I had a trusty little backpack that served me well during my city break to Amsterdam last year. But as all good Primark items do, the backpack sadly gave up the ghost and the popper popped it's cloggs a couple of months ago.
Unable to see the true size and quality of any of the 1million backpacks uploaded to Vinted, and after receiving vague replies back such as "It's fairly mini but big enough for all major stuff" (what?), I decided the logical thing to do would be to make my own. Cue jumping back on Vinted to try and find the perfect pattern.
There were a lot of people listing free Simply Sewing magazine bags. I must say I never realised that they had such a huge bag-catalogue. Not fancying being encumbered by a satchel or lopsided with a tote, I was still on the look out for a good rucksack. There were a couple of good looking roll-top ones but I was looking for something a bit more chic. The City Backpack wasn't popping up as frequently as others seemed to be so I took that as a sign it was a good pattern. The size looked good and the colour blocking would allow me to use up some stash items, wehey.
I have added things below in bold deviations from the instructions and things that I would do differently, or at least with more caution next time I make this bag (and possibly any other).
As this was my first bag project, naturally I asked around for any tips before getting started. Shauni @Magnificent Thread hit the nail on the head when she said the hardest part is getting all the supplies ready. Aside from fabrics and the usual interfacing (I was using leftovers) the patten also calls for:
- Fusible Wadding (Think fluffy interfacing to add structure and protection to the bag)
- x2 2.5cm D Rings
- x2 2.5cm Rectangular Rings
- x2 2.5cm Rectangular Rings with Sliders
- 7" Zip for the pocket in the lining
- 2.3m of Webbing (Think bag strap strips) for the straps and closure
- x2 Press Studs (had some in my stash, wehay!)
So as you can see, the inventory is quite bitty. It took me about 10 years in Abakhan to sort out the rings and sliders situation, as there was a real mish-mash of sizes and colours, with the only rectangular rings being the next size up... which would mean I needed wider straps.. but there was no wider strap!! Luckily I had Mark with me and he is unphased by fabric, shopping lists, or his girlfriend having a meltdown about hardware, and he calmly suggested buying another pair of sliders and just taking the middle bar off. Solved. I love him.
The pattern includes the pieces that aren't a standad rectangle, then gives you dimensions for the main bag pieces to draw and cut out. I would recommend marking the centre points on the raw edges of these pieces so that its easier to match them up.
I used a fleece fabric for the lining of the flap, so I didn't cut wadding for this too (I was already pushing the bulk-boundaries!).
The two fabrics I combined were both intially bought and used for mini skirts. The gold is a leather from Matlock leather fair and the brown was from a sale in Abakhan last year.
I used the leather to make the strips that help support the straps and back of the bag. The instructions call for folding over 0.5cm on the long edges and pressing... I knew turning this tiny amount over and then pressing leather wasn't going to necessarily work, espaecially as the leather is coated - I was nervous too much heat would lead to melting and a messy iron. Instead I used fray stop glue to hold under 0.5cm and this worked better than I imagined!
I used the leather for the tab for the fastening which was pretty nerve wracking as the edges were SO thick. I used a leather needle and top stich thread for this. Somehow the machine behaved - I think the tab is one of the best features of the bag! Attaching this to the front flap would have been better if I'd marked out the mid point on the flap to ensure everything was lined up properly. I was worried the machine would push the tab off at an angle due to the bulkiness of it - especially as I couldn't tack anything due to using leather. I used clips to hold the raw edges together and somehow it stayed central! Woohoo!
As this was my first foray into bagmaking, I had to check, double check, triple check, that the seam allowance for each seam was meant to be 0.5cm. I found this a bit annoying, as the bulk of sewing the front and back together with all the wadding and leather and seam allowances from the colour blocking made 0.5cm seem a bit scant, especially thinking that I could be stuffing all sorts of weighty items into the bag! I would definitely consider adding another cm to the seam allowances next time.
The colour blocks are sewn with 0.5cm seam allowance, which is fine from a structural point of view as this area wasnt going to take much strain, but this meant that top stitching this area sent my machine into a bit of a tizz. Due to the lopsidedness of the bulk (small leather seam allowance impossible to press open as advised) the machine would not sew a proper top stitch close to the seam allowance. It was skipping stitches and just generally looking shit. This of course was the last thing I wanted, as each attempt was leaving incurable holes in the leather. Although I of course did a number of test strips, my machine was feeling contrary, and what worked well in a test environment decided not to play ball on the actual bag.
I tried sewing the top stitch further away from the seam, which did help but of course meant the stitching would be purely decorative and no longer hold the seam allowance down. It was here I realised that using topstich thread on my bobbin wasn't required and was probably adding to the issues. I wondered if my leather needle was blunt, so I swapped this round but it didn't make much difference. I increased the tension, which seemed to help (despite something I read online saying thicker fabric = lower tension??).
