I made this lovely Batik purse from Blank Quilting Batik fabric which I purchased a few days ago from Batiks Etc/Sew What Fabrics in Wytheville, Va. I am reviewing the new purse innards I was introduced to last weekend at the Checker Distributor Open House in Maumee, Ohio.
Face-It: Firm from Sew Lazy by Lazy Girl Designs (TM)
This product was used to interface the lining of the bag, as well as the pockets for both the inside and the outside of the purse. It is described as a Medium/Heavyweight non-woven polyester/rayon all-purpose fusible interfacing. I found it easy to work with and it offered a nice stiffness without any bulk. I would compare it to Pellon’s Decor’Bond product, except it held up to a hot iron with no shrinking or melting, and instead of being 40+ inches wide, it was only 21 inches wide.
Stiff Stuff: Firm by Sew Lazy by Lazy Girl Designs (TM)
First of all, I love the name! It fits the product! This is described as a Firm, flexible, sew-in non-woven 100% polyester interfacing. I found this product easy to work with as well and I love how the purse has good “stand up” quality. Since it is sew-in and I am used to ironing on my stabilizer, I stitched it to the 4 outer purse pieces by starting to stitch about 3 inches from the top straight side, then stitched the straight side, them stitched down the rest of that side to the point. Because the tulip purse has curves, it has some bias, and therefore some give, so it was necessary to follow this method of attaching it so as not to get tucks in the fabric. I continued to smooth it out and stitch as I went, finishing the stitching where I started. As you can see, it looks very perky and nice. I will let you know how it wears, but the finished look is fabulous! The Stiff Stuff was stiff enough but was still able to turn inside out when the bag was finished. However, I did not do my regular finishing. I stitched the entire top closed and went back and opened one seam of the lining to turn it right side out. I finished with top stitching the lining closed. This is different from the pattern. If you are familiar with how I make my straps, you know I didn’t use this product for the straps, I used the product below; however, I did add in a 1/2 inch strip of this product inside one folded edge of the strap before doing the top stitching. It made it have lots of body! I do not know of another product on the market to compare this one too. Width is 20 inches.
Dreamy: Fusible by Sew Lazy by Lazy Girl Designs (TM)
High loft fusible fleece 100& polyester. This product is thicker than the fusible fleece I am used to using (Pellon) and worked great for ironing on to the straps. It fused easily and had no melting or shrinking. It is available 45 inches wide. I found it easier to use than the Pellon Fusible Fleece.
I love the way the purse looks. I used the lining fabric for the flap and let the lining show on the outside pockets.
Batik Purse from Blank Quilting Batik fabric
I have not received any compensation for reviewing this product, but thought you may encounter it in the future and want to give it a try too!
Good luck and happy sewing!
Janice, I love this purse!
That is one beautiful purse! Love it! Thanks for the heads up on the new interfacings. It’s always nice to have someone that is experienced in making the lining/outside/straps give us their impressions of a new product.
Love those batiks also!
I especially love the fabric choice for this bag – the different fabric used for the front flap and lining really makes this purse stand out! Also, this is very useful information for those of us who make handbags to get a review of the new interfacing by Lazy Girl – thanks, Janice!