The Bella II – PDF Bag Pattern Release!

Oh I realise a few of you have been waiting patiently for the release of my Bella II pattern….and I thank you for your patience! FINALLY it is here!

The Bella II is not only practical, it’s roomy & fun with loads of pockets! Featuring 4 exterior front slip pockets, a zippered exterior back pocket and a recessed zipper closure for your main compartment. Inside you will find another zipper pocket, 3 slip pockets as well as a pen pocket to keep all your goodies super organised.

Finished bag size = Approx. 31cm (12¼”) X 25cm (10”) X 10cm (4”)

So…..just what are the differences in the old Bella and the new Bella II? Well although the bag looks very similar, pretty much the whole pattern is new and has been re-drafted and improved including the previous interior zipper pocket assembly.

I have added a recessed zipper closure to keep the main compartment contends secure.

The previous 2 exterior elastic side pockets have been omitted and instead, the single front pocket on the old Bella has been replaced with a new COOL front slip pocket design, featuring 4 slip pockets and feature Grommets. However of course, should you not like grommets, the pockets look super cool finished off in other ways too!

The Bella II is a very versatile pattern. It is really up to you how much of the hardware you decide to use as you can see from the following tester pics. Dress it up or dress it down! PLUS if you have an embroidery machine, it is (in Pats words) “a brilliant pallet for embroidery!”.

A great big HUGE thank you to my testers and proof readers! As always, I couldn’t do this without each one of you! Let’s take a look at some tester pics:

First up we have Daryl of Patchouli Moon Studio. I really love Daryl’s choice of fabrics and you can see from Daryl’s interior view, The Bella II holds a ton of stuff!

PLUS look at Daryl’s cute zipper pull on the exterior back zipper pocket:

Next up we have Norma of Norma’s Bag Boutique. Norma omitted the grommets altogether and instead added a couple of rivets to her front pocket! Norma also omitted the metal zipper tab and replaced with a fabric tab (You can find a tutorial for making a fabric tab here!)  FABULOUS job Norma!:)

Next up we have Marilyn from Shades of Bold.  Great work as always Marilyn. I really like how Marilyn has used the green zips to pack a punch! LOVE your Bella II, Marilyn!

Next up we have Pat’s Bella II work of art! Pat used pseudo suede and since it does not like heat and you are unable to fuse the fleece, she used Soft & Stable instead. Pat made 3 independent pieces so that the lining was the smallest, the Soft & Stable was slightly larger and the outer bag was larger again. They are then joined when the top is stitched.  The Soft & Stable is simply another layer that sits between the out and inner layers. Pat cut the Soft & Stable using the lining pattern, then stitched  with a slightly smaller seam allowance and then trimmed that off as closely as she could.

The pseudo suede that Pat used is upholstery grade and already interfaced, so she was able to omit adding interfacing on those pieces.

Pat also cut a hole in the Soft & Stable for the back Zipper pocket to fit through, so that any contents in the pocket didn’t distort the back of the bag.

Pat tells me she didn’t have any problems with thickness (using psuedo suede) until the final top stitching and then it was only seam areas that were thick so she proceeded slowly with a jeans needle.

Isn’t it gorgeous? Did you notice the placement of one of Janelle’s awesome metal tag on the front pockets?  Perfect positioning, don’t you think!

Last but definitely not least is Krista’ s version. This was Krista’s first time using Faux Leather! It looks totally AWESOME, don’t you agree??

You can see more of Krista’s work on her Facebook Page HERE!

The Bella II pattern is available in my shop now! BUT….the best news is, if you have previously purchased the old version, you can upgrade to the new Bella II for half price! Simply provide me with proof of purchase and you will receive a *50% off discount code to use in my shop!

*Offer ends September 30th 2015.