The Cooper Bag Sew A Long - Day 1

Today the Cooper Bag Sew A Long (SAL) began.

Since I am on eastern time and the SAL peeps at Colette are on pacific time, I started without them. Here it can be 11 am or after when the west coast folks wake up and get going and since I had the entire house to myself  during that time, I didn't want to waste it. When I purchased my pattern for the bag I also purchased a booklet which was described as an "... in-depth guide to bag making" and in which also gave me the assurance that I'd be "walk[ed through]...from start to finish." 

The Cooper Companion booklet was a pdf document that was able to be instantly downloaded.

The Cooper Companion

I actually sent mine to UPS and had them print it up. Because it was color printing and 134 pages it ended up being a bit more than I wanted to spend. But today as I started construction of the bag, I was glad for the quality print job and the color photos. The Companion provides the same information as the actual pattern  PLUS a lot more. There are tons of photos (400 according to Colette) of each step and lots of good explanations. The Companion also gives tips here and there on various bag construction subjects such as working with leather and vinyl. It cost $9 (plus my printing costs).

Pattern comes with a comb binding.

The Cooper Bag pattern itself cost $16. That is if you want an actual paper pattern that is real fancy.

Pattern sheets are printed on quality paper. 

I think that is pretty steep for a bag pattern but figure over time it
will pay for itself since contained are 3 different bag variations and I loved all three. I could have gotten the pdf version for $12 but frankly that isn't a big discount when you factor in your printing costs. Besides that, I have been using a lot of pdf patterns lately and am tired of them.




Finally, I ordered the Version 3 hardware kit for an additional $6. It came in a sweet little box. Again, somewhat pricey but convenient to have all one needs in a box ready to use.

Hardware Kit for Bag Version 3. Cute but probably wouldn't order this accessory again.

In my last post I mentioned all the fabric needed for the bag, except for the vinyl, came from my stash. You don't have to make the bag from water repellent fabrics but I chose to. The outside will be vinyl and a nice sturdy blue outdoor fabric.

I am pretty hard on my bags so wanted to beef this one up. Amazingly, while searching through my stash, I found some ripstop nylon in blue for the lining. I seriously have no clue where the nylon came from, what I bought it for or what grand sewing plan prompted it's purchase. It looks like it may be a thrift find. However it came to be in my stash is just fine because I didn't have to buy it.

I was a bit surprised but guess it is good that the SAL instructions posted today are exactly what is in the Companion Book. This is the first SAL that I have actively participated in so don't really know what to expect. Because the SAL instructions are the same as the Companion I probably will forge ahead instead of waiting for the next post. I was a bit timid about the vinyl but it sews up beautifully and easily. Leather sewing machine needles and those clippy things definitely make the job easier. Today I was able to get the front bag piece pockets sewn and the straps completed. The finished SAL bag submission is due Dec. 13th and there is a little contest to go along and already there are gorgeous bags submitted!!!

Today's Progress.