Baggin' It!

Here are pictures of the latest felted bag project.  I decided to go ahead & show them.  Even though it didn't come out the way I had hoped, it wasn't too much of a failure. 

So, first I had to decide how I wanted to do the handles.  The traditional 'booga bag' calls for a needle to be poked through the felted material, then the handle is threaded through it.  While I liked that idea, I also thought about using grommets.  Awhile back, I had asked for a grommet kit for a gift.  As of this time, I still haven't used it for ANYTHING!  I thought this purse might be a good project for the grommets, but in the end I decided on the "poke" method.

So, I pulled out a thick knitting needle & poked it through the four layers of fabric.  Not too bad, just had to work it in a few places, but it went pretty smooth.  Now, getting the strap through was different.  I tried to use my finger to push it through..no luck.  So I grabbed a needle-nose plier, & poked that into the hole, worked it around a bit, then grabbed the handle end & yanked.  It took a little pulling, but it came through great!  I used this method to thread the strap through the rest of the holes, up & around to the other side.  I knotted the strap together, but didn't cut it like the booga bag pattern showed. 

Needless to say, my daughter got sight of the bag & ranted & raved & wanted it bad!  BUT, she wanted velcro closures on a few of the pockets, so I sewed them on (what a pain in the tookus) & she loved it!  The best part...she's using the bag as her purse!  Now her friends want bags too, so this could be a busy knitting summer after all! 

Its all good, I just love making bags, & felting them is so much fun too.  So now, I'm looking forward to some happy bag & felting adventures, and of course, I will post my efforts here!  Have fun with the pics!