Blue clutch bag

One of my first inspirations for starting to sew was stumbling upon the Elm Street Life blog.  Whitney posts such thorough, detailed tutorials that her bow clutch bag didn't actually seem completely unachievable for a total sewing beginner.

My blue bow clutch

A few things I learnt from making the bow clutch:

1) Check you have everything you need before you begin - I didn't read the list properly, and part way through realised I needed some mysterious product called 'interfacing'.  This was obviously really important to ensure that the bag wasn't just a floppy mess - so everything ground to a halt until I could find a shop which sold this interesting product!

2) 9 inch zips are quite difficult to find - eventually I had to buy a concealed zip to get one the correct length.

Concealed zip on my clutch

3) Pin first!  My first attempt at a zip was wonky (I started off rather recklessly, trying to do it by eye - clearly didn't realise what I was taking on!)....second attempt also wonky (because I was paranoid after having to unpick attempt 1)...third attempt was not wonky but by then I was so confused that I ended up sewing my lining inside out :( !  Never mind - no-one really sees that bit!

4) Picture tutorials are fantastic - if you are a real beginner, pictures can speak so much louder than words!

I've used my bow clutch lots of times now - the only flaw is that I usually use a suitcase sized handbag, so slightly struggle with the limited space, but that's clearly an issue for me, rather than the design of the clutch!  I really recommend you give this little project a go!