Accessories: Beach Waves Purse

Now to tell on myself a little bit, I’m still working on my technique when it comes to purses and bags.

Larger, utilitarian totes are pretty much were I shine right now, mainly because they’re pretty easy in both design and construction. Small “fashion” purses, however, are another story.

Me personally, I just don’t like purses that much.

It’s not that I dislike them or don't use them - I just don’t have a particular affinity for them (unlike my mother, lol). Each year, I have one single purse I pretty much use for everything, and then if have plans to go out, I usually wear an outfit with pocket space to keep my cash, ID, car keys, and scant amount of makeup.

So normally I don’t really coordinate outfits with bags.

But, in the spirit of reuse and intentional dress, I decided to make an exception this time…

By the time I did finish “Beach Waves” I actually ended up with very little material left over; only a single long strip of the ocean print, cuts from the legs of the jeans, and white crochet lace I scrapped from a different re-fashion project (that one became a little girl’s dress; sadly no process-pics for that one);

Originally, I wanted to use the ocean waves print on the outside of the purse in order to better match the skirt - but then I quickly realized I just didn’t have enough material left to do it.

The ocean print ended up becoming the lining on the inside of the purse, though, honestly, I’m not too mad about that.

Originally I planned to use the white crochet to finishing adding the lace trim on the skirt - but then, as I unraveled the ribbon, I realized there wasn’t nearly enough to finish what I need done.

And I’m trying very hard right now NOT to spend more money, so restocking Aunt Lydia’s is currently out of the question.

But this crochet thread is so beautiful I just wouldn’t resist using it. Besides, it needs to have just a touch of white lace in order to match the spirit of the skirt.

At least that’s what I rationalized to myself (in reality, I just really wanted to use my new-used piercing-crochet hook!).

So, on the upside: I managed to use up virtually all of the materials for the “Beach Waves” project… yay!

On the downside, however: now I’m sort materials for the purse’s handles and the skirt’s lace trimming…. nuts!

With them both being so close to finished, I think I’ll put them back on the z-rack for now. Just until I can clear off a few more items from my plate. With a little luck, I may even be able to find just the right material and de-stash even more supplies from the studio!

(I kid you not when I say have been battling this mountain of stash for YEARS!)