TGIF: Thank Goodness It's Finished!

The Weekender is done!  Packed up and ready to leave for the Philly SewDown:-)

I'm not sure it lived up to all the hype though I definitely benefited from the wisdom of those who have gone before me.

I definitely upped the difficulty level by using such a directional fabric.  After a lot of thought I decided I wanted the pattern to run in the same direction rather than in opposing directions.  To do this I cut my first zipper side as normal and then cut my second one with the pattern upside down butting the straight edge up against my previous cut.  

I've used the technique to install zippers in the past.  I use good old painter's tape to hold my zipper in place.  I shorten my stitch length a bit and then just carefully pull it off when I'm done sewing.

Ta-dah, it zips:-)

Step 11 is definitely the worst!!!  I found it useful to bow my bottom Peltex a bit to take a bit of pressure off the seam while I was sewing.  Like everybody says... go slow and use lots of clips.  Next time I'll take Julie's advice and just fuse it down and hand sew it.  We're talking about a 20" interior seam, it's not worth the angst!!!

I also added an interior pocket to my lining.  I cut it slightly wider than the exterior pockets so I could make some tucks for a bit more give.  If I did it again I'd try adding some elastic to the upper edge.  Hand sewing the lining is a bit of a pain but it was nice to relax and examine every detail of my bag as I finished it up.   

Linking up to the fabulous  Crazy Mom Quilts.