Recently, I made a medium-sized tote using a Moda paisley charm pack.
There were enough charm squares left to make a large tote.
I also had enough of the same fabric I had used for the lining ,
accents, and handles to make a second tote.
charm pack
Charming Charm Pack Tote
The remaining pieces of fusible foam were just waiting to be used,
so I pulled out my stash to see what I could do.
I had polka dot strips left over from the jelly roll tote,
and I had floral print fabric that I had used for lining.
I picked up a 20 count charm pack and thought about making a small tote.
If I could make one with strips, it shouldn’t be that difficult to make one with squares.
My sister had asked me to make a small tote for her friend,
so I thought I would try to do something with the charm pack and my stash.
I arranged the squares and stitched 5 rows of 4.
I placed the top row on the fusible foam and stitched 1/4″ from the top.
Then I ironed on the first row.
I continued adding each row to the fusible foam in this same manner.
I stitched diagonally in each square in order to give more body and texture to the tote bag.
I folded the piece in half in order to find the center, and then I stitched along the center.
I added pockets to the lining.
I used two 2.5″ strips to make each handle.
I like the handle technique that I learned from the Craftsy Gemini Improv tutorial, Part 2.
This took a total of 2 hours to make, only because I stopped to eat apple pie and ice cream!