One Pattern - Two Different Bags

January 28, 2026

Sometimes a project isn’t just about making a thing. It’s about pulling together the skills you already have, making mistakes along the way, and choosing to use those moments as opportunities to try new techniques or ideas. It’s about fixing what doesn’t feel right, experimenting without pressure, and ending up with something that makes you smile every time you see it. Even after years of creating, mistakes still happen… and honestly, they’re often where the best ideas come from.

That pretty much sums up these two zipper bags.

Same Techniques, Different Twist

I used my go-to patch technique for both bags, but this time I changed things up by using fabric glue instead of Steam-A-Seam on the patchwork. Honestly? It worked beautifully and gave me just enough flexibility while stitching the patchwork down.

I also used 2 ½” mini charm squares, which I love for projects like this. They give you a great variety of fabrics without overthinking color placement and even though I used mostly the same pack for both bags, the bags ended up looking completed different. Proof that fabric placement really is magic.

A Bear, Some Honey, and Better Points

One of the bags is a remake for my daughter, Autumn. I’ll be honest… the first version just wasn’t sitting right with me. It’s in my Thread Sketching with Appliqué Class. I offered to use a patch to cover up your areas you were not happy with, like the points not matching up. But the points weren’t as crisp as I wanted, so I made the decision to redo it.

And I’m glad I did, because before I finished the updated version, Autumn made me an important request:

“Can you add more honey dripping around the bear?” 🍯🐻

Yes. Yes, I can.

Adding the extra honey gave the bag more personality and movement, and honestly it made it so much better. Sometimes listening to your audience pays off.

The Fox, ChatGPT, and a Happy Accident

The fox bag was a fun collaboration. ChatGPT assisted me by taking my thoughts and ideas and developing the fox design they way I wanted. From there I added my appliqué ad thread sketching skills to complete the fox.

Now here’s where real-life creativity kicked in…

I meant to trace the fox mirrored onto Steam-A-Seam.

But I was tired.

And I didn’t.

So instead of starting over, I pivoted.

Since my 2½” squares were already fused, I grabbed wax paper, traced the fox

(not mirrored) and then pressed the wax paper template onto the right side of the fabric with my iron. From there, I cut out the shapes… and guess what?

The fussy-cut was actually easier this way because I could see the true pattern of the fabric and my placement before I made the cut.

Bonus tip: wax paper templates are reusable (but not percent) template, so I got multiple uses out of them. Happy accident turned favorite workaround.

After peeling off the wax paper and adding the Steam-A-Seam, I continued with my usual appliqué and thread-sketching process.

Texture You Can Feel

For the fox bag, I added two layers of batting and yes, you can absolutely see (and feel) the difference in height and texture compared to the other bag. That extra loft gave the fox a little more presence and softness, which I really love.