Monday, March 30, 2015

It's in the Bag


Spring vacation has been productive. I finally finished my Jeans Bag, which has been under the needle for nearly a year. The main materials came from the rather tall stack of old jeans sitting on a shelf in my workroom.

 I sketched the pocket into my daily journal.

I love the soft blues and whites. The plaid fabric creates the illusion of colors fading in and out.

It slowly progressed down 



and around. 







I love all the pockets--four on the outside (plus the mini-pocket) and four back pockets sewn to the lining, which is a flea market fabric. 

Except for two brass rings and a zipper, the bag is entirely made of recycled materials.
The strap is long enough to go over the chest. I took a black nylon strap recycled from another worn bag and covered it in denim.
Hand stitching on denim may seem daunting, however, I sewed from the top and only caught top threads, so it was not any more difficult than working on other fabrics.







A few recycled beads and buttons attached to the zipper pull make it easier for me to find the zipper quickly. 


And most important of all, it holds everything
I will no longer envy other people's jeans bags.

 Linked to Nina Marie's "Off the Wall Friday."

19 comments:

Unknown said...

That is just adorable. I would never have thought to decorate it like that but it looks awesome. Good job and I love that you recycled everything.

Mary said...

This is such a beautiful piece. Thanks for summarizing the process and reminding us of how long you have worked on it. I hope you get many years of service out of it.

Magpie's Mumblings said...

Love it! I have worked a lot with recycled denim and it's one of my favourite mediums. Unfortunately my fingers have developed arthritis and so I've pretty much had to give it up.

Lisa Jeffers Fulton said...

Excellent. The applique looks great; it transforms the finished piece into something way beyond a jeans bag.

Cate Rose said...

Wow! And denim is a real challenge to stitch to or through. Quite awesome, Nadia!

Els said...

No, no, no Nadia EVERYBODY will now envie YOU ;-)

Great to see the coming together again in one post !

Tonya Ricucci said...

really wonderful - love it. now I envy you your bag!

MARIA CRISTINA said...

Un gran trabajo, excelente resultado!!
Disfrute de la bolsa super reciclada.

Suzanna said...

Show stopper!! Beautiful, Nadia...

Martha said...

What a terrific bag. Love the colors and the design. Martha

Linda M said...

This has been so much fun to watch it come together, I love it.

Unknown said...

I love your work. So fun to brwose through your posts. Thanks.
Love from Amsterdam

roccagal said...

it was so worth the wait-just lovely
Nadia!!!!
I may have to check out my jean stash...

Linda in Calif. said...

Wow!! And Adorable!

rtquilter said...

LOVE the bag, nadia and I am SO very glad to hear that you are well and safe. Please stay just like that !

Anonymous said...

so much fun! and with your gorgeous applique.

Tammy said...

so beautiful .. love love the lines of color you created on the jean bag .. so beautiful!!!

shirley said...

Wow! that is so creative

nikkolayebba said...

Youre so cool! I dont suppose Ive learn anything like this before. So nice to search out any person with some unique thoughts on this subject. realy thanks for starting this up. this web site is something that is needed on the internet, someone with just a little originality. useful job for bringing something new to the web! real money casino