The Bag Lady Strikes Again

I made another placemat purse yesterday. It's hard to see from the picture, but this one is using a quilted placemat and I really like how it came out.

Today I made this reversible tote bag from a pattern I got here:

The inside is solid blue:

The only change I made to the pattern was adding some Pellon interfacing to the bag just to give it a little more stability.

I actually purchased the handles before I bought the material. Last week I decided to try to find options for handles on the cheap, since I've been making so many purses and totes. I went to Savers and found these:

Check out the price... 99 cents each! I wasn't sure what they were, but figured they would make great handles for tote bags. When I took them up to the register to pay, the girl said "what are you going to use all these karate belts for?"  I had to laugh, since I had no idea they were karate belts! I told her my intended purpose and she thought it was a good idea. I found the material that had all these colors in it at the next store I went to, so it worked out perfectly.

I'm going to make several more of these and donate them to charity. My sister told me about an organization in Phoenix that makes bags and pillowcases for foster children, so they don't have to carry their belongings in black trash bags.  I think I'll go through my fabric stash and see what other material I have that might match these belts, as I can get 2 sets of handles out of one belt. I'm off to fabric hunt!