The Fish Bag

 

I've been working on this bag for a LONG time.  Things kept popping up that prevented me from getting it done.

My inspiration came from this Korean store.  I also learned a lot from Make It Love It's tutorial.

So here are some tips if you want to make your own:

Whether your scales be round or pointed, I found it helpful to sew them directly on the fish body.  I left a small open spot in the center of the scale to turn it right side out.  This allowed me to arrange the scales as I pleased.  Clipping corners and ironing helped to arrange them neatly. 

I sewed on two rows at a time.  This worked well--esp. in making sure all the "body" was hidden.

After all the scales were sewn on, I trimmed around the body and sewed my two sides together.  I also sewed on the eyes at this time.  I think if I was doing this again I would definitely make my scales bigger BUT I liked how they turned out in the end.

This is the lining.  I did not make it an exact match as I didn't want small items getting stuck in the tail.  I did stuff the tail, which gave it a nice 3-D effect. 

I made the strap a little long as Ana will grow.  She loves the bag and I'm pleased that it looks very fish like.  A lot of work, but gets noticed by everyone!