This is part 2 of Lisa’s 4 part order of a Backpack, Duffel, Tote, and Pencil Case.  She has another smaller duffel from a past order, this time wanted one “Big.  As big as you can make it.”

I told her I’d truly only be able to make it as big as the biggest item she gave me without it looking like a patchwork quilt.  Because let’s face it, if she wanted a quilt, she’d have ordered a quilt, and the last thing I wanted to do was hand over a bag that looked like Raggedy Ann’s preferred travel bag.

Lucky for me, and Lisa.  She’d thrown in a pair of sweats!  Perrrrrfect!  After being cut apart at the seams they were long and wide!  Perfect for the front and back face of this bag!

The rest of the pieces weren’t so hard to find since size wouldn’t be an issue and it was only a matter of color at that point.  The cutting process for this duffel took a few committed days due to it’s size and the variety of different items I had to cut, as well as needing to patchwork some of the pieces together to accommodate the size of the bag.

One day in particular where I decided it would be in my best interest to make a loaf of Apple Walnut bread and coffee and eat that the entire day all by myself with Pumpkin Butter from Trader Joes.  I must say that it did keep me motivated to keep cutting! =)

And since I’m notorious for not documenting my process to make the next time around easier I tried my best to write down every step along the way so that next time I have a better reference and won’t have to re-create the process every time!  Although I do find joy in finding a new way each time.  It keeps me creative!

Since this is my 3rd duffel now I’ve got a pretty good grasp on how these work, and by the time I was done cutting and interfacing I felt like I was home free when I started sewing.  But with my history of breaking my machine, hiring the shoe store, and taking my bags to the local alteration shop, I got smart!  I went to the fabric store, after having a wonderful conversation with my fashion school buddies David and Daniel Concepcion, about the wonders of fabric specific needles!  I bought some heavy duty knit needles and denim strength needles to see what kind of difference it made in the process.

Boy do I feel silly.  After over 2 years of frustration, crying in the fetal position over jammed sewing machines I come to find out that all it took is an upgrade in needle…That’s probably a lesson I should have learned years ago.  Clearly Google only works if you ask the right questions.

With me and my new needle, I finished the edges with slight modifications to my last patterns, with just a small sense of unnecessary anxiety because the needles worked!  I do recall there being one small jam, but it was easily fixed when I turned my machine off, and back on again.  Easy Peasy!

When it came time for the strap, in true kimB fashion, I looked to some duffels I’ve acquired along the way, because I wanted this duffel to have the proper support.  So I used the rubber padding and hardware from the other bag to complete this duffel.

I do love how this bag turned out.  Very simple details, subtle color contrasts, and an easy overall feel.  The sweats were a life saver, otherwise it’d be a teenie tiny little thing.  And hopefully this works out for everything Lisa needs, and it’ll fit perfect with the small collection she’s started of custom By kimB creations!

Thanks for stopping by!

Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

Caught Grandma mid sentence for this picture. I just had to get a close up of her beautiful skin! She'd kill me if she knew I had this picture =)

Yesterday I had the greatest privilege to go to church with my parents and my 82 year old grandma and sit down afterwards and talk over pastries and coffee at the cute little church cafe.  My Grandma isn’t your typical sweet little old lady.  Cute, she is.  Her smile and laugh has an amazing child like quality that makes you laugh along with her.  Although, I don’t think it’s possible for her to laugh without landing a quick smack on your arm!  I just assume it’s a love tap, but that woman is STRONG, I’m afraid one day she’s gonna laugh so hard she’s gonna haul off and really hit me!  =)

She is always decked out from head to toe, hat, matching suit with rhinestones down her jacket and skirt, with stockings and kitten heels.  I remember growing up she’d have all her shoes dyed to match every outfit.  The woman has admirable style!  Last time I went to visit her she was set to go in her skinny jeans, floral blouse and flats.  Cool and casual.

