Sari Silk Handbag - My First Design/Pattern!

Here is my my Sari Silk Handbag. I found this silk at my LYS and wanted to buy all 6 skeins. I couldn't decide which I liked best, so I bought 3 and decided that the best way to showcase this beautiful yarn was to make a handbag for everyone to see!! I borrowed some general concepts of this pattern from other handbag patterns I have seen. You can modify the pattern to make the bag smaller or larger, but please do not take credit for it. Thanks!




Sari Silk Handbag

Materials: I am not sure of the yardage I used, but you could probably make this from one 50g skein of yarn.
16" circular needles, US 8
US 13 needles
Fabric for lining
"Stitch Witchery" Fabric bonder
Set of purse handles (I bought both black wooden and bamboo--I preferred the black wooden)

Gauge: Doesn't matter as the silk changes gauge throughout the skein, and you can modify the needle size to make the fabric looser or tighter

Cast on 35 stitches with size 8 needle.
K all rows for approx. 30 rows, or until piece is as large as you want the bottom to be

Do not bind off last row. Turn corner and begin to pu stitches. PU 1 stitch every other row, and 1 stitch every stitch on the cast on edge. PM at each corner to keep track of front, back, and sides of purse.

Join. K all rounds until the purse reaches desired length.

Begin next round by BO first 5 st on one of the long sides, knit middle 25 stitches onto size 13 needles, place on a holder. Continue to BO last 5 st of long side. BO all short side st and first 5 st of second long side. K middle 25 st onto size 13 needles. BO last 5 st. Weave in end. Place second set of middle st onto holder.

You can continue by knitting the handle wraps, or by sewing the lining. I chose to sew in the lining before finishing the handle wraps and sewing the handles in.

Lining:

Lay knit handbag flat onto a piece of paper, trace around the outline of the purse. Cut out tracing. Place cut out on fabric and trace around it, this will be your guide lines for sewing the seams. When you cut out the fabric, leave 1/2" for seaming and hemming purposes. You can trim it down later.

I used a satiny fabric for my lining, and it frays pretty easily. So I used Stitch Witchery fabric bonding tape prior to sewing my seams to give the fabric some sturdiness. I also used the bonding tape only for my hem, as I was going to be stitching it by hand into my hand bag. I used some contrasting fabric for my pocket, and as I do not have a sewing machine, simply cheated and used the stitch witchery to bond the pocket to the lining. It's pretty sturdy!

Sew your lining into your hand bag.

Handles:
Knit on US 13 needles. Knit off the stitch holder, and continue in garter st for approx 10 rows, or until the flap is long enough to sew around the handle. BO. Fold the flap down over the flat part of the handle, and sew in place. Repeat on other side.

Finishing:

As I used 3 different skeins, and alternated every few rows, I just pulled my ends through to the inside of the purse, and sewed my lining in without weaving the ends. If you can't do that, weave in the ends and enjoy your beautiful new hand bag.

Please let me know if you have any questions about this pattern. I didn't write things down as I went, and this is the first pattern that I have actually translated from my head to paper (or blog). I appreciate any constructive criticism.