Bag Therapy

Last weekend I bought a couple of bundles of remnants from a stall at the Gilles St Market in Adelaide. One bundle was made up of small pieces of Christmas fabric. Last week I spent a couple of afternoons doing my bag therapy - making drawstring bags to use in lieu of wrapping paper for presents. I find this very relaxing, especially when I have a finite selection of fabric pieces and my bag of lining fabric. I have even learned to take enough time to iron everything first.

I finished off 15 bags this weekend from the market fabric and 5 from other fabric. I have a few more on the go, using pieces of the Gilles St Market fabric appliqued on to calico. 

I used the ribbon I happened to have in my ribbon stash and added buttons as keepers on the ends of the ribbons. I think this makes the bags more useful to the recipients - nothing discourages use like the drawstring disappearing on you.





 Some fabric is very Christmassy,

but other pieces are more versatile. 

I lined a few of them, where the fabric lent itself to a longer life.

I also added a few bags I had already cut out from other fabric. It pleases me to make bags that (1) save me using up more paper (2) look enticing and (3) go on giving pleasure in use - especially if the use is quite mundane.

These little purses and pencil case are from some upholstery fabric I had left from cushions.

 The buttons on the pencil case come from a suit I had when at university in the 60s! Even then I kept buttons and sometimes fabric, from clothes I liked. I am very glad to have finally found a use for these!

The final piece in this week's effort is a drawstring bag from a piece of Japanese kimono fabric, purchased from a shop in Salamanca Place, Hobart a few years ago when I visited there regularly.

I was not as diligent in using the Japanese fabric, due to pressure of work. There is still quite a bit in my stash

 for more bag therapy.