When we were in the cafe I was updating my dad on all things By kimB, my mom was engaged in an interesting conversation with Grandma.

At one point my mom interjected to grab my attention because it was really a conversation that I should be in too.  My mom filled me in on the happenings so far.  My grandma had been talking about how when she grew up on the farm, down in the south, her mom was a seamstress.  She would take the old flour sacks and make them into dresses and clothes for the kids.  She never used a pattern, measuring tape or any of the fancy modern amenities that we all swear by now days.

Grandma continued on to tell us how her mother taught her how to sew as well and whenever someone had a baby they would come to them and have them make them some baby clothes.  Sitting at the table she sipped her coffee and lifted her hands and said with her slightly aged voice and still a hint of that southern drawl,

“They’d sit the baby in front of us,” motioning with her hands, “I’d look and could tell just how big to make it,” she’d say with her hands getting bigger and smaller.

Growing up in such humble means they didn’t let anything go to waste.  They always found an alternate purpose for everything.  Everything was made themselves on the farm and the only thing they bought from the store was the flour, and on occasion, some margarine so they could use the paper it was wrapped in, to wrap their own home churned butter.

It was one of those moments when you realize that who you are didn’t happen on accident. During the conversation I was very clear that I am who I am for a reason and By kimB wasn’t just made from thin air.  I came from this family line.  And although their version of conservation and re-using everything was born out of necessity, the ways in which they implemented their creativity is something that I get to enjoy today, and everyday doing what I do.

And thanks to many women like my Grandma and Great Grandma we get the luxury of going to the fabric store and finding the perfect pattern for whatever we want to make.  Unfortunately for me, I’m now convinced it’s in my blood to be utterly confused by patterns.  I can confidently say it’s not my fault!  That’s just how we do it in my family =)

(Really great excuse, I know!)

I’m so grateful to have had the chance to talk with my Grandma.  I learn something every time I talk with her.  She’s got so many stories to tell and has been through so much.  I love catching a glimpse of how she see’s the world, it’s inspiring.

Maybe one day I’ll gather some flour sacks and flashback to the days on the farm with some flour sack dresses…maybe not, but it’s a good thing to remember where you come from every once in a while!

What a great way to start the week!

Thanks for stopping by!  And if like me you are one of the blessed few with a living Grandma call her up and let her tell you some stories.  You never know what you’ll find out!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

I am a pretty self confident person.  But from time to time I have mini freak outs.  And when Lisa came to me with a request from her daughter for a backpack my mind went racing.  I’d never made a backpack before and was running designs in my head before she even had a chance to finish her sentence!  So when she asked if I would do it, I’m pretty sure I just stared straight ahead for a few seconds before I said

…”Yeah…Uh…sure I’ve never done one, but I’m sure I can do that.  It may not look like a traditional backpack but it’ll be a backpack…=/”

Great answer right!  haha.  Luckily she trusts my creative instinct and let me get to it!

I picked the color combination first from my bag of options, but I really had to be strategic with what I chose.  Lisa gave me two bags of t-shirts and sweatshirts and was ordering a backpack, large duffle, tote, a pencil case (which I will soon be figuring out) and if I had anything left to make another bag/scarf/accessory.  So I had to make sure I didn’t use up all of the material on one bag and make sure I had enough for the rest, because the last thing I wanted to happen was to run out before I’d started one of the products!

For the style of this bag I wanted to keep it simple but still stylish.  I mean anything By kimB has got to have personality!  So I chose colors that were different but still complimentary to each other.  Usually I go for bold colors that do nothing but contrast but maybe I was relaxed that day =)

The pink accent on the front pocket came as a last minute decision.  I formed the pocket and sewed it into the front face of bag but it just didn’t look right.  The thread wasn’t working, the color contrast wasn’t satisfying, and I was unimpressed by the visual.  So I saw a pink shirt that I hadn’t used yet and decided I would make a sort of top covering for it.

