Post About Anna

Actually, this post is "All About Anna." That's the pattern name for the bag I just made. A couple months ago I won the pattern in a giveaway hosted by the designer, Stephanie at Loft Creations.

Instead of making mine with a charm pack - I'm not a typically a charm pack buyer - this comes from stash. "Hometown" by Sweetwater is the feature fabric on the outside pockets. There's also a bit of Central Park, Denyse Schmidt fabrics (Picnic, Fairgrounds, Aunt Edna) Juicy Blooms, Castle Peeps, Sunkissed, Metro Living and Moda Marble.

I modified Stephanie's pattern to suit my need for pockets. By my way of thinking, a bag can't have too many pockets. First, I put pockets on the outside front and back.

tote back

On the inside I added a second pocket. The one at top is called for in the instructions. The one opposite (on the bottom), is another, larger one with a stitching line so I can have a place to put a pen and pencil. I also interfaced the inside pockets. On the bottom you see a base I made, for stability. It's a piece of foam core covered with fabric.

In this close-up you can see two things I want to point out. The decorative button closure is actually two buttons. I first sewed a sew-through gray button to the bag, and then sewed the aqua shank button on top of it. That's called improvisation. The button I wanted to buy was $5.95! Also, my city's name appears in the fabric. "Des Moines." It's entertaining to read all the cities listed. My editor/proofreader nature came to bear when I discovered the letter "v" missing for the city name "Spring Gro e."

Thanks for the pattern Stephanie! I'm already using this! Linda