A Zipper Bag

I had a fabulous day in Grove City yesterday at "The Barn" - that lovely quilty place of Mary's. The project for the day was to make a Zipper Bag. I met a couple of quilters and got reacquainted with another. And of course, Mary, our hostess, was as gracious and helpful as always, and she fed us a pretty awesome lunch, too. Throw in the gorgeous spring day - Mary opened the big barn door for the first time this season - and it all added up to a really wonderful day.

So, here is the sample bag Mary had for us to see. She said she made it in an afternoon. I think this is possible, but when one is spending as much time with the seam ripper as she is sewing, it was clear I was going to take longer. In fact, I worked on it from about 9:30 - 4:00 with only a break for lunch. My brain just wasn't receptive to cutting and reading directions, for some reason. I felt like Mary had to hold my hand most of the way through it.

The bag has an 18" zipper for the outer closure and three 9" zippers for inner pockets. I love how colorful Mary went with her zippers. The possibilities for playfulness with fabric and zippers are endless.

My choices were limited because I used zippers I had on hand. I thought I had a big variety, but in the sizes I needed I was limited to black and white. So, I found my stash of Morris Apprentice fabric (left over from the Tapestry quilt), and chose my bag colors from there. I think I like it, too.

My 18" zipper was metal, which looks okay with the silvery gray in my outer print. The one white zipper was used on the middle pocket, so it looks like it was all in the original "plan" - ha! Happy accident - that's the reality. :D

I was thinking most of the morning that I'd NEVER do another one of these bags, but by the end of the day, I was planning on making more - sisters, girlfriends, daughters - I think most women believe in the philosophy that one can never have too many bags.

Here are the bags made by my 2 new acquaintances, Jolene and Kay.

Jolene's zipper bag.

Kay's zipper bag.

I will consider making another one. I think I worked out the brain cramps and kinks enough that I could accomplish the task more quickly next time. I will need to invest in some zippers, however.

Tomorrow I will share some of the show and tell projects we saw at the barn.

Happy Quilting, Friends!