Painted Canvas Carnivale Bag

Shelley was busy hauling her painting supplies to her various jobs creating wall murals when she decided she wanted to come up with a project that would require less heavy labor. So, she started painting on canvas and making purses.

Materials:

canvas fabric
denim
artists' acrylic primer (gesso)
polyester braid
lining fabric
memory wire
beads
needle nose pliers
acrylic paint
acrylic sealer
sewing machine with denim needle
scissors

1. Using any purse pattern, cut out the shapes for the bag from canvas and denim. The bottom of the bag can be cut from denim or other heavyweight fabric. Cut lining also, if needed.

2. Prime the canvas pieces with gesso. Paint front and back pieces with base color. Let dry. Add triangle motif. Let dry. Add fleur-de-lis to center front and back.

3. Assemble bag. For this bag, simply sew front and back together at sides (right sides together). Press, then sew bottom to bag, right sides in. Sew lining in the same way. Fit lining over outside of bag, right sides together, and sew to top of bucket shape around edges. Add loops (polyester braid) at this step. Sandwich loops between lining and bag. Leave a gap in lining to turn. After turning bag, sew gap together by hand.

4. Add handles to your bag. You can spray your finished bag with an acrylic sealer to help seal out stains and make it easy to wipe clean.

Note: You can also purchase any ready-made canvas bag and use the same painting process.

For Beaded Handles:

Cut wire to the length you want your handles. Bend the end of one side around with the pliers to fit onto the loops. Now add beads to the wire. Once the wire is full, bend the other side around to fit the loops. Slip handle onto loops and then tighten the wire so they won’t slip off.

Website: www.arthandbags.com