You would think that after making fifteen snap coin purses, I’d take it easy for a while. The ‘lull’ in my schedule over the holidays actually put me into craft overdrive and I’ve got at least six craft projects in various stages of completion. Some are late holiday gifts with a healthy dose of things for myself. Nothing makes me happier than having expanses of time with which to make things.

Back to this little creation. Having learned the secrets of the purse frame from Reva’s class, I wanted to make my own pattern. I chose one of the larger curved frames (6″ x 2.75″). I made several muslin samples, fooling around with proportion and size. This is close to what I had in mind. The next time I try this pattern, I’ll do mini pleats along the top rather than gathering.

The outer fabric is a scrap of a beautiful Scottish silk/wool leftover from a tunic dress I made a couple years ago. It’s got a shots of orange and blue running through it. I bought it at the infamous ‘yardage sale’ at the Textile Museum. I loved the selvedge so much that I included it and it runs along the bottom of the clutch.

I used cotton batting again, instead of interfacing and I really love the look and feel. It requires a bit more force to get the fabric into the frame, but with the help of an awl, it fits snugly and seems more secure.

You might recognize the orange printed lining from the linen apron I just made, there was more scrap left over from this and I wanted to use it for something for me. I also snatched up someone’s scrap of the Japanese Eiffel Tower fabric from one of the classes to use as the inside pocket. Because every purse should have a lip balm in it, I made a special spot for a lip balm to live happily & permanently (right beside the eiffel tower!)

This clutch is for me. J’adore!