Crazy Pouch and Pattern

I needed a quickie Friday night sewing project to round out a full week of work and class and art, so I decided to cut into my Good Folks fabric stash to make a zippered pouch.

I was relatively happy with the last zippered pouches I made, but not 100% pleased.  We are an overly self-critical bunch, aren’t we?  I decided to try this pattern, which came highly recommended by Sheri from A Quilting Life.  Now I would like to recommend this pattern too!

• The materials list was exactly what I needed, nothing more, nothing less.
• The fabric recommendations include making the strip pieced outside or 1-2 fabrics on the outside, depending on the look you want. The pattern gives you options, and you take it from there.
• The instructions were crystal clear, with accompanying photos that walked you through some but not all the steps, which was enough for me.
• There was a also a suggested quilting diagram laid over the pattern piece, which included ideas for quilting lines, ribbon placement or other embellishment suggestions. I really like how the quilting lines turned out with the denim blue thread.
• I would probably make the strap a little bit wider than the 1/2″ suggestion, but that measurement works fine too.
• There were several techniques in this pattern that I will use in other sewing projects, especially the fabric tabs on each end of the zipper, and the instruction to sew all the way around the outside and lining in one shot rather than stopping and restarting around the zipper. I also like having a boxy bottom so the pouch stands up on its own.

Here’s a shot of the lining:

I am really crazy about this little bag, which turned out 100% perfectly!  Could be due to a good pattern. Could be due to fabulous fabrics!  I just love it and wanted to shout it out to the world!