Gifted: Diaper bag, etc.

One of my very best friends from college is very pregnant right now, due in February (with a boy!), so for Christmas I decided to go all out and shower her with handmade goodness. I had given her a list of suggestions of handmade baby things that I could make, including mobiles, bibs, totes, stuffed animals, and a diaper bag. Of course, she chose the diaper bag. I showed her some photos of patterns in books that I had and she really liked the Amy Butler one from Little Stitches for Little Ones. Of course. The most ginormous diaper bag in existence! The one with 23 steps explained over five pages... of course!

Per usual, I made some modifications to the pattern. For one, this bag is HUGE, and my friend is tiny (when not pregnant). So I scaled it down just a bit, removing a total of 2" from the width of the bottom and the front and back panels. I also re-graded the outer front and back panels so they wouldn't angle out so far. And, because I'm afraid of magnetic snaps and the damage they can do, I adapted the outer panel to use a giant vintage button instead.

Though there was much swearing, and begging, and at least a few desperate shouts of, "Amy Butler is trying to kill my Brother!!", I survived. And so did the bag. And you know what? Though I probably wouldn't make another one for less than $400 (and that's if I'm feeling generous), I kinda love it. I love how very Hallie it is, with that awesome bamboo-blend cotton on the outside. I love how cool and stylish it is. I love how the bottle pockets turned out inside, and the adorable little cell pocket on the outside. And I love the giant vintage button, which I just want to put in my mouth. No, seriously, I want to bite it. But I can't, because now it's in Minnesota with a very adorable and hugely pregnant amazing friend of mine. And you know what else? That is truly awesome.

I also made the matching roll-up changing mat from the same pattern. It, too, involved some swearing and shouting about my machine being murdered, but we all emerged unscathed. The mat is one layer of cotton/bamboo blend, two layers of batting, and one layer of terry cloth, all quilted together and topstitched. You can imagine why my machine hated me for a while. But for a super-cute matchy-matchy modern diaper bag set, it's pretty great.