Island Batik's ambassador challenge this month is one of my favorites: It's In the Bag with By Annie. Each of us got to choose one of Annie's fabulous patterns and the beautiful Island Batiks to make it with. I chose the Double Zip Gear Bag and made all three sizes. The fabrics are from the Bee Kind collection by Kathy Engle for Swan Amity Studios. I was sent a bit with absolutely everything I need to make all three double zip gear bags!
Annie's patterns all have a page that you can photocopy with little boxes for each piece you cut out, so you know what it is cut out of, the size, and the role it plays in the bag. Since I was making all three size bags and each would feature a different colored fabric, I photocopied each size onto colored paper that coordinated with the color of the bag. This helped eliminate mixing up the pieces from the different sized bags. I made the medium (green) bag first.
I quilted each of my three bags with a slightly different quilting pattern, though all used straight lines. I matched my Aurifil thread to each fabric and used a Schmetz topstitch needle for the entire process.
The products featured in this post were given to me by Island Batik, By Annie, Schmetz, & Aurifil.
Annie's bags have a lot of steps but that's part of what I love about them--they are so thorough! And you end up with very professional looking bags. Many patterns, including double zip gear bag, have an add-on video that walks you through the more difficult steps of the pattern. These videos are really helpful. Annie also has a series of general videos on her website that go over some bag-making basics, like working with zippers and beautiful bindings.
I love my completed bags! They are really useful and have a lot of pockets. Each bag has two large zippered pockets on the exterior, one made with mesh and one with quilted fabric. On the inside, there are slip pockets with elastic on both sides, and those can be subdivided into smaller pockets as desired. I think the medium is the most useful size, though I know I will be happy to have and use all three. And when I'm not using them, they nest together!
While Double Zip Gear Bag is not the easiest of Annie's patterns that I have made, if you follow the instructions and go step by step, you will end up with a beautiful, useful, professional looking bag!
