We’ve been following the “What’s In My Yarn Bag?” series by Meredith of One Sheepish Girl. She’s been interviewing designers, fiber-enthusiasts, bloggers and artists with a look inside their yarn bags. Earlier this year Meredith gave us look inside her yarn bag. Weren’t we surprised to see that her yarn bag is none other than Cezanne!
Take a look inside her Cezanne here and then linger on her blog for awhile. Meredith has an eye for good design. You’ll find posts with beautiful, bright photography featuring crochet, knits, crafts, baked goods and more. It’s a feast for the eyes.
Nearing her due date, my sister wrote me this email (seriously, no editing here):
I am looking for a cute diaper clutch that holds a couple diapers, wipes and has a changing pad in it. Etsy has so many cute ones. Will you help me pick one out? I am going to use my JP Cezanne as my diaper bag. It will work perfectly. I looked more at the diaper bags today and they are either way too big, too expensive or just ugly. I don’t understand why they think moms want ugly bags or want to have kid fabric for their bag. Cezanne should work. I know the pockets aren’t all the same size for stuff as a diaper bag but I can make it work. Sure is cuter! Now I am working on organizing it.
My response was, “I’ll just make you one.” So off to the fabric store I went. Below are the instructions for what I came up with. I sized it to fit in Cezanne.
Finished Size:
Open: 13.5 x 30 inches (pad 24″, pocket 6″)
Folded: 13.5 x 6.5 inches
Materials:
Outside fabric and pocket lining: 1/2 yd. BPA Free Vinyl Coated Laminated Cotton Fabric
Inside fabric: 1/2 yd. Printed PUL Knit Laminated Fabric (it’s what’s used for making cloth diapers)
1/2 yd. Cotton batting
Elastic: 4 inches of 1/4″ elastic
One 1-inch button
Comments & Tips:
This was my first time working with laminated cotton and it is a bit tricky. Just be patient with it. I don’t recommend working with it if this is your first sewing project. I chose it because I wanted a fabric that is easy to wipe clean. This could also be made with cotton fabric and be a lot easier to sew. Plus, then you could throw it in the wash. I was told at the fabric store the laminated cotton is machine washable. I haven’t personally tried it.
Keep your pins within the seam allowance. They leave holes.
I used a universal needle on my machine. It broke once when I was top-stitching through several layers.
To iron out the creases of the laminated cotton, I placed it laminated side down. Then I placed a doubled cotton cloth on top, sprayed it with water and ironed it on the cotton setting.
I used a slightly longer stitch length than normal. I was told to use a long stitch at the fabric store, but I didn’t find this was necessary. The longer stitch looked sloppy to me.
There’s no pressing your seams. This is frustrating, but you’ll get through it.
Instructions
All seams are .5″ unless otherwise noted.
Cut the following pieces:
Outside fabric: 14.5 x 37 inches
Inside fabric: 14.5 x 25
Pocket lining: 14.5 x 13
Batting: 14.5 x 24.5 inches
Inside and Pocket Lining:
Fold one edge of the 14.5″ side of the pocket lining down .5″, wrong sides together. Top stitch (I figured this out later so it’s not shown in the pictures). Sew the opposite edge of the pocket lining to the inside fabric, right sides together. Fold the pocket lining in half, right sides together. The pocket should now be 6″ deep. Sew from top to bottom of pocket.
Outside:
Fold one edge of the 14.5″ side of the outside fabric down .5″, wrong sides together. Top stitch. Fold this end up 6″, right sides together. Sew from top to bottom of pocket. Mark center of 14.5″ edge, opposite of pocket. Fold elastic in half and pin at marking so raw edges match with raw edges of fabric.
Assemble:
Place inside and outside pieces right sides together (pockets are at bottom). Place batting on top, lining it up with the top of the pad. The batting should end where the pockets start. Beginning at the top left side of the pocket, sew along the left edge of pad, across top of pad, down the right edge, ending at the top right side of the pocket. The outside pocket and pocket lining should not be sewn to each other.
Turn pad right side out. The pocket lining will remain with wrong sides showing. Place pocket lining inside of pocket.
Top stitch top of pocket and pocket lining together. Top stitch along left, top and right edges of the pad, not the pockets. I stitches 1/4″ from the edge. This was the most difficult part for me. Take it slow. If you’re having problems, try 3/8″.
We love sending The Knit Girllls Jordana Paige products to review on their podcast. Yes, we think Leslie and Laura are a hoot, but mostly we appreciate their candid, honest review of our products. They test our products for a month before reporting on them, so not only can they speak on appearance, but also how the product functions. Check out their latest review of Cezanne on Episode 150 around the 21 minute mark.
Anyone else impressed with the huge collection of keys Laura carries around?
