Wool and Leather

I have a big brown bag I refashioned from a leather jacket last year, but I've been wanting a black bag since brown doesn't necessarily go with everything. So I pulled out this black and white houndstooth, 100% wool, men's suit jacket which I got for free a couple years ago.

I sketched out my own pattern and cut the pieces from the jacket, salvaging the original pockets for the front of my bag. I also cut pieces for the lining from some fabric I had in my stash, and I added fusible interfacing to everything for extra stability and structure. When I assembled the wool pieces, I also inserted into the seams some strips of black leather from a previous refashion as a sort of piping accent for my new bag. An old black leather belt became a new strap.

For the whole lengthy process, feel free to visit me over at CarissaKnits!