A Little Bag For A Very Special Lady - Kwik Sew KS4381

During my lifetime, I have met so many wonderful people. And it has been such a blessing to know them and to hear about their life's journey.  About a decade ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Samantha Helgerson. She was a student at the Illinois Center for Rehabilitation and Education.  At one time in her life, she was able to walk with assistance.  But because of her unique health challenges, she is now unable to walk.  I won't go into further detail on how she got to this point.  What I will talk about is her courage and perseverance.  

Sam is a winner!  She is one of the most positive individuals I've ever met.  When you meet her, she always has a smile on her face and she has nothing but positive things to say.  She doesn't allow anything to get in her way of achieving her goals or having a great time.  She lives on her own with her cat named Maya.  Sure she needs daily assistance, but that is only to help her get from point A to point B.

Sam enjoys all types of music.  She has a catalog of CDs that rivals any DJ's.  One of her favorite artists is Tyrese Gibson.  A few years ago, she went to see him in concert and had the pleasure of meeting him afterwards.

Sam is a college graduate, who is continuing her education online due to the pandemic.  When asked why she continues to further her education, her response is always, "Why not?  I want to complete my dream."

Her glowing personality and attitude makes me smile every time I think of her.  So, when she tells my DD that she would love to have some greens and cornbread, I make it for her.  And when my DD told me that Sam decided to continue her education after recently graduating, I decided to make her a bag to carry her things in.

I used Kwik Sew K4381 to make it.  This pattern was used to help me with the design aspect of the bag.  It was not large enough and the design of the straps were not long enough to go over the handles of her wheel chair.  So I had to make them longer and added adjustable slide buckles so the straps could be adjusted once over the handles of her chair.

In keeping with following some pattern review protocols:

The pattern description.  It was vague. Bag.  I'll add, wheel chair bag with extended flap with velcro closure.  Adjustable straps for chair handles.  Large roomy bag with zipper pocket on the inside.

The size of the bag was too small to carry a notebook and a text book.  I expanded the size: width, depth, and length.  The bag looks like the bag pictured, only much larger.

This was a very simple bag to make.  Nothing in the original instructions was confusing or difficult to follow.  I was able to finish it in a few hours.

I purchased the canvas fabric from JoAnn's Home Dec Department.  Sam's favorite color is light blue.  I used a quilter's cotton for the lining.  I thought it was a fun print.

I liked how the bag turned out.  It was easy to make.  My only dislike is that it's original size was too small.  I searched and searched for a bag pattern that would work without the enlargements that I made and couldn't find anything.

It was a pleasure to make Sam happy.  I don't know if I'd make the bag again.  I guess if Sam asked for another, I would make it with no hesitation.

I do recommend it to others who need a bag of this design.  It could be adapted to fit a standard wheel chair or a motorized one,

Happy Sewing!

C

Parting Shots:  Photo 1 -  Sam at her college graduation.  Photo 2 - Sam meeting Tyrese Gibson at his concert.