The Carrie Purse – my first sewing pattern!

Introducing the Carrie Purse – my first digital sewing pattern for sale! After months of planning, designing, drafting and editing, I’m excited to present #siscarrie. She’s a small purse that can fit your essentials for a day out or a night on the town. And since it only takes a few hours to make Carrie, you can sew one to match every outfit! I certainly have 😀

I made my dream pattern

When I self-drafted a pattern and sewed my first Carrie Purse, I knew I wanted to see more of this design in the world. I brought out my rusty Adobe Illustrator skills with the help of some YouTube tutorials and transformed a paper and pencil pattern into a digital pattern. It took a few rounds of designing, printing, sewing and editing to get Carrie just right. And then rounds of edits to the instructions before recruiting some pattern testers. Carrie checks many of my boxes for a dream pattern:

• Beginner friendly – if you can sew a face mask, you can sew a Carrie Purse.
• Small pattern pieces for sustainable sewing – this project is a scrap buster!
• Easy to assemble – only 4 pieces of tape required!
• Instructions optimized for screen – save paper and don’t print the instructions. (Printable instructions also provided, your choice.)
• A simple silhouette – every maker can express their unique style through different fabrics
• Completely hack-able – the seam allowances are shown on the pattern so you can quilt or color block for many different looks!

AN EASY, SUSTAINABLE SEWING PATTERN

It was important to me to make this pattern beginner friendly and inclusive of all. The first wearable piece I ever felt empowered to sew was a tote bag and I still wear it with pride. I hope that the Carrie Purse might be one of the first makes for a new sewist and you’ll finally get to say “I made it!” when strangers inevitably compliment your cute bag.

Sustainability was also very important to my process and finished pattern. The pattern is very light on paper and the instructions are ideal for viewing on a tablet. I was able to shop my fabric stash and make several purses from remnants. Sewing sustainably made me feel good about making something new and encouraging others to do the same. How incredible would it be to use scraps or upcycle for sustainable gifts? Make a slow fashion statement!

Thank you Pattern Testers

I want to give a huge THANK YOU to my pattern testers. I dropped a simple call for testers on my Instagram stories and 21 friends and followers answered. Ultimately, 12 makers from around the world and different levels of experience were able to sew Carrie and provide feedback. The testers rated this pattern with a 4.3/5 and a sewing difficulty of 2.25/5. With their changes I’ve added clarification throughout the instructions and helpful tips to make this even more beginner friendly. Here’s some of their reviews:

“I truly love this purse. Can’t wait to make a couple more.”

“Very enjoyable to sew. It looks more complicated than it is to so it feels very satisfying to make. I think it is super cute, would make an awesome gift. Easy enough for a beginner but challenging enough to level up. Fast to make so it can be made to accompany a garment without taking to much time or fabric. So good, Robyn. Congratulations!”

“I think this pattern is so cute and beginner friendly. So many options to mix and match prints. Perfect scrap buster. Also the pictures are very helpful!”

my first pdf pattern, but more to come!

This is my first release as an independent pattern designer, but I hope it will be one of many. I wanted to start small with a bag so I could get the process right before I branch out to garments and multiple sizes. I’d love to carve out a space for sewing patterns for tall women, so we can finally have something to create without needing many of the fit adjustments I mention throughout my blog.

This first step brought together so many years of my experience in graphic design, technical writing, digital marketing, teaching and sewing. The Carrie Purse is a reflections of me and that’s where its name comes from. Carrie is my middle name. Literally! Also, with its cute tie handle, you carry the Carrie. If you’ve noticed the pun in this website’s title, you’ll know I love a name with a double meaning!

buy the carrie purse, support my business

I truly appreciate your support of my small business. Your likes, comments, and shares all help me get the word out and get the Carrie Purse in the hands of more sewists. And mostly importantly, you can support my business by buying your Carrie Purse PDF Sewing Pattern today!