A Statement: Purse.

Welcome to my bag of crazy.

Wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. 

Firstly, thank you, thank you, thank you for your wonderful thoughts on my last post, and the beautiful stories you shared. To be honest, I felt like typing out my (true, and heartfelt) thanks to each comment would seem hollow for the repetition, so I'll say it here: I really and truly appreciate every word written. That kind of communication gives me hope in what is, undeniably, a turbulent time. 

Secondly, with everyone feeling unsure about the future, it feels a bit ridiculous parading photos of a giant technicolor fringed bag-- like belting out a showtune at a wake. But I'm determined to try my best to inject color and fun into this space. And maybe, hopefully, brighten a day or two with my insanity. We don't know what's ahead, but for now, I'm going to (as Rob put it) keep my worry levels low and my action levels high. 

So.

This bag.

This bag came into being at the end of October, when M&J Trimming asked if I might like to play with some goodies of my choosing. M&J has been a landmark in NY's garment district for, good lord, I want to say almost two decades? Early on in my sewing adventures, I ventured in a few times, but always left overwhelmed and empty handed. Now, they've gone through a makeover, and the store is bright, beautifully laid out, and happy. In early October, the staff was jovial, the owners gracious, the mood energetic-- made all the more so by the fact that The Khaljeesi was in town, guiding a group of sewists shopping for trim for Chanel jackets. 

(I *might* have harassed a few of them into showing me what was in their fabric bags. Oh, the bouclé...)

Back to this fabric bag! It's two giant curved panels of red boiled wool, with trim basically quilted to it in long gently curving swaths. The wool (which you can see in the belt and strap loops) matched the trim pretty well, and when I was done with the front panel, I considered leaving the back free of decoration. 

WHERE IS THE FUN IN THAT, I barked at myself. And away I went. 

The lining is some yellow mystery stuff from my stash, attached to a denim facing. Mystery Yellow was salvaged from this dress, which was only worn once. The skirt of it always felt thin-- like it was meant for lining. So the flimsy fabric finally found its purpose in life...

The blue rope trim, used for the strap, and the floral "belt" of the bag both hail from the vintage wall at M&J. Oh, I could have set up camp in front of the vintage wall of trim! There's about four yards for the strap, and a sensible yard of the floral motif for the belt, which is simply tacked down under the woven buckle.

I wish I could tell you how many yards of red ridiculousness went into this thing, but I lost track in my creative haze. I spied four large spools of it in the warehouse clearance section of the store, and I pounced. (My first thought was to make a bag covered in small fur pom poms. That bag would have cost about nine hundred dollars. This soft decor trim was the perfect compromise... not to mention, far easier to sew with). 

Total weight of bag: two and a half pounds. YEP. It's so heavy that putting items into it is something I have to seriously consider. It's like a small statement purse, meant only for keys and phone and lipstick, only it's half the size of my body. Completely irrational. I ADORE IT.

I'm very grateful to be able to partner with small stores and show my love by creating, when I can't necessarily show it with my wallet-- I do hope y'all don't mind it. And if you're inspired by my insanity, M&J would like to pass the love on and offer a 15% discount code for you. Just use "OONA15" through December 15 on the site (no affiliation).

And now, I've got some creating to do. I hope you do, too. Lemme know if you're making something completely irrational. I'm ALWAYS looking for good harebrained ideas...

this boho bag was made to make me smile, and hopefully make others smile too. i'll even take a laugh or two. thanks to m&j for providing the supplies!