Handbags and pattern drafting

The entrelac stole is finished. I finished it a few days ago. I was hoping to get a good picture of it outside, but our weather has been gloomy. The stole is quite warm and it's so nice to bundle myself up in it in the evenings. I'm working on the sampler shawl occasionally. I have other things to work on now.

I'm getting back into sewing. I have an itch to make handbags again. In all of the bags that I've made from patterns, there's always something I didn't like. It's usually some piece that is too thin, or too wide, the straps aren't long enough, the zipper is too long, etc. Because of that, I don't want to use a pattern. I'm attempting to draft my own. I'm picky about the bags that I carry. It must be able to hold my camera. I have a Canon Pro1 and that requires the bag to be a on the medium to large side. The bag must close with a zipper. I like interior pockets that zip, but I also like patch pockets inside too. I like geometric shapes and structure. I like to use more durable fabrics such as vinyl or upholstery fabric for my bags.

The bags that I make for my daughter are very different. They're smaller, use less interfacing, and use a lot more fun fabrics. I tend to use fat quarters for her bags. Right now, I'm trying to figure out a way to maximize my cuts on the fat quarter to minimize waste. So far, I have it down to about a 1 inch strips of waste fabric in a few places. I like making these because they don't require a paper pattern. I just put the fabric down on the cutting mat and cut away. These are a very quick sewing project. I can usually sew up several in one evening. The longest part is picking out the fabrics.