January Bag of the month -- Bye Bye Love Bag

Have you heard about the bag of the month club? It's a fantastic pattern package that releases one new pattern per month by six of the best bag designers out there! It's a great deal for anyone who loves to make bags!

This was the January bag of the month: the Bye Bye Love Bag by Sew Sweetness. It's a crazy roomy tote, that is perfect for toting books or your gym gear. It has two front pockets perfect for your cell phone and lip gloss, an exterior zip pocket on the back and two huge divided slip pockets in the interior. 

I was lucky enough to test the pattern and get it early enough to make a Christmas gift with it. The pattern is fantastic, and as all Sara's patterns it was a breeze to follow and the construction was cake. The only modification I made was leaving the straps flat. The pattern calls for rolled straps but as this is such a big tote and I knew the reciepient carts around as much as she can stuff in a bag, I thought it might be more comfortable to leave them flat.

However, as easy as the pattern is, my machine and I did not get along so well during the making of this bag. I had tension issues and lets just say that I think I'd rather gouge out my eye balls with a seam ripper than pick out double stitched seams from chambray (the accent pieces of the bag) again.

Luckily, despite the protests from my machine I got this one finished in time for Christmas and kept the cursing to a minimum ( just barely).  

Thankfully, my tension issues have resolved magically. They only ever seem to happen when I have a strict timeframe to work with ( like gift giving occasions ). Let's hope she behaves herself for the rest of the year ! 

Happy New Year!!