I seam ripped the pocket off of the front face and side panel, started over and formed the pink t-shirt over the top.  Finally I loved what I was seeing.  It made such huge difference to the look of the bag.

I am also a big advocate for using the pockets already formed on the item, so on the back face I kept the kangaroo pockets from the sweatshirt attached because hey, when is an extra pocket a bad thing? =)

My main unexpected struggle with this bag was the shoulder pads on the straps.  I didn’t anticipate that this would be the hard part.  I bought some thin, what I thought was thin, foam at the fabric store to pad the straps with.  It wasn’t until I completed the bag completely that I was looking at it and thought…

“Wow…those pads look ridiculously fat.”

But I started to second guess myself and basically try to talk myself into thinking the super thick padding was a really good thing!  Fortunately my boyfriend came over on an impromptu visit and quickly squashed the mental progress I’d made to keep them as is, stating…

“It looks like a cartoon.”

FINE!  So again I had a seam ripping session and took them apart.  This time around I went to the thrift store (at 8 in the morning) with the intention to buy a bag or duffle of some sort to tear apart and use the foam padding in there.  I came across this camo green colored backpack and it had just what I needed.  (I was also so tired while I was shopping that I also bought a coffee maker and couldn’t help but buy a book, that is still sitting in the bag, while I was there.)

That ended up adding just as much support at half the size.  Just what I needed!

Although the initial concept of this project freaked me out, once I got started I felt like I hit my stride!  I won’t be adding this to the By kimB menu but now I can keep it in my back pocket if it ever presents itself again!

Such a great learning experience that turned out pretty well!  I hope you and your daughter like this bag Lisa!  And I that this bag will make her the coolest girl in school =)!

Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

Another quilt bites the dust!  This is my 2nd quilt order this year and the BIGGEST thus far.  The first order was for two baby type blankets but the same concept, they wanted the shirts on one side and colored fleece on the other.

And as always, a new project always brings on a new challenge.  In this particular case I assume could possibly be the first of many because I never actually met or spoke with the person who placed the order!  Normally I get a chance to sit down and chat in person and go over everything they want and we go back and forth with questions and idea’s.  (Personally one of my favorite parts!  Sometimes I just can’t shut up!)

The conversation is usually speckled with the phrase “I trust you, you’re the artist, and I’ll leave that up to you.”  Not gonna lie, it’s very flattering and I get excited when I have permissioned creative freedom =)  But everything in moderation right?

And I still somehow found my way…not the most direct way either!

My Sister in Law, who is also VERY crafty (check out her Zoodies!) came to visit after I’d finished all my cutting and had begun sewing, and began asking me questions.  Simple things like:

“How’d you cut all those squares?”

Me.

“…with scissors, a ruler and a yardstick?…”

At the sound of her *GASP* I instantly knew I’d done something terribly wrong!  Well apparently there’s this magic little gem called a rotary cutter that could have miraculously saved my life, aka…time.  Had I known it was only a small investment away I may have saved myself about a week…

Lesson learned.  Call Carlee FIRST!  Because I’m sure there’s more where that came from!

Anyhow, I think this quilt looks and feels GREAT!  Maybe it was all the man hours cutting those squares (with scissors) and applying the yarn, or because I like to toot my own horn whenever I get the chance, but I really do love this behemoth of a blanket and I’m hoping and PRAYING that they do too!

You will be the first to know if I see tears or sorrow instead of tears of joy!

Until then, thanks for stopping by! And enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

Quilting Quilting Quilting!

This project has SO many shirts I’m afraid my little studio (with bonus room =) isn’t going to be big enough! haha

I laid out the fleece that goes on the other side of these shirts and I had to move all of my furniture!  And of course I conveniently acquired a new ottoman this week as well so let’s just say it’s piling up haha!

Although quilts are tedious there is a certain gratification that comes when you figure out just the right layout for it that makes you want to pat yourself on the back and call someone, who won’t understand, and try to convince them that what you did is nothing short of extraordinary.  Which is just what I did, complete with a video message =)

Soon to come…THE FINISHED PRODUCT!

Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

Many of you may know a girl like Tavia (Tae-vee-yah). She’s the one who walks in the room with a giant smile on her face, with a story to tell, and is always glad to see you. Hey joy is contagious and you always leave feeling a little better than you did before you saw her.

I know Tavia from work, and this girl has big dreams of being a star on Broadway in New York City! But she’s not just your run of the mill “dreamer.” This girl has been preparing for this her whole life, training day in and day out. Combined with her raw ability to perform this girl is a true triple threat and I don’t doubt that if she keeps her focus and drive, and learns how to maneuver the City that Never Sleeps, she will soon make a name for herself.

She took her red eye flight to Manhattan (actually JFK is in Queens…but that’s another story for another day) 2 days ago on Friday, but not before she got a parting gift from the girls at Lululemon and By kimB.

A few of the team members had some extra lulu clothes that they didn’t wear anymore and gave them to me to make her a small tote. What I love the best about this bag (besides the red and green Christmas combo on the outside=) is the quote on the front that I cut from the inside of one of the modern racerback tank tops that says:

“do it because you love it”

So fitting right?

The bag is made of a tango red lively crew neck t-shirt, a citron modern racerback tank top, a black cool racerback, and a men’s purple metal vent tech. And is actually reversible!

Good luck out there Tavia! We’re all rooting for you! Hope that bag reminds you that we’re all got your back here in California!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

I first met Carrie when I was interviewing for a job at lululemon a year after I moved back from New York and decided to get a “real” job.  Our first interaction was less than ideal for me considering I was 15 minutes late to my first interview in the store (as she was the store manager at the time!) But somehow I weaseled my into getting a second interview with her and Paige, the Assistant Manager at the time.

They told me to come prepared to talk about something I was passionate about so naturally I brought my portfolio of the few bags and accessories I had made up to that point and was ready to talk about how I was in the process of starting my own business.  (A little counter intuitive when you’re trying to get a job somewhere else…but following proper etiquette has never been a strong suit of mine.)

Luckily they caught my vision of “Custom Re-purposing” and they started naming off clothes they’d want a bag out of.  And at the end of the interview I was informed that even if I didn’t get the job, that they were still going to place orders.  Win/Win for me because I got the job and 2 orders =)

A year past before Carrie and I finally exchanged fabric and it was probably better that way since it gave me a chance to get to know her and her style/lifestyle a little better.

She told me about her “I’m a Carrie” shirt that she loved, so I knew that was going to be the outside of the bag from the get go.  And luckily she had a great choice of shirts to choose for the rest of the bag.

What I liked about the sayings on all the shirts is that it allowed me to create a story about Carrie, and with some strategic placement, if you read it front to back, I think it came together as I envisioned.

It reads from front to back:

“I’m a Carrie”

The lining is from a shirt with her sign of Virgo which says:

“Powerful, Glamorous, Attractive, Dedicated, Loving” (which she is!)

to the back pocket which reads on the outside:

“I’m the One”

And the inside of the pocket reads:

“Your momma warned you about”

I know I pat myself on the back a lot, but I thought that was clever =)

I think this bag is so cute and apparently I now love pink and green together!  Hopefully Carrie gets a lot of use out of this bag and remembers how awesome she is everytime she opens it up!

Thanks for the order Carrie!

Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade and re-purposed from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

This bag is coming together so nicely!  And since shirts are one of my favorite media to cut and sew I haven’t run into as many problems as I usually do =)

One thing that is always important for me to consider before I start a projects is how big the actual items are that I have to work with!  Because with re-purposing items, I only get what I get and I can’t go to the fabric store and get a larger cut.

I’ve learned very quickly how important it is to measure twice and cut once, because there is no room for mistakes!

I love the colors that Carrie chose in this lot of shirts!  Although the bag won’t have the capacity to feature all of them I was lucky that she had a variety of color options and prints.  And OMG hilarious quotes!

