Curiouser and Curiouser

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So I have this bag that I take to any form of Nursing job with me. It's actually the bag that was provided to me when I had Kailey by the hospital and came with all sorts of newborn baby bits and pieces in it. It's a grey, canvas over the shoulder bag that has "NSW" written on the front and its not exactly pleasing on the eye but its seriously such a functional bag.
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I love that I can fit literally anything and everything in this bag and it comes everywhere I go - I have my 1L water bottle, my cardigan, wallet, sunnies, phone charger, cross stitch kit, currently a tube of salt and vinegar flavoured Pringle's and my iPad in it. AND it has room for more stuff to fit in it!
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Problem is, it's starting to fall apart and it would be nice to have a bit of an upgrade that actually looked nice. Time to give bag making a go!
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I picked up the McCall's M7265 pattern as part of a 4 for $20 sale at Spotlight and figured this would be perfect for my needs of a bag for all my stuff! Now to think of the right fabrics for it. It had to be durable - so cotton duck/canvas/Drill were the immediate thoughts. I want it to look classic but show my interests. Yep, Disney theme is on the cards. I kept coming back to a specific fabric I had seen in Spotlight which featured Alice in Wonderland and following on from Kailey's latest Alice in Wonderland obsession I thought this would hit the brief I was trying to meet. 
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Thankyou Spotlight gift vouchers, new bag bits and pieces are now bought and taking shape. Initial challenge, when one gets so used to using PDF downloadable patterns it becomes a bit tricky to interpret paper patterns. Lucky it was a somewhat easy pattern to follow (so far!).
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Day One - Cut out paper pattern, fabrics and interfacing (both heavy fusible woven and fusible fleece). I managed to get the straps for the bag done too and love how durable they feel.
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Day Two - I got the pleating done on the pockets after attaching the pocket facing to the pockets. This proved to be a bit of a challenge attaching the pleated pockets to the bag and manoeuvring the bag around my machine but I got there in the end. I also managed to get the bottom of the bag attached on to the front and back sides. The outer shell of the bag is done, now to work on the lining!
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Day Three - The Finish Line is in Sight
Today I was so determined to finish my Alice bag today since I will be going back to Community Nursing after annual leave tomorrow and wanted a new accessory to take with me. 
I worked out the lining and interior pockets and attached them to the inner part of the shell. There is a sense of relief when you see all the fabric patterns actually work together!
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Once again, binding seems to haunt me. I really don't like binding things but I think it's because it is still a new technique for me. I am glad I persisted though because it really brought the whole bag together in the end. 
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I am so happy with the finished product. It is sturdy and holds all my random bits and pieces. Although it was bulky to push through the sewing machine at times I would probably make another one in the future. I can't wait to really use this bag and test out functionality.

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