Wednesday, February 24, 2010

1895 Miser Bag ~ My Latest Vintage Reproduction Project ~ Part II


I'm back again today with a picture of the Miser Bag completed in a pretty fiber with a silky sheen. When writing my patterns, I look for a fiber that people can find in a local craft store, but still one that suits the project well. For the miser bag I am using Patons Silk Bamboo. It is 70% bamboo and 30% silk making it an affordable fiber with the silky sheen we want for our authentic look and feel. It only takes one 1.8oz skein to make the miser bag you see here in the color moss. That's less than 102 yards for the finished product.

I want to give you a few more specifications today. It can be hard to judge size from a photograph. The L x W of each pocket is 4" x 3". When folded in half as in my picture, the length to the top of the ring is 7". After working through this pattern once, it will be easy for the crafter to adjust these dimensions to suit a unique purpose. For instance, this pocket is a little too small for my iPhone, I may want to make a bag that is a few stitches longer so I can use it as an iPhone case.

I chose the size that I did because I think the proportions look nice and because it's large enough for practical use in our modern world. It will nicely accommodate business or credit cards as well as smaller phones, iPods, keys or cash. The covered ring could be easily replaced with a key ring or a snap hook. Like I said yesterday, I thing the design possibilities are great with the miser bag.

For this first pattern, I am going to resist the temptation to dress it up with beaded trim or embroidery. I'm going to keep it simple and allow each individual to personalize their miser bag according to their own taste. I have all of my pattern notes sorted and now it's time for me to write up the pattern. I should be back in just a day or two with a link for you to the completed miser bag pattern.

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