Show and Tell - Nikki Tote Bag

I made this Nikki Tote Bag as a gift for my niece who had her 30th birthday on the weekend.  Unfortuntely, I started mid last week but the whole process took so much longer than I expected so I didn't get it finished until this afternoon.  I hope she likes it! 

 

Nitty Gritty:

3hrs to trace & cut fabric
2hrs to trace & cut interfacing
2-3hrs to iron on interfacing
8hrs to sew

Amy Butler, Love, Cypress Paisley in Mint  (1.125 yards)
Eleanor Grolsch, Zoo Menagerie, Blossom in Purple (1 yard)
Fusible Woven Interfacing for exterior & interior fabric
Vilene Fusible Fleece H640 for handles

I used much less fabric than the pattern suggested but it was a squeeze and I had cut each inner handle as 3 pieces and piece together which you can see if you click on the picture (I didn't want to do it as 2 pieces and have the join sitting on the shoulder where it might get annoying).



Buttons 40mm (1.5") from All Buttons Great and Small but you can get them for a fraction of the price on Etsy if you've got the time to wait.  Also 2" would've worked better. 

Next time I would like to put some contrast piping between the band and body to break up the exterior fabric OR just use a solid/third fabric for the band and handles.  Also, I might think about using a contrast colour for the topstitching.