HGTV HOME Fabric and a Market Tote
Did you know that HGTV HOME has some new home decorator fabrics? The only place you can get them is at Jo-Ann Fabrics. I just used some to make a tote bag.
The Jo-Ann folks asked me to do a review, sending me some HGTV HOME fabric and trim. I received a yard of Checkered Past upholstery fabric (a cotton/linen blend), a yard of Urban Blossom print fabric (100% cotton similar to canvas), and a yard of mulberry cording.
Now I needed a project for home dec fabric. Helllllooooo, my Happy Home sewing book by Jennifer Paganelli! I am so stinkin’ smart. Plus, I get to use some wooden bag handles I’ve had FOREVER. The pattern is Millie’s Market Tote, found on page 74.
The woven upholstery fabric is great: strong, yet soft. And the colors are both warm and fresh: raspberry, orange, lime, coconut, and grape.
The printed fabric handles like canvas. It’s easy to handle and the non-directional print made sewing easy. A creamy natural color of thread seemed to disappear in both fabrics, which I like.
Also, Wonder Clips work great for keeping handles in place, FYI.
The mulberry cording is so pretty, I just had to work it into the project even though it wasn’t part of the pattern. So I basted it to the binding strip before sewing the binding on. I was a little nervous about it…
…but it turned out just fine.
The heavier weight of these home dec fabrics makes it a little difficult to sew the binding on completely by machine. So I attached the binding to the exterior by machine, then turned to the inside and hand-stitched. That’s okay, I enjoy a little hand-stitching every now and then. It’s actually a nice excuse to get to appreciate your handmade item with your own two hands, rather than missing that sensory experience by using the machine exclusively.
Here’s a tiny Vine video of my hand-stitching. Warning: unmute this video only if you’re a Def Leppard fan 🙂
And, per my sewing journal entry on this project, here are some changes if I make this again:
- Use Pellon 71F interfacing rather than 70. Instead of using 71F per the pattern directions, I opted to use 70 since that’s what I already had. I tried to attach it with spray adhesive, but it kept coming off of the fabric pieces. Spray adhesive just didn’t have enough sticking power for this heavy interfacing.
- Assemble the lining pieces using a slightly larger seam allowance so the interior fits more snugly. The interior is fine, but I just wished it had a flatter and more snug fit in there.
- Use a size 14 Universal machine needle for bag construction, then switch to a 16 Denim needle for attaching the binding. I broke my Universal needle on the binding while going over the handle straps – oops.
I think this is where this bag is going to hang out in my home – to catch all the stuff I toss on the stair landing to go upstairs later.
If you’d like to get some HGTV HOME fabric and trim of your own, don’t miss Jo-Ann’s 50% off sale 4/14/13 – 5/4/13. Plus, Jo-Ann’s sent me a 10% off coupon to share with my readers. Just use it by 5/4/13. And yes, you can use it on top of the 50% sale!
LOVE this tote!
How cute is that tote?! Wish I could sew better!! I’m just checking out what other bloggers did with their fabric – I got the same combo you did. Fun, huh?! Here’s one of my projects if you’re interested: http://www.kammyskorner.com/2013/04/pinkalicious-chair-makeover-hgtv-fabric.html