Several years ago, my friend and Brit Bee bee-mate Terri McVeigh was battling breast cancer. For her first round of treatment the bee made her a quilt, however when the cancer unfortunately returned just a few months after she’d been given the initial all-clear, we decided to shower her with more gifts to help her get through her treatments. I designed the Think Pink Bag for her to take with her to the hospital, using some fabric ink and letter stamps to print inside it exactly what I thought of cancer. I had imagined that she’d keep it hidden as our wee secret, but I later found out that she took it in for treatments turned inside out to share with the world, so now you know that it’s (sort of) reversible!
I have created a couple of versions of the bag, but in fact there are multiple options which can be mixed and matched inside the pattern, from the choice between a zip and a magnetic snap closure, to fixed or adjustable strap options, as well as optional piping on the pockets.
For the adjustable strap option, I used ByAnnie’s very useful 1 1/2″ Nickel Purse Parts Pack I also find her Stiletto And Pressing Tool invaluable for helping to get bulky seams going, or to keep things in place as you sew.
I’m releasing this pattern now as part of ByAnnie.com’s #SewPINK Initiative as I feel like it is the most appropriate way to share this pattern with the world. Until the 8th November 2019, you can download it for free by using the coupon code SEWPINK19 at checkout. After that it will be available for a £5 fee, however, if you can send me proof of a donation that you have made to a cancer charity of your choice of at least £5, along with a copy of your receipt, I will refund you your purchase price.
The #SewPink Initiative was created by ByAnnie.com LLC to raise awareness for breast cancer during October’s Breast Cancer Awareness month. They have pledged to raise funds to donate to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation through sales and to promote action through giveaways.
To see the calendar of events visit: https://www.byannie.com/2019-SewPINK#calendar
For more information please visit the official #SewPINK information page: https://www.byannie.com/2019-SewPINK
To donate directly to the BCRF visit: https://give.bcrf.org/give/31404/#!/donation/checkout
ByAnnie will be donating 30% of profits on all SewPINK items sold at their web store. You can search for SewPINK items on their website or see the list of items here: https://www.byannie.com/index.php?route=product/search&search=sewpink
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Love that your friend showed off the inside of the bag! Confirms that your thoughts were just perfect for her. The bag is great and thank you for sharing the pattern. It will make a wonderful project bag.