I am beyond thrilled about this art bag :)

I have just completed one of my hardest projects to date. I machine quilted all the fabric on this project. I also designed this project from scratch. It was one of those sew as you go things, and make it up along the way. I can tell you I am very very please how this awesome 17 X 21 bag turned out. My rough estimate on time.... I spent in the area of 14-16 hours making this project. I really do think the time I spent making this bag was well worth the effort.. and then some :)

I wanted to make my nephew a sketch pad portfolio bag ... so he can carry it back and forth to San Francisco School of Art. I also wanted it nice and manly, so that he would be proud to carry it and he would use it for along time to come. I think I accomplished everything I set out to do with this fantastic little art bag. It is lightly padded, it has an adjustable shoulder strap and a huge center front pocket. The pocket has a Velcro closure so he can get into it fast :) I even made a matching charcoal pencil roll. I was very excited when I came up with the idea.. to incorporated some camo fabric as accent trims ;) I even used some vintage buttons for other fun embellishments on this bag :) Its sort of hard to see the buttons on the bag, there is a close up of the pencil roll. It shows what the buttons look like. I used brownish tan buttons then, dark green buttons stacked on top of each other. I think using the vintage buttons, really gave just the right amount of pop to this bag and pencil roll.
I can see John John now... un-furling his pencil roll...
laying it out just so.....like Leonardo DiCaprio
did in the movie Titanic..
Leo looking like a real artist.
All stern faced with concentration...
all knowingly... musing on how to start his project :)

These photos really don't do this little art bag justice.. it really is awesome!!!
I HOPE HE LOVES IT!!!