So the bag, I followed the pattern except for a few places, the original had you use only the bottoms of the ties, discarding the top 2/3's. I decided to cut the tops in half and double up with them on the back.
This was good for many reasons: 1st - I had a pretty hard time finding ties I liked that were in the right color scheme and within my price range (who knew thrift store ties went for 1 to 4 dollars!) 2nd - this made the front and back coordinate; 3rd - It actually makes the front and back more distinguishable from one another. The pattern also only had you line the front and back and just sew the side ties on with no lining. I wanted a lining all the way around and had a tough time figuring out the best way to go about this. I should have done a larger seem allowance when putting in the lining, but it is okay. I learned enough from this bag that the next will be much better. I have been using the bag every day this week and have received loads of complements. I am very, very pleased with it and love the tie look!!
(Sorry I cheated - these pictures don't actually show the bag completely finished, I have since top stitched all the way around the top edge, finishing off the lining.)
