Amy Butler Spring contest

On the very last day, I decided to enter the Amy Butler Sew Inspiring Contest. The challenge was to create a purse or bag with an Amy Butler pattern, fabric or just something that is inspired by her very distinct style. In case your not familiar with Amy Butler, she's a designer and author that makes amazing textile and paper prints.

Since I couldn't find any of Amy's fabric at the local fabric store, I decided to create the purse with my own fabric using a pattern I created. This is the first time EVER I've attempted sewing a purse so I kept it simple and decided on the basic shape of a wristlet. I used a distressed cotton and coordinating patchwork fabric. With the patchwork fabric, I sewed it in a “men's tie” shape and embellished it with a vintage turquoise brooch. I decided to do a random topstitch on the handle to add a bit more character.

I "borrowed" the brooch from my mom about 6 years ago. I hope she doesn't need it back since I'll be selling the purse in my second Etsy shop tangente shortly.

Did I mention the grand prize is a fancy Janome Memory Craft 6600P Sewing Machine. Wow!!! You can view all the entries on the Amy Butler Sew Inspiring Contest Flickr group.