As much in the mind as in the execution

If the number of blog entries posted recently is anything to go by, I'm not being very creative at all. On the one hand, this could make me a bit sad. Fortunately, the other hand is full of excuses which get the thumbs up for not making me sad. These are a combination of me either being out and about making the most of the good weather  - going on walks, gardening, visiting gardens, and spending time with friends; and new responsibilities at work which involves the occasional trip abroad. Oh, and I've also been trying to perfect the art of Martini-making which could, at a pinch, be classed as me being creative. Or am I stretching the definition somewhat?

Anyway, it was Craft Club yesterday so I did actually get a teeny bit creative. After all, that is the whole point of Craft Club - to put aside one afternoon a month to creativity (and catching up with friends).

The first task was to line a summer skirt which was a little too transparent for comfort. This was a fairly simple task so didn't take long so I was soon getting my head around a new project.

Last month I finally decided to try to make a few things from old woollen garments that had accidentally been through too hot a wash in the washing machine. Continuing with this theme, I had selected an orange mohair wrap cardigan and matched it with some brightly striped cotton I'd bought some years ago. The plan was to make a handbag.

The key thing about making something out of old clothing is to treat the garment almost like normal fabric but, if possible, also incorporate any original features. In this case, the only 'feature' of note was the v-shaped edge to the front of the cardigan. Of course, this could be ignored but when you have taken into account the shaping around the arm holes and the widths of the sleeves, you haven't really got many large pieces of fabric to make a bag of any decent size.

Anyway the first task was to cut open all the seams. You may think that cutting is drastic and that you will lose fabric but unpicking a knitted garment is very hard, particularly one that has been felted in the washing machine. Cutting is also a whole lot quicker!

In the end, I selected the back to form the back and base of the bag; one of the sleeves was shortened and cut in half vertically to form each of the sides; and the left front forms the front of the bag. I am hoping to make a feature of the sloping top edge, which you can just about make out in the photo below.

As with another bag I have made out of machine-felted knitting, the woollen outside is really just the cosmetic bit. It's the lining that does all the hard work. This new orange bag is really no exception. Not least because the wool is quite thin and so rather flimsy. I'm therefore going to use iron-on interfacing on the main bits of the lining.  This will sit between the lining and wool so will not be visible.

But first, a good bag should be designed in a way that means you can lay your hands on exactly what you want when you delve into it. If it's pouring with rain and you have to stand outside rummaging through your bag trying to find your door keys, which will invariably have slipped to the bottom, the bag is not really adding much value to your life. You may as well just sling everything into a plastic carrier bag. Well, that may be a bit harsh as I would hope your bag was a little more stylish than a plastic carrier bag and style certainly should be valued. However, I'm a practical woman so I need a bag that is stylish and practical. I'm also security conscious so I want a bag that unwelcome hands can't slip into and grab my valuables.

For organisation, pockets are key and need to be thought about before you begin construction of your lining. I've decided to go for a zipped pocket in the lining one one side and a series of pouches on the other side for phone and purse. These are all now cut from the lining fabric but I have hit a problem in that I don't have a suitable zip for the pocket. This has been added to the shopping list but won't get bought this month thanks to another work trip and another weekend away walking.

In the meantime, I'll get thinking about how I'm going to secure the top of the bag. A fully enclosed, zipped top ticks all my security boxes but I'm also considering some sort of fastened flap. The outcome of this decision may come down to how I end up fixing the lining to the bag. It is all very well making a feature out of the original cardigan's v-neck - where I'm hoping to show off the lining - but it has left me with another challenge.

However, if I didn't like a challenge the cardigan would have gone in the rags bag years ago and I would have gone out and bought a bag. Besides, the creative process is as much in the mind as it is in the execution. I'll let you know how I get on.