Or 57 words. To be exact. And a picture. Boo-yah! Cézanne is featured in the January 2013 issue of Knit Edge – out now!
Want to know what’s new? Just reference the awesome digital magazine that is Knit Edge because they obviously know what’s up. Here’s what they are predicting about our latest release:
Cézanne is sure to be a hit.
Enough said. Have you scooped up the latest issue of Knit Edge? You will if you know what’s good for you.
We sent our friend, Anne, at Ennea Collective, a Cézanne to take for a spin and let us know what she thought in a review. The final verdict? “A hearty 2-thumbs up rating!”
But that’s was only after she walked through every detail of Cézanne. Designed in the cross-body style, Cézanne was built for function and Anne said it best when she wrote, “comfortable enough you can sling it around yourself and knit while you are standing in line (or during a stand-up commute).”
Exactly our point. You can always craft on the go with Cézanne at your side. She also made note of its substantial size, “The bag is big enough to accommodate even a sweater-sized project with some room to spare.” And in all that extra room? Pockets, pouches, and compartments galore for your tools, everyday purse items, or whatever you want to easily organize in your bag.
But that’s not even it. Anne goes on to mention how the bottom of the bag along with “all moveable parts” are all very sturdy. That’s right baby, quality.
But instead of tooting our own horn re-writing the entire review, why don’t you hop on over and check out the full article for yourself. Do you carry Cézanne? If so, we’d love to hear your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.
Pinterested in winning a Cézanne bag? Well, its super easy. Just share the love for the chance to win. Here’s how to enter.
From now until March 3rd at 11:59pm PST enter by simply sharing any photo of any Jordana Paige product, (your photo, or ours, knitting patterns included) with the hashtag #jordanapaigelove on Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. Make sure your accounts are set to public rather than private so we can see your entry to count it. And, don’t forget that hashtag!
Every participant is allowed one entry per platform per day. That’s a whole lot of love! The more you share, the better your chances at making Cézanne yours. Oh yeah, you also get an extra entry for following us on Facebook!
Absolutely no purchase necessary. A few clicks, a little love, and you & Cézanne could live happily ever after.
Winner will be chosen at random and notified via email on March 4th.
Crafters alike love Cézanne. DIY-ers included, specifically, one of our favorite DIY mavens, Erin, from the blog thanks, I made it. And it’s honestly no shock to us since this bag was designed with the crafter in mind.
One reason we are so proud that this crafty lady is carrying our bag? Her simple yet so well said reasoning she is all about doing it herself:
I believe something you made yourself is twice as enjoyable as something you bought. It’s the pride and empowerment that comes in being able to say, “Thanks, I made it!”
Well, correct me if I’m wrong, but that sounds like something most Jordana Paige fans would totally agree with. I know I do.
Something else I can agree with? Erin’s favorite part about Cézanne:
I love it’s size and substantial shoulder strap– which means it’s perfect for me for carrying everything from my umbrella to my iPad for my commute without having to worry about the strap giving out.
I really couldn’t have said it better myself. If you want some rad fashion-forward ideas then look no further as you’ve officially been introduced. For a full review head over to thanks, I made it and hop on the DIY train.
In a panic because you don’t know what to do with all of Cezanne’s pockets? I understand. Watch the video below and I’ll walk you through how Cezanne was designed to be used.
For those of you reading this that somehow may not know exactly what Jordana Paige is about, here’s the gist of it: Handbags and accessories designed with the crafter in mind by a crafter.
Key word in that sentence – gist – because, while yes, we call them “craft bags” that’s not all they can be used for. Just ask, Danielle, from the blog Sometimes Sweet who gave an honest review on her new, gray Cézanne from the viewpoint of a stay-at-home mama and wife.
We already know how multifunctional the organizational qualities of JP bags are but it can be a challenge to convey that message at times while still staying true to the crafty DNA of this brand.
Danielle said it perfectly in her review when she wrote:
And who needs pockets and compartments in a bag more than a Mom? No one.
And we could not agree more. She also went on to say:
Knitting bag, Mom bag, school bag, whatever- it’s the perfect accessory to keep all of your things organized.
Exactly! Whatever. Whatever you want it to be used for – it will work. For a full review head over to Sometimes Sweet. A big thank you to Danielle for the feature! Do you use your JP bag for something other than crafts? If so, let us know in the comments.
Are you feeling LUCKY? Have you been eying Cézanne but just haven’t made the leap to make it yours just yet? Well good thing for you, Whimseybox is holding a giveaway to make one entrant an extremely happy person with the winner receiving Cézanne in Stone Gray.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with Whimseybox, basically it’s a $15/month subscription service for DIY and craft lovers. Each month you are sent a box with craft projects along with a project idea. What’s not to love about that?
