Back in March I finally got around to making Simplicity 2154 pattern. The pattern was a re-release of a 1960’s suit. I made the suit using a knit tan fabric and a contrasting floral fabric.
The contrast fabric was vintage and was super lovely with rich colors and tones. I thought since I had a little left I would maybe make a matching handbag.
We’ll it maybe 9 month later but I finally made the matching handbag. One of the reasons it took so long was that I wanted the purse to look vintage, to match the fabric. I also knew I wanted to use wooden handles on the handbag.
A few months back I happen to be in one of my favorite antique stores, when lo and behold I found a pair of wooden handbag handles for only $4. Finally my vintage style wooden handle handbag project could be completed.
To create the purse I used a tutorial from The Mother Huddle site, which I found on Pinterest. The tutorial was for a wooden handle handbag, exactly what I needed.
The tutorial called for one 20” by 27” piece from the body fabric, and two 20” by 13¾” pieces for the lining. Unfortunately my body fabric, the vintage floral, wasn’t big enough. Thus, I decided just to square off the fabric I did have which came to about 18” by 25”. Using this new size for my base I cut two pieces of lining at 18” by 12¾”, this gave me the same relationship as the original pattern.
For the lining I used a maroon cotton fabric, which I only had a limited quantity of. The fabric matched perfectly and was just enough for this project.
The tutorial had you hand sew the fabric around the handles, but as I am lazy I carefully used my sewing machine to do this. I made sure I was a ¼” away from the handle and as I sewed I would gather the excess fabric further up the handle so that the stitch would stay straight.
I am so happy how this handbag turned! I love the fact that it looks like an actual vintage handbag, and although the parts were vintage, the handbag itself is only a few days old.
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