Store and seminar "Totes refashioned"

Lately I've been obsessed with refashioning all those totes that I've collected over time from various seminars, grocery totes that advertise for a store that is not paying me to advertise for them.    Then I was offered some fabric samples from the furniture store.  Oh my..... stuff to add to my stuff.  Well you can imagine that I took them up on their offer. 

I quickly came home and divided them up into batches, keep, share.  Don asked which was the keep stack, being funny I guess.  Of course it was the bigger stack.  Ok, so maybe I kept too many.  Not knowing what in the world I would do with them, it was just too good to pass up.

My first thought was to cover the grocery totes.  Of course I've since used some of my fabrics from my temporarily halted growing stash. 

Well the black one was a gift from Lowes Foods for wine.  Turns out we don't drink wine so I just cut out the inside dividers. 

Of course none of the fabric from my new stash worked so I found some old scraps that were just perfect and I made use of the raw edges.  There is now a pocket on each end and with cardboard in the bottom, I'm set to go.  Small bag to carry my journal and zentangles if I have to go sit at doctors office, etc. 

This was one of my first bags to alter.  I discovered that sewing the fabric on was better than heat and bond.  Ask me how I know..... because these bags will melt.... on your iron. 

This green tote, of course I love the green, carries my sewing supplies back and forth to my sewing bee weekly.   Just a great size and sturdy.

Now this is a great size bag for shopping.  I once again love the green.  This was from a different seminar.  What I like about this one is that if folds up nicely and if shopping I can put my purse down inside and just add to the green bag.    I have another one just like this one that matches the one above with green polka dots on white and another cute flower.    Remember.... DON'T use head and bond, you must sew onto these bags that are not really fabric. 

  Keep in mind that just when I think I'm done, along comes another tote that was hidden away.  Don thinks they are having babies just begging to be altered.   

So look around at all those totes you've aquired, pull out the scraps and do some altering.  Have fun.

  Hey, a tote could now be a gift when taking something to a neighbor or groceries to mama. 

Come back from time to time and perhaps I'll just add some of the other totes to this post.