Dr. D ordered the magnificent iPhone 5, so I will inherit his old iPhone 4 (no Siri! *sob*), which will be a huge step up from my dumb phone - a T-Mobile pay-as-you-go with teeny-tiny keyboard and ability to do nothing beyond make phone calls. Oh, did I say it could make phone calls? Strike that. The ability to make phone calls when I'm in range. Which would be almost never.

Whatever. The end result of this switch: I needed a new bag with separate pockets for phone and keys so my keys don't, duh, scratch up my phone! An added bonus: it should be large enough to hold Rowdy's baby basics, but small enough so I don't knock over adult men (my old diaper bag is the size of a guitar case). And since I'm never happy with bags off the shelf, I decided to make one.

After a few days of obsessive pattern searching (free patterns of course), I settled on this one, which shows how to make the cute-as-a-button diaper bag below:

A few alterations, like decreasing the overall size since I wanted a handbag more than a diaper bag, plus a week of maniacal sewing ...

I used a cozy orange wool that I had sitting around. It was too thick for hooking - a sad discovery after buying several yards (on sale). I'm so glad I had it! The pink is recycled wool from an hideous skirt I found at Goodwill, the appliqué likewise made up of recycled wools. the lining you see here is a cotton quilting fabric. Love it. The inner pockets are *not* waterproof PUL (as in the pattern), rather are the same cotton lined with recycled lining from another Goodwill find - an, ahem, ugly-as-sin bold blue suit. Oh! And the bottom is blue faux leather I had leftover from fixing the seat of an old Jeep.

One side largely follows the pattern, an angled pocket and pleated tall pocket cased with elastic. Just right for a bottle (or other miscellany since I don't own any bottles!). The reverse side, however, diverged from the pattern a wee little bitsie.

Um, ok, maybe a lotsie. I added a second angled pocket with a second elastic side pocket (just right for a sippy cup! Yay!). Then added to the added pockets two additional front pockets (did you follow that without getting addled?) in a luscious brown which was, incidentally, a gift from the fantabulous Mary Logue. She intended I use it for hooking, and I will use the rest for hooking, but it was just too yummy not to include in this bag. It was also used in the appliqué.

For the inside I took the pattern and said, "Bah! Who needs it!" More or less. I made a sleeve for my trusty iPad, complete with a little headphone pocket (Dr. D thought this was especially - anal retentive - um, brilliant), and three smaller elastic pockets on the opposite side. Just right for wallet, checkbook, pens and pencils. Then along the top (which you can't see, sorry), is a deep pocket for the stuff I really don't want Rowdy getting into like lipsticks or vitamins. I boxed the corners so the lining would sit nice and flat.

Finally, I completely ignored the pattern's button closure, because I'd snipped a bunch of gorgeous bone and leather frogs off an old sweater. Finally, a perfect use!

 So there it is. My New bag, made from mostly Old materials, customized exactly how I want, with plenty of room for me, Rowdy, and Froggy Friend.