Skip to main content

Boronia Handbag - Handmade Nightmare Before Christmas Handbag/Purse

 Boronia Handbag - Handmade Nightmare Before Christmas Handbag/Purse
Whatabout ye folks, it's Lee here.  Oh my good giddy Aunt, when I tell you I am obsessed with the Blue Calla Patterns Boronia Bag pattern...well.....I am....as you'll see from me making another of these bags (and another one on the go, teehee).  I am so chuffed with this bag.  Again, it's not perfect.  But imperfection is swiftly becoming "my thing" lol.  The shape looks a wee bit dodgy at the top but that is only because I stuffed the bag with a cushion for the photos and clearly, I did not stuff it evenly teehee.  
As is usual with pretty much everything I make, this bag is not for me, lol.  IT'S MY BIRTHDAY TODAY, YIPPEEE!  But I made this bag for my wee sister, T who has loved the Nightmare Before Christmas movie since she was a wee one.  And to this day it is still one of her most favourite movies.  I'd say that she could recite the entire movie from start to finish.
When I found this fabric on Ebay from Dollcoutourestudios. I immediately snapped it up.  It seems that this particular line of fabric is very rare in the UK as there are very few sellers actually selling it. Compared to a lot of my other stash fabrics, it probably was a bit pricier for the small piece I bought.   But I knew I would only need a small amount as the main body part of the Boronia doesn't actually need a lot of fabric.  Particularly as almost half of the bag is the faux leather. And when I say pricier, it wasn't really expensive.  I just try to find as many bargains as I can when it comes to fabric, lol.  But I had to buy it because it was exactly what I was after and it was a lovely fabric to work with.   Of course, I added my wee handmade label to it, but I went with the gunmetal colour so it wouldn't stand out too much.  I wanted it there but I didn't want it to detract attention away from the gorgeous, vibrant fabric.
I love the fact that the Boronia has a double zip opening and that it opens up so wide too.  The inner fabric was just a quilting cotton that I had in my stash already.  When I made the first Boronia, I interfaced all the fabrics with Medium Cotton Woven Interfacing.  However, as I mentioned in that post, I was unable to do any of the finishing top stitching to that bag as the layers were just way too bulky for my machine.  It didn't effect the bags structure but I was a bit peeved that I wasn't able to d it on that bag.
So, this time around, I interfaced the fabric pieces with a light cotton woven interfacing and YIPPEE!!!...it worked a treat and I was able to do the top stitching around the bag....with a little bit of coaxing and the odd swear word thrown in for good measure, lol.  And honestly, this bag doesn't feel any different, sturdiness wise, from the first one.  So I think I will definitely use the light woven interfacing when making any more of these bags...because no doubt, I will be making more.
PEEKABOO!  When you open the bag up, each of the side gussets have Jack and Sally peeking out at you.  I fussy cut these parts out so the bag would have this peekaboo affect and I just LOVE how it turned out.  It did mean eating into the fabric a wee bit as I had to pick parts of the fabric that had 4 full characters, but I think it was the perfect decision in the end.
I had just about enough fabric left over to do the inside slip pocket in the bag.  Again, T's mobile phone will fit in here perfectly.  
I just love how well the lining sits in this bag.  The pattern really is fantastic.  But I must say, making this bag is probably 80% cutting, interfacing and ironing and only 20% sewing, lol.  The actual sewing of this bag is very fast.  It's the actual prep work that takes up most of your time.
There's a tonne of room for T to chuck in all her bits and bobs and hopefully not too many items will go missing in it, lol.  At least it opens out well enough for her to have a good rummage around
And of course, there is a zipper pocket on the opposite side to keep all her other items nice and safe.  Oops, looks like I need to give the inside a wee iron before I give it to her, lol...story of my life, teehee.  Obviously, this bag is designed with the shorter bowler bag style handles.  But if you wanted them longer, you can adjust the pattern to suit yourself.  Plus, there are instructions for making a cross-body strap too.  If T wants the cross-body strap, I will definitely make her one.  Considering she runs around after an almost 7 year old wee girl, I get the feeling she'll like the idea of being able to throw the bag over her head and not worry about it falling off her arm, lol.  
This time around, instead of using metal rivets for the bag handles I tried Chicago screws.  I love them.  They are so easy to install and there is no need for a hammer or the rivet tools.  You just punch the holes, insert the screws and use a star head screwdriver to tighten them together.  I really loved using them and they look great too.
And that's it from me folks, for now.  You will be seeing another one of these bags very soon and somewhat along a similar design to this one....but just a little different....you'll see what I mean when I make it, teehee.  But as a little teaser, that beautiful stripy fabric that this bag is sitting on will be used in the next bag.  It's from the lovely Agnes who is over on Fabricco in Ebay.  She is a fabric seller based here in Northern Ireland so it is always a pleasure to purchase fabrics from local sellers.
Toodles Noodles.....Lee aka Crafty Loops xx

SHOPPING LIST
At the time of typing, the items I linked to are available.  However, items stock changes all the time and with time marching by, some items I link may no longer be available from that particular seller.  However, a quick Google search should help you out if my links are no longer working/available.
 
5& 1/2 inch Kai Scissors - Ebay (These are the best scissors I have ever used in my life.  They may be small but they can cut through anything....including my finger....ask me how I know....oops!)
Lining Fabric was already in my stash - probably bought on Ebay, lol
Faux Leather, black - Ebay
Jeans Needles - Amazon
Metal bag feet - Amazon
Bosal In-R-Form Plus Fusible Foam Stabiliser - bought on Ebay
Teflon non-stick foot, Amazon- for sewing machine.  Works great when working with faux leather.  This foot works perfectly with my Janome QXL605 sewing machine
Woven Fusible Interfacing - (I used the black, lightweight this time around) - Ebay

If you like my blog and would like to buy me a coffee, I have a ko-fi page.  Don't feel obligated though, it's only if you want to.  Every Ko-fi goes towards maintaining this domain and blog.  If you do buy me a ko-fi, a massive thank you to you.  You'll never know just how much I appreciate it xx
I have a YouTube channel, if you want to check it out, click on the image below

Comments