pleated tote

Here’s some pleated totes I made for my son’s school auction coming up on March 15th.

I used a great Pleated Tote tutorial by Ellen Luckett Baker of The Long Thread. The directions were easy to follow and the results are terrific. There’s lots of room to customize the inside. I added pockets to hold a cellphone and other small objects. I used decorator weight for the outside of the bags and quilting cotton for the insides. Fusible fleece gives the bags some body so they’re not too floppy.

The fabric here is from Jo-Ann’s. This was very inexpensive decorator weight fabric, but it sewed up beautifully. The lining is one of my go to fabrics — Kona Medium Grey.

This purse is a great size, measuring about 14″ x 13″. So not too small, not too big.

I also tried hidden magnetic snaps for the first time and love them! I purchased them at Tantalizing Stitches and find them so much nicer than inserting a pronged snap and they just seem a little more professional looking.

Here’s another Pleated Tote made with fabric from Ikea. The inside lining is made from Bike Path Chartreuse from Lucky Penny by Alison Glass for Andover.

Here’s an up close view of my new merchandise tag. I’d really like to design a true logo for Chinchilla Whiskers, but I just haven’t had the time. So, a picture of the little critters will have to suffice for now.

I started working on The Pleated Tote pattern from Jen Giddens. I really like the way she writes her patterns. They are simple and clear of errors. She also includes suggestions for the type of material that would work well and how to customize your bag. I would definitely try some of her other patterns available through Sew, Mama, Sew! and Jen’s web site.