The Necessary Clutch Wallet x 2

If you read my post yesterday, you know I participated in a Secret Santa gift swap this year.  I promised to share with you today the item I made to exchange, and I chose to make her The Necessary Clutch Wallet!

I was feeling rather inspired when I found these two fabrics at the local fabric store.  The floral is Social Climber in Gold from Anna Maria Horner's Hand Drawn Garden Collection and the border fabric is Hive in Maize from Joel Dewberry's Bungalow Collection.

You see, my gift recipient is Stef from the blog girl.Inspired!  Stef is so talented and creative that I was feeling a little intimidated. I wasn't sure that anything I could make would be up to the standard of quality that she is accustom to.  I had a hint or two that she liked this shade of yellow, and I know she likes things with a definite feminine touch.  Put this fabric together with the amazing Necessary Clutch Wallet pattern, and I think this gift is a winner!

Stef received her gift earlier in the week and sent me a message saying she thought it was "amazing" and that her husband is even in "awe" of the clutch!  Whew!  What a relief!  I really put a lot of work into making this wallet and an identical one for me to use, so I was overjoyed that she liked it as much as I do!

Secret Santa gift swaps really are fun (and maybe a little bit stressful, too)!

Ok, now more about these wallets!  I purchased the pattern from my friend, Janelle at Emmaline Bags and Patterns, the day she released it for sale, and since it took me six months or so to finally make it, I decided to make two at the same time.

Before now, I had never made a wallet with dividers or zippers in it, and I had definitely never made anything using a twist lock!  By the way, Janelle sells the twist locks along with lots of other bag hardware in her shop.

I wasn't worried a bit because Janelle has the most amazing bag patterns--EVER!  I own every one she has made, and I've made all but one so far.  To see all my other Emmaline Bags, click these links: Emmaline, Teardrop, Steph in the City, and Boyd St. Bowling.  The first two I mentioned are my favorites, and I'm currently using my Teardrop bag.

Although The Necessary Clutch Wallet is small, a lot of preparation and materials go into making it. To make these two wallets, I think I used an entire yard of the floral fabric and roughly a half yard of the hive fabric, plus about a yard and a half each of Pellon Shape Flex (SF101) and Pellon Fusible Featherweight Interfacing (911FF), and a quarter yard of Pellon Peltex 71F.

There were lots of pieces to cut out and then a lot of interfacing to fuse before I even started sewing!  But this was a project I was really excited to finally make, so the entire process was fun. Making this wallet is actually pretty easy, but to sew through some of the thicker sections, you do have to have a decent sewing machine and a lot of patience!  Some of my stitches aren't too pretty where the zippered pocket is sewn to the side (the most difficult part to sew in my opinion), but I can live with it just fine!  Hopefully Stef won't inspect hers too closely!  Ha!

As usual, with Janelle's bag patterns, I always learn a new trick or tip, and this pattern was no exception. Like I said earlier, until now, I'd never installed a twist lock, and part way through installing the first one, I thought I never would!  I followed Janelle's tutorial, but I was afraid to cut the hole as big as she suggested!  I kept having to trim away more fabric until I finally realized she was right, and I needed to cut the hole bigger for the lock to fit!

This pattern provides 12 credit card slots, two pockets for dollar bills or receipts, a zipper pocket for change or a lipstick, plus a pocket in the middle large enough to hold a phone and a compact!

I considered using Janelle's tutorial on adding a thin strap to carry it like a purse, but for now, I think I'll just use it as a wallet or a clutch.  I think I could add the strap later without any trouble.

In the end, I couldn't be happier with the results of both wallets!  I love them!

Thanks for stopping by today, and have fun sewing!