The other thing from Britex, and a small review

I didn't want to clutter up yesterday's warm fuzzy post with more of my loot, so I'm making a separate post today.  And because my second purchase from Britex was even smaller than my first, I'm including a little review as well.

Near the end of our trip, I had to go to the post office to mail home some books Hubby had acquired.  I didn't mind, since Britex was right on the way  . . .

I found myself in the remnants sections again, but still unable to really focus - until I spotted a box of leather scraps!  I think I kind of annoyed the saleslady with my extremely thorough method of sorting through the box, but hey - I ended up with some very nice pieces of leather!

These scraps are pretty small:  the largest is about 6" x 14".  But they are very supple, and I really liked the colors and finishes.  I figured I could use them for something:  contrast pieces, making piping, or even tiny zippered pouches. 

I wasn't able to capture it on "film" but the taupe skin has a very subtle pearlescent finish.  The green and blue are embossed with a faux snakeskin print.  I've got two pieces of the blue, four of the green and one of the taupe.  The whole lot cost me $15 plus tax.

You guys know that I've made several framed leather clutch purses, and for a long time I've been wanting to start making other kinds of leather bags as well.  But I knew I needed to learn a few things first, to avoid wasting a lot of costly leather. 

Well, luckily for me (and anyone else who bought it!) a new Craftsy class came out this spring called "Making Leather Bags."  The instructor is Don Morin, whom some of you may know from his blog Bagn'-telle.  For quite a few years, Don has generously shared - for free! - a wealth of knowledge and detailed instruction for making bags on his blog.  When I heard the rumor in early spring that he was making a Craftsy class, I knew that I'd be buying it as soon as it was released.

And not only did I buy it, I watched the whole class!  (I'm embarrassed to admit that although I've enrolled in over 20 classes on Craftsy, I've only finished about six of them.) Sadly, I finished it up about a week before leaving for SF, so much of what I learned is no longer fresh in my brain.  But the beauty of the Craftsy class is that I can read over my notes and watch the class again!

If you have any interest in sewing leather bags, I really recommend this course.  Don is a great teacher.  He's organized and helps you think through the order in which you should construct your bag, giving plenty of nifty tips along the way.  I came to the class with a couple specific skills I wanted to learn:  how to keep the leather from stretching while sewing, how to install a zipper in a leather bag, and how to recess that zipper.  All these questions were answered for me, plus I got a whole lot more information answering questions I would never have known to ask.

The "class project" is a large leather tote bag with a zipped top, exterior pocket, interior zippered pocket and rouleau handles.  Honestly, it's not the kind of bag that's useful to me in my life - I keep trying to go smaller rather than larger!  But by following along with the construction of this bag, I was able to imagine how I'd use those skills in other bags that do work for my lifestyle.  My goal over the summer is to make up some bags similar in size and shape to the large wristlets available from Coach - this is a really practical size for me.  I may even try my hand at combining fabric and leather in some designs!

Have any of you already taken this class or signed up?  Or if not, are you thinking about it?