Sunday, March 04, 2007






Irma’s Felted Drawstring Bag


Materials and Equipment
3 skeins of Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Bulky in Redwood Forest
Crochet hook size L
Scrap ribbon
2 safety pins
2 wooden beads

Gauge: Not crucial to finished bag

Directions
PURSE:
Ch 4
Round 1: Make 8 dc in 4th chain from hook. Close this and all rounds with a slip stitch in top of first dc.
Round 2: Ch 2 (does not count as first stitch), 2 dc in each stitch.
Round 3: Repeat Round 2.
Round 4: Ch 2, dc in first stitch, 2 dc in next stitch, (dc in next stitch, 2 dc in next stitch) around.
Round 5: Ch 2, dc in first 2 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch, (dc in next 2 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch) around.
Round 6: Ch 2, dc in first 3 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch, (dc in next 3 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch) around.
Round 7: Ch 2, dc in first 4 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch, (dc in next 4 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch) around.
Round 8: Ch 2, dc in first 4 stitches, dec over next 2 stitches, (dc in next 4 stitches, dec over next 2 stitches) around.
Rounds 9-21: Work even in dc.
Round 22: Ch 2, dc in first 2 stitches, (ch 2, skip next 2 stitches, dc in next 2 stitches) around.
Round 23: Ch 2, sc in each dc, and work 2 sc in each ch 2 space.
Round 24: Work one round even in sc.

Cut yarn and weave in loose ends.

DRAWSTRING:
Chain 120. Sl st in second ch from hook and in each ch across.

FLAP:
Ch 21
Row 1: Dc in third ch from hook and in each ch across. 19 dc.
Rows 2- 8: Ch 2 (does not count as first dc) Dc in first st and in each st across.
Row 9: Ch 2 (does not count as first dc), dc in first 8 stitches, ch 3, skip next 3 stitches, dc in remaining 8 dc.

Do not cut yarn.
Edging: Ch 1, work sc evenly spaced along side of flap, 3 sc in corner stitch, sc in each ch on opposite side of beg ch, 3 sc in corner stitch, sc evenly spaced along right side of flap, 3 sc in corner stitch, sc in each stitch and ch of Row 9. Sl st to top of first sc. Cut yarn leaving a tail for sewing. Sew flap to 20 stitches that form back of purse when drawstring is pulled (one group of 8 stitches, the ch 2 spaces on either side, and 4 stitches on outsides of ch 2 spaces) at bottom of Row 20.

STRAPS (MAKE TWO):
Ch 120
Row 1: Dc in third ch from hook and in each ch across. Cut yarn leaving a tail for sewing.

Place two safety pins at top of Round 7 so that they are lined up with the corners of the flap. Sew end of straps to center back of purse just below the flap. Sew other ends of straps to ends of strap top of Round 7 where safety pins are.

Cut a length of scrap ribbon long enough to thread through the ch 2 spaces of round 22. Thread ribbon through ch 2 spaces and tie ends together. This will prevent the ch 2 spaces from felting closed. After felting, remove the ribbon and discard. Felt purse according to your preferred method. Stuff with plastic bags to shape the bag while it dries.
When purse is dry, weave drawstring through ch 2 spaces and pull through ch 3 space of flap. Attach one wooden bead at each end of the drawstring and tie a knot to secure bead in place.

16 comments:

crissy said...

very nice i love the colors :)

Brianna said...

Ohh i love this bag.. I want to make one but i want to use Bernet's cool crochet and a smaller hook.. Would it still work up nice, do you think? I could always use 2 strands

Cris said...

I think the bag would work in your substitution; however, the bag will come out larger since this bag which is felted. Also, you would want to line your bag with fabric since it will stretch.

Anonymous said...

my daughter is a social worker at a battered women's shelter. because of funding cuts, they are having an online purse auction to raise some money and have asked if i would "create" a purse. i am going to try this pattern. should be fun

Anonymous said...

I love the look of this bag and have decided to make one for myself. Will post a pic when I'm done. Thanks for sharing!!

Anonymous said...

Nice bag Cris!!

I'll be trying this one for a Harley Davidson rider, in black, red, and orange!!

Thanks for the pattern....it's exactly what I'm looking for!!!

Christi = )

Anonymous said...

Love your bag.. I have been wanting to make a bag for a long time, just never had the nerve to try.. Love yours a lot, Monica

Anonymous said...

Tried for the first time to felt. I used this patten but sad to say it did not turn out like the picture. If I did it again I would change the instructions for the straps. This is the only part that did not felt right! It seemed to get tangle in the washing machine.

Unknown said...

Hi Chris,

AWESOME BAG!! I have been searching furtively for a pattern for a lunch sack and have not had much luck. I think your bag would fit the bill if I simply change the straps. However, I would need it to be smaller. I did not see measurements on your bag. Would you please supply measurements and suggestions for making the bag smaller? I've never felted before so I am not comfortable adjusting the pattern as I have no idea how much things will shrink.

Thanks Chris!

Deb
Also in IN :)

Cris said...

The bag as I made it was about 11-12 inches tall, 7 inches wide and 5 inches deep. If you want it smaller, I suggest taking the hook size down and/or using worsted weight yarn instead of chunky yarn. You can still follow the pattern as written, but with the modifications above, the bag will come out smaller. Good Luck.

Anonymous said...

Is this yarn about a 5 chunky? Could I use Bernet felting yarn?

Debra

Cris said...

Yes, this is a #5 chunky yarn. Bernat Felting yarn is also a #5 so it should work. Make sure you have enough yarn. Bernat skeins are only 84 yds. I used 3 skeins of the Wool of the Andes Bulky for a total of 411 yds. You'd need about 5 skeins of the Bernat Felting yarn.

Anonymous said...

Cris, I am working on this bag right now, and wonder what the circumference is before felting, also the height? It seems rather large and am wondering if its to big
Debra

Cris said...

Anonymous, it starts off big. I can't remember the dimensions. Felting will shrink it down to almost half the size depending on the yarn you use.

Debra said...

I am using Wool of the Andes,bulky. Its huge right now. Was it more round that tall?

Debra

Cris said...

It's been so long, but I do recall it looking disproportionate to what the eventual purse looked like. Crocheted pieces tend to shrink more width-wise than length-wise so the pre-felted version will be wider than necessary to compensate for the shrinkage. The bag will not shrink as much length-wse (height). The end result should yield a purse that looks more proportional to what you're probably looking for. You may need to run it through several wash cycles to get the size you want. I hope I was able to help.