Vintage Rose Embroidered Handbag

Hola! South American style meets English vintage in this project. A girl can never have enough bags and this one is practical as well as eye-catching. With a red and pink colour scheme, it is embroidered with a pretty rose motif and finished with pom pom trim and braided handles. It’s an ideal accessory for any occasion and the clash of cultural styles works wonderfully to create a unique and original tote.

Essentials

Fabric: linen, natural, plain, 30cm x 40cm; printed, 30cm x 40cm; silk, plain, lining, 40cm x 60cm
Thread, embroidery, cotton, six stranded: dark red; scarlet; bright pink; pale pink; ivory; light green; dark green
Braid: bobble or pom pom, 80cm; woven, 120cm
Ribbon, petersham, or webbing, 120cm
Needle, crewel

Dimensions List

27cm x 35cm

Make a bag

Locate and download the motifs. Transfer the rose shape to the centre of the linen. Place the fabric in an embroidery hoop. If the whole design is too big to fit in the hoop, work on one part of the design, then move the hoop to another area.
Thread a crewel needle with three strands of embroidery thread and follow the chart; fill the shapes of the rose petals and leaves with small, neat running stitches, keeping inside the drawn lines. These form the padding needed for the satin stitch.
Once the motif is filled, go over each shape in satin stitch, sewing just outside the outlines and covering all the running stitches. When complete, remove it from the hoop and place face down on top of a folded towel on an ironing board, then press carefully on the wrong side.
Place the embroidered fabric right side up on the work surface, then the silk on top, with one short edge of the lining along the top edge of the embroidered piece. Pin, tack and sew together, with a 1cm seam. Repeat by joining the other short edge of lining to one of the longer edges of the backing fabric. Then stitch the side seams of the bag.
Sew together the base seam of the outer part of the bag. Press the corners, line up the seams in the centre, and stitch across each corner, 4cm from the point. Cut away the excess fabric. Turn right sides out, tuck under 1cm on the raw edges of the lining and oversew. Tuck the lining inside the bag and press.
Stitch fancy braid along the centre of petersham ribbon, then cut in half to form two 60cm long handles. Pin and tack the ends to the top of the bag, front and back. Then sew pom pom trim onto the top edge, covering the ends of each handle.