My favorite being the one I’m using for the back pocket

The front says: “I’m the One”

The back says: “Your momma warned you about”

Funny right?! =)

So excited to get this one done!  I’m in L.O.V.E with the colors on this one since I’m a huge fan of contrasting colors!

And since I’ve got the bright idea to make a holder for her Starbucks Iced Venti Sweetened Green Tea I have found a new rhythm!  It’s little “inventions” and discovery’s like this that make me enjoy creating!  It’s awesome never knowing what’s gonna come out next.

Can’t wait to see the final product!  Keep an eye out for the final pictures!

And thanks for stopping by!

Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

I was ready for this messenger!  When I first sat down with Lisa about her bags and what she wanted I was carrying my Sanctify Messenger Bag, which is a little beat up due to a great night at a live taping of Monday Night RAW!  But nonetheless, she saw it and said she wanted one of her bags to be a messenger like that one.

It’s lovely having some previous experience on a product before hand =)  Although messengers always present their own special set of issues, it was otherwise a breezy experience.  As a matter of fact I think the hardest part of this whole bag was making sure the colors coordinated.

Wait.  I lied.  I’d like to say that my original intention was to line the front flap with a piece of the orange sweatshirt to tie in the color, in the face of full disclosure, I admit,  I was forced to add a piece when I attached it on the bag and the flap wasn’t long enough.  It would have been sufficient and functional at the length it was at, but it was not up to my standard of where I WANTED it to fall.  So I took the scraps I had remaining after my cutting feast and rallied up a piece big enough to go along the bottom to make the flap up to my specifications.

Happily it worked =)  As a matter of fact it adds a little spice to the front of the bag, dotcha think?!

I’m pretty sure this one came out better than my sanctify bag and I’m really proud of it. Maybe this one will be the one Lisa’s daughter uses?  Who knows, but I really hope it does get put to good use!

Thanks for taking the time to read this little story =)

And Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at kimB@punKyj.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!

This is the 2nd duffle bag I’ve made during my adventures in punKy*J and By kimB.  The first was Ashley’s Workout Bag which was a challenge in and of itself.  And luckily I saved the drawings of the pattern that I made for the first one so I had some measurements to reference.  Unfortunately I didn’t leave any instructions for how I actually sewed it together! haha

I seem to have a knack for starting a project and have no idea how I’m going to make it to the end result.  But somehow I do.

It’s ok though I’m a smart girl =)  I started slow because I knew this bag would kick my butt if I let it.  I cut all the pieces sooooo carefully!  And interfaced every piece for the proper stability.

All the curves proved to be pretty tricky, and inserting the lining to line up with the zipper was pretty time consuming but oh so worth it in the end!

And since my machine just isn’t built strong enough to finish a bag like this *sigh* My friend at the Shoe Repair in Palo Alto actually let me come into his store and finish it on his machine!  It was the most beautiful experience I’ve ever had!  The needle went through the fabric like it wasn’t even there.

I know you all probably can’t even begin to imagine the ecstasy that was that sewing machine, but just take my word for it.  I had a comparable amount of joy sewing the edge of this bag on that machine as I do when I’m vacuuming down a hot FUDGE Sunday that I don’t have to share. *chills*

Anyhow!  I hope you just love this final project like I do!  If not…well there’s more to come!

Thanks for stopping by!
Enjoy!

*****Each product is handmade from second hand clothing and fabrics and is completely one of a kind, I couldn’t duplicate any of these bags even if I wanted too! It’s my way of going green and staying in style.

As always you can e-mail me at K.Barnes@BykimB.com or leave a comment.

And if you’d like to view my complete collection become a fan
of By kimB on facebook.

Or you can follow @BykimB on twitter.

To purchase visit my (still under construction) website BykimB.com or etsy
store. Thank you for stopping by and please enjoy these designs By kimB!