3/5/09

An intriguing new concept: A Bag in a Bag

I worked with a customer on an idea she had . We started with one premise, she hated moving her things from one bag to another. No doubt a sentiment shared by many! In fact it's one of the reasons why my Morphin bags are popular.
Her initial idea was to have one set of Zoe Pockets that were held in place with velcro. Hmm interesting I thought.
What she wanted to do was get a small Honeysuckle Tote and A Zelda Deluxe Messenger bag and have the pockets be able to move from one bag to another.
As it turned out it wouldn't work. The Honeysuckle was too small to make the pockets removable.
However the idea turned into something kinda cool anyway.

First we did a small Honeysuckle tote in a beautiful Thai silk. We put the Zoe Pocket set inside that bag (sewn, not removable) added a full panel zipper pocket to the back, and an adjustable shoulder strap. A great bag all on its own.

The customer provided a piece of exquisite kimono fabric to use on the flap and side pockets of a Zelda Deluxe. We put a full panel zipper pocket on this bag as well. Plus inside, we added an open side pocket and a slip pocket with a tab closure that are standards in the Panther Messenger Bag. But we did not include the Zoe Pocket Set.

Here's the interesting part of all this, the Honeysuckle Tote fits into the slip pocket in the Zelda Deluxe! I made it with some depth so there would be plenty of room.

So she can use the Zoe Pockets in the Honeysuckle for organizing, and carry it in the Zelda Deluxe. If she doesn't need the larger bag, poof, out comes the Honeysuckle and off she goes. When she needs to carry more stuff, she puts the Honeysuckle into the Zelda Deluxe and she's good to go. All the usual purse contents are right there inside the Zelda Deluxe, but no transference was needed!
Quite a genius idea I thought!!!
She had considered a fabric I had on hand that had camels as part of the motif. When the time came to make the tab for the sleeve, she requested I put a camel on it!

1 comment:

  1. This is my set of bags! I love them: they work just as I hoped they would, and I agree with everyone else on the site, the workmanship is beautiful.

    As I get older the things I need on a regular basis have multiplied: reading glasses, inhaler, advil, cell phone, datebook, etc. The wallet on a string isn't quite big enough. Then there are also things I need for teaching. If I pull them in and out of my daily purse, I end up with a mess on the dining table, or I find I've forgotten something that I need to teach with, or (usually) both things happen. This way I can stay organized at home and at work. The best part is that once I get everything all loaded up, the outer bag still looks shapely and not huge.

    I especially appreciated Karen's communication throughout the process: her descriptions were very clear, and she kept me up to date on the project as it progressed.

    I will use the bags every day until they wear out, and then will ask her to do the same thing again, but in new fabrics, of course.

    Thanks again!

    ReplyDelete