Zakka Style Sew-Along Week 1: Zig Zag Tote

I have been hoarding my stash of Washi fabric, waiting for just the right project to come along.  As soon as I saw the first project in the Zakka Style Sew-Along, I knew this was it!  The project is a tote bag, which I don't really need.  But I have been filing away ideas for a handbag for myself for quite awhile, adding to my list as I have made new patterns.  I love the quilted zig zag design of the sew-along tote, so I followed the directions in the book for that portion and then made the rest up as I went along.  It was fun to get back into quilting again after a very long break!

The bag started out with cutting quarter-square triangles.  I was a little unsure how this print would turn out when made into the zig zag shape because the color is not evenly distributed throughout the fabric.

But it turned out just fine.

I constructed the full zig zag portion of the bag as instructed.

Then I designed my bag shape, taking some construction tips I learned when making my Honolulu Bag.

The gray brushed twill was left over from another project, so I made my bag as large as my scraps would allow.  Then came the quilting!  I have never used fusible fleece before and loved it.  I put on my walking foot and the quilting was a breeze. 

For the lining, I took the tip offered by Terri and made my pocket a contrasting color.  

Then I decided to get really fancy and add a straight wide band at the top of my bag, set a zipper down inside, and attach my straps with nylon D-rings that I have been waiting to use.  I learned this basic top and zipper construction from my newest favorite pattern from Keyka Lou.  I followed the strap construction directions from the book and was very pleased with them.  My least favorite part of making bags is turning the straps right-side-out, and this method eliminates that completely!

The result is quite fabulous, if I do say so myself.  I love everything about it and am a little amazed that I was able to figure this all out on my own.

I added some darts in the top to give a little shape.