I tested the stitching on a piece of bulky non-leather fabric and it sewed fine! So was the leather the problem? I sandwiched it between tissue paper, interfacing - No difference. I tacked a piece of woven tape to the back of the stitching line to see if the bobbin thread just needed to 'catch' onto something woven? I changed the needle another few times and ended up with a 100 Denim needle that was starting to make stitching look like stitching should. I noticed the stiches were skipping when the needle lifted and it took the fabric up with it a bit. I added some pressure by gently pressing on the front of the foot as it stiched and SOMEHOW I had tentatively coaxed my machine into delivering a nice straight topstitch. I haven't read anywhere online about pressing on the presser foot, so I'm guessing this must be either illegal or undiscovered. Worked for me and my lil backpack tho.
The bag flap topstich also proved trixy and as a result the stitches aren't beutifully even. I sort of feel with what I have learnt I could unpick and have better results, but I also don't want to fall victim to contrary topstitching so I will leave as is. There was no way the machine was going to go over 8 layers of leather, so I improvised with some faux topstitching by hand across the top of the tab. It is a shame though as this area could likely do with the extra reinforcement.
The next tricky part was placing my bottom gold strip. I probably overthought it, but 'place the strip 5" up from the bottom of the bag' - Does this mean the centre of the strip? The top or the bottom? Where do you place the ends of the straps underneath this? In hindsight it would have been better to palace it lower to secure the straps underneath with both the top and bottom row of stitching.
I couldn't pin the leather cross strips, and couldn't use clips as they are placed in the middle of the bag. Chalk and water soluble pen wouldn't show up on the leather to mark the placement, so instead I measured and used a straight-egde strip of masking tape to line the edge of the cross strip against. I then used little bits of masking tape to hold it in place, peeling away as I stitched. I held my breath the whole time, as one skipped stitch from my machine could ruin the whole effect. The machine did not like 'climbing' where the end of the straps added significant bulk. I found I had to stop and start stitching around the strap ends, which is annoying really as this area needed the most secure and consistent stitches. I was able to join up the stitching eventually though, though I am aware I darned in some ends by hand and am skeptical as to whether they will withstand the test of time.
The pattern does not suggest tacking the bottom of the straps onto the bag before securing with the cross-strips. I did do a row of stitching, but if I made the bag again, I would secure this with three or four rows of stitching which would all be hidden under the cross strip. This would provide extra security as this area of the bag takes some of the most strain. I would repeat this with the top of the straps. Although the pattern does suggest tacking them in, I would tack in with several rows. Next time I would definitely secure the hand straps with X-stitching to help take the strain too.
Lining went well, I used left over lining fabric from my skirt made of the same fabric. I was worried it would be a little on the silky side and not as durable as the cotton suggested in the instruictions. I did remember this fabric being deceptively hardy when I made my mini skirt though, and I'm glad I used it. The sheen gives a bit of luxe which I think contrasts with the almost outdoorsy sheepskin lining the flap.
This was my first time putting a zip in using the 'letterbox' zip method. It worked well, but I would lightly interface around the back of the letterbox next time. I guess this wasnt included in the instructions as the suggested cotton fabric was more stable than my satin. Interfacing the area would have allowed for a crisper edge where the letterbox is turned to the underside. The pocket is fully functional though, and I am pretty proud of it only taking one attempt.
Lets talk about the straps. I think I picked a good colour and enjoyed using the webbing for the first time. The gold hardware really compliments the leather on the bag and the autumnal tones overall. Contruction was easy enough to get my head around, possibly from experience making bra straps. I did find however, that the straps are a little on the short side?? Please tell me someone else found this too? I'm CERTAIN I measured correctly, but I found I needed the sliders to be at full length and the bag is a little bit tricky to get on if I'm wearing a billion layers. I did have some strap left over after cutting the lengths instructed, I'm wondering if this should have been included in the strap length. Next time I would add at least 10cm to each strap, at the very least just to utilise those sliders I so lovingly created.
The bag is finished by inserting 2 poppers at the opening to stop it sagging when the bag isn't super full.I love the shape these create when in action, but (pickpocketers look away) I do still find it quite easy to just shove my hand in, and I do worry about stuff falling out. I think the poppers could be placed further apart to make the opening smaller, or alternatively, I could do away with poppers and insert some large eyelets and some kind of drawstring mechanism.
I'm really glad I picked this pattern up. Although there are a few changes I would make, thanks to its easy to follow instructions, I wasn't too phased by my first bag making attempt. The fabrics were super fun to work with (aside from top stitching bulk!) and I'm really proud of myself doe persevering with the topstitching and finding a way to make it work.
Matching skirt and bag combo? Yes please.
x
Location: Ponderosa
Currently listening to: Goca Dünya, Altın Gün
