Lunch Bag

I spent some time with my sister in law a while ago and noticed that she carried her lunch to work in a plastic bag.  I got to thinking that her great habit of making her own lunch deserved a special bag!

A while after that I was reading 'Lunch Bags' by Design Collective and saw a pattern by the PattyPan Shop for a lunch bag that looked like a handbag.  Just what I wanted!

 I used denim for the base and a DSQuilts print for the top.

I had both already in my stash - along with the zip and waterproof lining.

The pattern is designed in a very clever way and I'm super impressed by how wide it opens.  The book had many other patterns (all very similar to each other) but this one stood out and I recommend it, although buying a book for one pattern is a stretch.  I had my copy out from the library.

I interfaced the cotton print so that and the denim worked well for the outside - although the denim is a tad thick for the handles.  I didn't have any insul-bright as the pattern suggested as a batting - so used a scrap of wool batting left over from a quilt.  Wool is a good insulator so we'll see with time whether it works.

Because I had a little helper, the said helper's favourite bear wanted to try out the new bag.  So here are two gratuitous shots of a bag and a very handsome teddy bear model (aka Scotty - who needs a bath).

Next time I'll make the bag in a similar denim but use a solid colour for the top.  I'm sure my SIL will like it - I've heard that she'd asked for something like this from my mother-in-law.  It's a thrill to see a present well used and (fingers crossed) this should be one of those!