Thursday, June 28, 2012

Anthro Knock-off: Cut Lace Carryall

I have been drooling over the white Cut Lace Carryall from Anthro for weeks now. The price tag isn't insanely excessive, but it's also not something I feel comfortable forking over when I'm *trying* to save. When you're like me and adore just about everything outside of your price range, you have to get creative. As they say, imitation is the best form of flattery.













The $198 original via Anthropologie:

I searched high and low for suede, leather, or vinyl that had the laser cut lace details that the original had but came up empty handed. After a dozen or so Google searches for vinyl lace, I came across a cute little store, Darlybird. Can you repeat after me... Uh-May-Zing. Seriously, amazing. It took all of my self-control not to buy everything I loved (which was practically the entire stock) but since everything was such a steal, I let myself get three things guilt-free: vinyl lace placemats, washi tape, and uber cute labels.





If you were going to make this you could use a rectangular doily or scraps of actual lace (both of which I considered) but I wanted the matte look of the original which I wouldn't have gotten from flimsy fabric. I love the look of the finished bag. It's perfect for summer and will be great next spring as well.  


What you will need:

  • One yard of canvas or any other fabric of your choosing (consider using oil cloth or laminated cotton for a completely wipeable bag)
  • 2 vinyl placemats from Darlybird
  • 1.5 yards of rope for the handles
  • Steam-A-Seam iron-on adhesive
  • Coordinating thread
  • Sewing essentials
  • Iron & Ironing Board

Follow the instructions at Dana Made It for the Boxed Out Tote
I followed that tutorial to a T (put in a pocket and all) but this is what I did differently:

  1. After cutting out the canvas pieces using the placemat as a guide, completely finish off the top edge as you will not sew through the top of the vinyl. 
  2. If you are adding a pocket do so at this point
  3. Attach the handles
  4. Place the Steam-A-Seam between a layer of vinyl and a layer of canvas and on the hottest setting, bond the two wrong sides together (if your fabric has a wrong side)
  5. Now use the tutorial to make a tote out of this bonded fabric
  6. It's completely optional to box out the bottom of the bag, but to me it looked like the original had a base so I wanted to do it on mine as well.
If you like what you see, consider following Spool and Spoon for other DIY projects and recipes!

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4 comments:

  1. Adorable. Great job...love it. I would love if you linked them up to Show Off Monday @ Kampenlane.com

    http://www.kampenlane.com/2012/07/show-off-monday-and-craft-im-not-bored.html

    ~Taylor

    ReplyDelete
  2. So happy to see this! I'd love to link to this from my darlyblog. Amazing! Thanks for the mention....

    Rachel
    darlybird.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rachel, I cannot express how much I love the Darlybird products. You have a customer for life in me. I'd be delighted if you linked this up to the blog. Thanks for stopping by!!!

      Delete
  3. This one is my absolute total über-favorite project of all times! =) xo

    ReplyDelete

Feel free to share your thoughts or questions. You make my day!

xo Jess

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