The Chunky Bag love continues...

If something is this good and easy, it bears repeating. And anyway, my daughter asked me to make her one.

Once my chunky bag was finished She (who should keep quiet but likes to be obeyed) asked would I make her one. Only..........

"Your colours are too dark," She proclaimed. "I don't like that brown and the blue is too..... well, boring."

 So I got on to the Wool Warehouse straight away. "These are the chunky colours, " I protested, "Look! Choose about 7 and I'll make your bag your way."
I blame Burger King.

 It's the same basic idea; a rectangle for the base made of 19 chains and a row of single crochet, two chains at every corner and 5 rounds to form the base. Don't ask for proper pattern notation. You can figure it out if you think about it, seriously.

 She wanted a backpack, a different shape. Yes, she is demanding. I crocheted the body of the bag straight up, 25 or 26 rows, then did the cord row by trebling 5 stitches and making one chain instead of the next treble, then treble 5 more. A final row of treble on top and an outline row of single crochet in the colour of her choice (red; she is my daughter, after all) and the body was done.

 I used my coaster pattern again for the flap. It is so cute, with petal stitches that really do form points so that it looks like a flower on the bag.
And then I panicked. How, in the name of all that is holy, do you crochet Backpack straps?

 Well, really, you just don't. Ebay sell 25mm wide webbing that is designed for backpack and bag straps at a price reasonable enough to afford. This search page just holds a selection, I can't remember which I used. It cost about £4 for 5 metres, and you need about 2.5m to make the backpack. I machine stitched the straps across the back of the bag, running to and fro a few times to add security.
They even sell plastic catches and buckle things to add completely to th eimpression that This Bag has been Made By A Woman Who Knows Her Stuff.
It's all smoke and mirrors. I'm not showing you the catches. Not even if you ask. Even if you ask nicely.
That might be because they haven't made it onto Her backpack yet.

 The button came from the Wool Warehouse, again for pennies really, and delivery was free for orders over £25 (there were a few items that slipped into my basket; you'll see them later on the blog)

 6 lengths of chunky plaited in sets of two made the cord, sized to go all the way round with an excess of about 5 inches (whatever centimetres) on either side of the middle front holes. You can see how it was threaded in and out below, and how the cords cross over so that no part of the top is left unfastened.

 The lining was left over from a green dotty top we made together, and just done by eye like in my chunky bag. It was even easier to sew in because it is just a bag with pockets sewn on before you join the sides together. I like to make it from one continuous piece of material so that there are no joins at the bottom of the bag to add strength.

And there you have it. A crocheted back pack. I need to make another one and actually stop and photograph the stages. I might even try my hands at a tutorial and proper explanation, although seriously as long as you can treble and you use your common sense it can't be that difficult, can it?
 She loves it. It is her Dyslexia Action bag that she takes with her every Wednesday. And, yes, now she's kidded me into one bag, she has Plans for more.

"Wouldn't a pink bag be brilliant?"