Handmade Bags In Natural Fabrics: Over 60 Easy-To-Make Purses, Totes and More Paperback – March 21, 2017

Good book. Geared toward hand sewing, but you can do on machine. Instructions clear. Patterns included.

I bought three of these bag books and this one was my favorite. It has goodsewing references for hand stitching and materials.

I have many Japanese craft books and to have one be translated to English is a treat! No need to use the Google Translate App on this one. I've made 2 of the bags so far (pictured) and have received many compliments. The instructions are very sparse, but easy to follow for someone who is at least somewhat familiar with sewing. I wouldn't recommend it if you're completely new to sewing.There are some things one should know about Japanese pattern books in general before deciding to purchase them:1. The patterns are printed out overlapping each other. This means that you cannot cut the pattern out from the print they provide you because multiple patterns might be overlaid on top of each other. You must trace it out on paper. Use your choice of paper. This is what I use: Bienfang 50-Yard by 36-Inch wide Sketching and Tracing Paper Roll2. The patterns do not include seam allowance. The book will show you a diagram telling you how much seam allowance to add. So don't forget to add it after tracing out your pattern!The book claims that there are "60 Easy-to-Make" items. It's technically not wrong, but very misleading. Many of the designs have different variations. For example, 14 of the "designs" is actually the same bag with different decorations (beading, embroidery, applique, etc). It's really more like 25 different bag designs, but still a nice book to have.*Pictured are 2 bags. One of them folds into it's own pocket.

Many lovely and versatile designs. I’ll be using this book for many years.

Nice style but patterns are difficult to read for a beginner who hasn't learned some of the shorthand of pattern reading.

Wonderfully written with nice examples, clear instructions and the results are terrific. I have now made 5 beautiful bags! Thank you!

Great, as expected

I love the idea of this book. But I most likely wont work with it for some time. The patterns included are wonderful but printed on both sides of the paper so transferring the patterns are necessary. But the pattern paper is very thick so that wont be easy if you're a beginner. I've been seeing by actual hand for years and I'm probably intermediate yet this turns me off the book.