I Finally Finished the Overnight Bag!

This bag was born in my head after our cruise. We had spent most of two days rambling (or racing) through various airports and all three of our bags are the Pullman style. That's OK until you have to collect the big bag from baggage claim and there's only two of you to carry bags. If you have a bag with two handles, you can loop them around the Pullman handle and drag the whole thing through the airport. Also I couldn't stuff my smallest bag under the seat or in the overhead in the smaller planes because it's hard-sided.

It turned out a bit bigger than I had anticipated-I'm always making things too small so I guess I overcompensated.

I used upholstery fabric and backed it with iron-on fleece. I put tabs at both ends of the zipper-I thought maybe it would extend the life of the zipper. I know, I should have used a heavy-duty zipper, but I was too lazy to go all the way out to Jo-Ann's to get one. (The closest Jo-Ann's is 20 miles away) We'll see how this one holds up.

Pockets at both ends:

Pockets all around inside:


The distance thing factored in to what I used to make the handles. Using the cotton I lined it with, I cut the strips 4 1/2 inches wide, and cut fleece 2 1/4 inches wide. Then I fused the fleece to the center of the handle. I folded and pressed the fabric excess on each side over the fleece, then folded the whole works in half and pressed it. Topstitched, it made nice handles. I wanted something a bit thicker than usual.

My plan is to make a couple of zippered square bags for lingerie and incidentals, and a small purse with a long strap that I can either pack in the suitcase or carry criss-cross over my shoulder so I can reach my passport quickly. I might figure out something to insert in the bottom of the bag for stability. Time is running out and I have Grace and Sam next week while Millie has her surgery so I'd better get cracking.