Carey On Handmade

05/16/2026

I recently needed a new work bag so while at sewing retreat, I made an Oxbo tote using faux leather and then a coordinating laptop case. With up coming work travel, I needed a good bag. Highly recommend the Oxbo tote pattern from Noodlehead.

04/29/2026

I finished the final teacher bag today. Now each of my kid’s teachers has one in their favorite colors. The pink black combo of the latest All the Things Tote really pops. This pink just glows against the black. It was pointed out to me when all 3 of the teacher totes are together are a stop light.

04/25/2026

I’ve started working on end of year teacher gifts because it will be here before I know it. This year each teacher is getting an All The Things Tote filled with some of their favorite items. One teachers favorite color is yellow and the other’s is green, so my kid picked out lining that had both when we went fabric shopping. These bags used soft and stable, 1 yard of fabric for extior and lining, and additional fabric to accent put webbing. I added the zipper on one end panel. I am over $40 in fabric and over $40 in soft and stable to make these bags. So minimum would be $60 per bag if I were to charge for them. Luckily we have really amazing teachers and they are worth it.

04/15/2026

has a great over sized project bag that can be made double sided if desired. I have slowly been cutting into a jellyroll race quilt top and turning it into project bags and zipper pouches since I don’t love it as a top. This project bag will be going to my local Junior League’s silent auction during the month of May. I run our craft group and each year we make a basket of craft notions and project kits to be auctioned off.

04/04/2026

Worked on this bag that will hold the donations from the two book clubs I run for the Junior League of Indianapolis. This bag used faux leather, decorative webbing, canvas, quilting cotton, a magnetic snap, and fusible fleece. Prices: canvas was $10.75 for a half yard, $10 in faux leather, $6 in webbing, $12 in fusible fleece, which means it’s roughly $40 in materials, not counting the thread and magnetic snap I used. So if one calculated 3 times materials this bag should cost $120. If we did time plus materials at a $20 an hour and took just over 3 hours to do everything then looking at $100 for the bag. Either way a simple tote bag does still cost a decent amount because materials are not cheap due to inflation, tariffs, and the rising cost of raw goods.

04/04/2026

03/26/2026

I was initially excited because this tote felt like it was a cheaper to make and the. I started adding up what the materials cost to buy. This is a Hillside tote in the small size. This bag is fully interfaced, has zippers with decorative pulls, webbing, and strap hardware. So when I add up the materials there is just over $50 in materials. This is in part due to the fact that duck cloth can’t be purchased in a fat quarter so you have to buy half yard minimum to make the bag. Which means if one does 3 times the material costs to price the bag it should costs $150. I did a terrible job with keeping track of my time on this project but will call it 4 hours over the course of 3 nights.

03/25/2026

Working on a Hillside tote for an upcoming trip using some left overs from a Harry Potter Themed quilt. The kid who is my toughest client is a really big fan so far. 🤞🏻She continues to love it.

03/22/2026

Spent the morning teaching a group of women to make hot pads. It’s part of a sewing 101 series I am doing for the craft group I run for my chapter of Junior League. We use our local library’s maker space as several currently do not own machines. Two have bought machines in the last month, and some borrowed their Mom’s machines that have been sitting in closets. A few went home and made more this afternoon. I love seeing them all progress and complete their projects each class. I always remind them they may not be perfect but they are all usable.

03/16/2026

This weekend I attended my monthly bag making bee. This is the Atlas Zipper Case from Center Street quilts. Fabric, Zippers, and Vinyl were part of Kit that cost $35. The half yard soft and stable cos $13. So if one did 3 times the price of materials to price this item it would be $144. I spent roughly 4.5 hours between quilting, cutting, sewing, & hand sewing. If did time and materials it would cost $140. This is why handmade bags cost so much because of skill and price of raw goods. Fabric prices have increased in 2026 making sewing a luxury and not a money saving hobby. I did not include the price of the pattern.