipper from my Baba’s stash. Inside is a magnetic clasp which closes the whole purse and keeps everything else secure.

The strap is just sewn into the gusset, but I think next time I’ll
add some hardware. I think that would add a really nice finishing
touch.

I did both appliqués and all of the top stitching with taupe thread, and I think it looks very chic. At least I think it does. I’m not very good at the whole style thing. But I like it, and that’s what counts right?

This purse is actually already packaged up and in the mail to my mom. Today is her birthday.

To be honest, it took quite a lot of self restraint to keep from ripping it out of the box to keep for myself. I guess that means I’ll be sewing another one.

Sewing