Modern Clutch

Last fall I updated my iPhone to the 6s model, though I was really wishing I could keep the size of the 5s I was replacing; little did I know that the iPhone SE was coming out! Still, there are some features on the 6s that I like a lot, even though the phone is bigger than I’d have liked. What does this have to do with anything I usually discuss? Well, the fancy evening bag I have rare occasions to use is too small for my new phone, and I needed a new one to solve the problem. My local quilt shop, Quiltique, had a presentation earlier this month on making a little clutch that would do the trick nicely, so I attended and bought the pattern.

Fast forward to when my silk dupioni fabric arrived and I could actually begin to make the bag. I very carefully did a test stitch out of a monogram I wanted to put on the purse, using Floriani metallic thread. The embroidery had to go through the fabric and some Décor Bond interfacing, and I think that this interfacing may have been the problem, since it’s very stiff. I did four tests, tweaking various settings and methods, and each one had something wrong. At that point, I decided that finished was better than not, so I switched from metallic to polyester embroidery thread. Whew! Now I was getting somewhere, as my final test showed.

Once I had finished the embroidery (still not perfect, but so much better!), putting the bag together was very easy on my Bernina 780. I used a thread as close to the metallic gold as I could, and my fabric is a dark grey, so I’m thinking the clutch will work with just about anything I might need to pair with it.

The interior is very simple, with a single little pocket that’s good for a driver’s license or other ID and a credit card. There’s plenty of space for my iPhone, a lipstick, a handkerchief and a bit of cash. Done!