The Miranda Tote is a quick, satisfying sew. The instructions are well written, and as a bonus, Sallie Tomato has a sewing tutorial on You Tube. So if you are fairly new to bag making, this might be a good option for you.

The finished dimensions are 11.5″ wide x 12″ high x 5″ deep. That’s a good size tote! Here I have it loaded up with some orders from my shop. Time to head to the post office!

The bag features a recessed zipper top closure to keep your contents secure. I used a Sallie Tomato zipper by the yard in white with rose gold zipper teeth.

I added a rose gold sewing machine zipper pull for a cute touch.

And a copper zipper end gives a polished finish to the zipper as well as stability when pulling the zipper closed.

After inserting the lining and turning the bag right side out, I added a plexiglass insert into the bottom of the bag between the lining and the outer bag. This gives lots of stability when the bag is full. No saggy bottom!!!

I simply purchase a small piece of plexiglass at my local Home Depot and my husband uses his table saw to cut it to the size I need. He then rounds the corners with his sander so they don’t poke through the fabric in my bag. I insert it through the opening that I left in the lining, then I hand stitch the lining closed.

There are four rose gold, bucket style bag feet on the bottom of my bag. I used a small piece of foam stabilizer on the wrong side of the cork. Once I inserted the prongs of the bag feet through the cork and foam, I added some Gutermann Creativ glue to the prongs and foam for extra security.

I sewed up the bag just as the instructions indicated with a single pocket on one side of the lining and a double pocket on the opposite side of the lining. One thing I would change in my next bag, is that I would add SF101 (or similar) interfacing to the inner pockets. The pattern does not call for interfacing on these pattern pieces (piece M and piece N), but I would highly recommend interfacing them. Without interfacing, the pockets are somewhat ‘floopy’.

The outside front of the bag has two large slip pockets. Those pockets don’t seem to need interfacing. They keep their shape just fine. I used Soft and Stable from byAnnie to give structure to the body of the bag. I used rose gold rivets to give added security to the stitched on handles. The handles are only 1/2″ wide. I find that size handle to be just a bit narrow for this size bag. My next one will have about 3/4″ to 7/8″ wide handles.

I used turquoise cork for my main fabric; quilting cotton from Minki Kim’s Hidden Cottage line for the outer pockets; and quilting cotton from Minki Kim’s Someday line for the lining. My Baby Lock Destiny II does not like to sew through cork, foam, and cotton, so I used my old Viking Mega Quilter to stitch my bag together.

All in all, this is a terrific tote. I highly recommend this pattern for confident beginner sewers to experienced sewers.

Thank you for spending some of your day with me today, sewing friends. Please leave me a hello in the comment section.