rose birdie, part two

I almost never sew black things.
A friend gifted some black material to me to create something.
It wasn't quite right for their project, so they thought they would let me have a go with it.




I forgot to specify what type of sewing project I had been working on--a handbag, and a large one at that. One of my requirements for handbags is that they be large enough to fit a 9x12 notebook, and packages.

I used Amy Butler's Birdie Sling pattern for this particular bag, with a liberal amount of tweaking.

For one, the material (a faux-leather {this was my first time using this type of material...it was interesting...it is more slippery to sew than a regular woven fabric}) wasn't wide enough to allow the pieces to be cut on the fold, hence the renegade seams running down the middle. I rather like the extra top stitching though.





I love details. I used the striped ribbon to make some long tabs to attach the handle.
I wove in a few leaf beads at either end.





I haven't made ribbon roses for a while. These turned out well.
I used Candace Kling's artful ribbon book to learn how to make the roses.


Using the same material as the main body, I crafted some leaves to accompany the roses.




I had sewed a handle with the black material, and found that it wasn't a good match. It wrinkled in the wrong places. So I opted to try another material.
I used three types of chain to form the handle: some like silver beads, another like silver figure eights, and another antique brass type.



I couldn't resist a nice cheeky red dot to line this bag.