I’m so excited that I have managed to make a bag for my pilates mat. This means that when the weather is warm enough I will now be able to bike to mat class AND take my own mat with me. Thanks to my sis for getting me the mat for Christmas this year!



This bag was made based on the combination of a lot of things and no particular one pattern. I looked at a pair of my husband’s cargo shorts to figure out how to do the gusseted pocket. I have been totally obsessed with making a gusseted pocket on something for a while now, and this seemed the perfect opportunity!



The top has a drawstring that is currently just some kitchen twine, but it works pretty well! I had intended to put an “amy a la mode” label on this somewhere, but not so large and in such an obvious spot. But this is what happens when you sew the strap on the wrong side with a big fat needle and when you take it off there are obvious holes in the fabric that you need to cover up. But it worked out fine, I think.



The strap was harvested off a freebie bag from a conference I went to for work sometime over the last two years. Those bags are usually really yucky fabric, poorly made, of a bad design, or some combination of the above. But one had just the hardware and strap I needed. All I did was dye it with tea so it wouldn’t stand out so much (it was originally a cream color). Not bad!



For those of you keeping track, both the exterior and the lining are the same fabrics I used to make the Weekender Bag for my sister for Christmas. I love fortuitous leftover usage!



And just for fun I tried to get some shots of myself with the bag. I could have had my husband take some, but I was having too much fun. And they came out so funny I had to share a few.



And then I was trying to get a shot of the skirt I was wearing and cracked up at my first effort, in which you can barely see any of the skirt. Too funny!



This is the first project I’ve completed since I got back from the trip. Many more to come, I hope!