Outside my wheelhouse

Sunday, we went to a family wedding.

I used to be the kind of woman who didn't own an evening bag. Becoming an actual adult meant that such an object really did need to be a part of my life. Needing to carry an epi-pen and antihistamines at all times has made relying on my husband's suit pockets to hold my tissues and lipstick at events no longer a viable option. There is a limit to how much one can ask a husband to stash in his suit.

A couple of years ago, my friend Vivian gave me a shoe box filled with an array of small leather bags that had been made in her grandfather's factory in Austria during the 1920's and 30's.  Some of them were so teeny they had enough room for a small hankie and a little bit of change. One was large enough to hold not just a hankie and phone money but also a metro card, a cellphone and a comb along with the epi-pen and a film canister filled with antihistamines.

It is made out of a heavy velvet like suede. I used it at the wedding but on my way home I noticed that the stitching had broken on the bottom of the bag and the lining was completely shot.

 I hand stitched the leather together. That was an easy job. 

I realized that I had to re-line the bag.  I did a not terrific first attempt to make a lining. I reached the point of total frustration and put the project down and went to sleep.

I then decided to look for directions on how to line a metal framed bag. The most important thing that I learned was where NOT to stitch the lining together ( from the hinge up). Unfortunately all of the videos I saw used filigree purse handles that allow you to stitch the lining directly to the frame.

I had to resort to hardware to both loosen the frame and then eventually attach the new lining.

The butter knife was used to pry pen the frame open. The tweezers  and the butter knife were used to help place ( push, shove, squish) the lining and leather back into the frame. The hammer and the small pliers were used to secure everything. I used the alumni directory from my high-school to protect my dining-room table from the hammer blows.

This is the lining of my little evening bag, a quilting cotton backed with heavy cotton flannel. I added two pockets for an ID and for a Metro card and perhaps a few tissues. 

This task was about 15% sewing skills and the rest was being able to work with tools. I get why this would have been expensive to have done professionally. It isn't that hard to do, but it is a pesky task.

We go to the theater tonight to celebrate our wedding anniversary which was a few months back. i will carry my newly lined evening bag.