Mad Caterpillar

So I've had this design for a sock knitting bag in my head for awhile. I usually carry my sock projects around in a ziploc bag, or a little canvas bag with an elastic opening. I don't love either of those two methods, though. Dpn's can poke through plastic bags and get lost, and the elastic top of my canvas bag invariably catches on the yarn ball when I put it in or take it out. I knew I wanted a drawstring closure -- one with locking cord stops so that the contents of the bag would be secured when closed. Especially for those times when the bag gets tossed into a larger tote -- I don't want the contents tumbling out and mingling with my notebooks and pens.

I wanted it to have an outer pocket where I could safely tuck a pattern sheet, and maybe a couple small notions. And I wanted it to have a removable strap so that it could be worn it over the shoulder while out and about.

I wanted it to have a fun lining, and it was an easy enough matter to make it reversible as well.

And last but not least, I thought it would be fun to applique a small piece of the lining on the side of the bag opposite the pocket. In the end, I'm very happy with how this little bag turned out. It's just the right size -- it fits a large ball of sock yarn and the sock-in-progress with enough room left for an eyeglass case, a mini notebook, and small notions like a tape measure. I also made a tiny sock cheatsheet to stick in the front pocket with my favorite basic sock pattern and grafting instructions, and a darning needle stuck in for good measure.

After making a prototype for myself and deciding it was exactly what I wanted, I made a few more. The one pictured in this post is for my Sockapalooza4 Pal, and I'm hoping she'll like it as much as I do! I've put the others up for sale in my Etsy shop.

It was so much fun to make these little bags, and I foresee some quality time spent with my sewing machine to make lots more in the future!