Repurposing

It's always nice when you can give something a second life.  This little purse was a mini wall hanging until a couple of days ago.  I made 3 of these little mini heart hangings a few years back and the front of this purse was the last one remaining.  With Valentine's Day just around the corner I felt it was time to repurpose it as a small shoulder bag.   This is not the first time I have done something like this.  I had a Dresden plate block wall hanging that I did the same thing with a couple of years ago and it very quickly found a new home.  The only reason I was able to do it with this particular piece was that I still had some of the green batik fabric still kicking around.  I did a bit of stippling on the border of the block and did the same quilting on the back part of the quilt.  I am getting more confidence every time I do the stippling.  It's all about practice.  What I really like about it is that it always comes out looking different.  The most difficult and time consuming part of repurposing this into a purse is the binding that finishes it off and holds the front tot he back.  See those roundish corners on the flap.....the courses need to be eased in and it is a bit tricky but I have learned to really take my time.  Once the binding get folded over, I can stitch in the ditch to attach it to the back but not on the flap. It has to be sewn by hand.  I attached the flap to the main part of the purse with velcro.  I really like these little shoulder bags because they are so light weight and others seem to like them also!