It’s in the bag now – Making a double zippered kit bag for toiletries

First I made one for my son, Cameron. Next I made another for the husband, Ken. These accomplished, I will never make another one again! They are a lot of work, worth the effort, but there are limits to everything, including making these bags. That said, you may wonder what’s involved in making these bags.

First, you get hold of the pattern with (very detailed) instructions. Next, you gather material. Fortunately a friend gave me 5 x 1m pieces of quilting cotton; the colours worked well for a “guy” kit bag.

Then you cut all fabric materials to size and shape—main, lining, contrast, and Soft and Stable (a product which provides structure and a spongy feeling to the bag. Next  you prepare all of the pieces of the bag by sewing and quilting. Now comes the truly fun part—install 4 zippers, two pockets and two opening zippers. (I hate doing zippers.) Finally you put it all together, hopefully correctly and precisely.

The work is challenging for sure. While I am an experienced sewer—I own good equipment and have a wonderful large and quiet space in which to work—I needed to concentrate in order to keep track of all of the different pieces—and there were a lot of pieces with this project. Inserting the end sections and binding the end seams required particular patience and care—I stitched my finger at one point. Ouch. In the end, well the images speak for themselves. I am very pleased with the outcome. The finished product is very professional looking and functional. It’s kind of like doing a puzzle. I love working with fabric.

Lest you think I do all this work is done solo, I do have a wonderfully supportive group of crafter friends here in Summerland and elsewhere. Between the Modern Quilt Guild, TAFA (Tuesday afternoon Fibre Artists), and assisted by friends in various communities who I connect with by phone, and with input for many online sources, inspiration and ideas flow in from all directions.

Fibre arts—including quilting, sewing, knitting, rug hooking, puppet creation and all sorts of other tactile projects—brings me so much joy. I received this creative practice and tradition from my talented mother, and enjoy passing this experience and technique on to my daughter (who did not get a toiletries bag for Christmas but received a quilt instead). We are all deeply immersed in what was once called a cottage industry, that for me is now a vibrant and enthralling retirement pastime.

Shortly after our marriage in April of 1987 Ken and I entered into an extended conversation pitting form against function. He first considers function, where I gravitate towards form. Ken says that his bag is a beautiful union between function and form. So be it.