Book Tote

I won't tell you how long this has been no the couch with only one strap. I started to wonder if it could work with only one strap, but I suppose a tote for large books with only one strap is a bit impractical. So I sewed on...eventually.

I saw this idea somewhere on Pinterest, but neglected to pin it so I don't know who thought of this. Props to you, whoever you are, because even Hubs jumped on this idea. I picked up some sale canvas-y thick fabric (I really have no idea what it is since it wasn't on a bolt, but I do know it does not iron well, which helps explain the wrinkles). This was pretty simple to put together.

The tricky part was the words. I probably could've finished in no time with a Silhouette, but alas I don't have one. I printed the words out on cardstock then cut them out with an exacto knife. It seemed like that part took forever, but I finished eventually. Next I painted in the stencil with puff paint, but I kind of spread the paint out so it wasn't really puffy when it dried. I didn't use a brush, just the paint bottle so it isn't completely uniform.

I let that dry for...mmm....not sure, but possibly overnight? I spent too long cutting out letters and painting in stencils to risk any smears. Then I sewed all the pieces together, except for the last remaining strap. That can remain unsewn for many days. : ) You can see I wanted to make the straps extra sturdy so I sewed them on in pretty much every direction.

I'll leave you with some pictures and inevitably a song stuck in your head...You're welcome for that. : )

And the big book tote hanging on big books:

This is my "wow this book is getting heavy, I wish I could just take a good picture already" face (the bag was full of books too by the way).

In case you're wondering, although I'm pretty sure you weren't, that Animal book I'm holding was my sole source of entertainment when we first moved here. I had no internet, no tv, no furniture (and Hubs wasn't even living at home). Just a borrowed air mattress, a fleece blanket and the animal book that we bought when we got here. Pretty sure I flipped through the whole thing! Haha. Note to self - pack dvds in the car next time we move!

I hope you like the bag, I couldn't resist making it once I saw the idea! And I guess I should point out that we do go to the library on a semi-regular basis and come home with a big stack of books so this will come in handy for us. Thanks for reading!