Curse you, zipper! An upcycled purse with an unsightly zipper

purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
The more I sew, the more I realize that I may have missed a few things when my mom was teaching me the basics. It wasn't her fault -- I was an impatient, snotty little kid who refused to admit my mistakes and burst out in tears when she told me to rip out my seams.

So I'm not surprised that a simple zipper could be my undoing.


A few weeks ago I stopped by one of my favorite thrift stores and came upon these cool kids jeans, covered with Mickey Mouse faces. Smiling Mickey, silly Mickey, and -- my favorite -- slightly aghast Mickey. I didn't know what I would do with the fabric, but I had to have it.
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
On the same shopping trip, I found this pattern. I hoped all the pieces were there.
purse pattern

It wasn't until a few days later that I put the two together -- I could make a purse out of the Mickey Mouse fabric! I figured I would have enough for a small purse, if I didn't mind a seam running down the middle. After ripping out the inseams, I had two pieces of flat fabric.
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
 For the strap, I grabbed an old leather belt from my stash.
leather belt
To hold the strap, I found a pair of flashy rhinestone-studded belt loops from a pair of brown jeans.
fancy belt loop
I worked slowly, trying to keep my seams straight and the details polished. I thought I was on my way to an almost perfect bag...
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
...until I reached the ZIPPER! At first glance, it looks pretty good.
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
But from the inside, it's a mess. I followed the pattern instructions exactly. At least I think I did. Instead of hiding the zipper tape between the outside and inner lining, the pattern told me to sew the zipper on top of the lining, with the edge showing. Uggg-ly!
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants

purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
And the zipper ends droop out the sides of the bag. Unpolished for sure.
purse made out of Mickey Mouse pants
Until I got to the zipper, I was thinking I could sell the bag in my Etsy shop. But now, the bag is all mine. And I'll be looking for a "Zippers for Dummies" class.


Comments

  1. What a strange way for them to suggest installing the zipper. Although I have seen purses with the end tap out, they have been 'finished'.. It makes a cute bag though so enjoy it.

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  2. Love this idea! I was just thinking how to up-cycle my favorite old jeans, because I can't force myself to get rid of them so many years since I've worn them for the last time. They are in the best blue color I've ever seen and I've never seen it anywhere else, may be because they're twenty years old :) Thank you for this inspiration, I'm so happy I found your post!

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