Handmade Couture: Make this look - Burberry Small Canter Check Tote.

Are you or someone you love a designer handbag enthusiast? Do you sometimes find yourself staring at bags you see in magazines, or even on someone's shoulder in the grocery store wondering how to recreate that bag? Then the Handmade Couture series is for you. We pick a designer bag and tell you how to recreate it using available sewing patterns, materials and hardware.  You can have the same look, but make it totally "you" and for a fraction of the cost. When you sew your own bag you know exactly what is going into the bag and can add or modify features to suit your preferences. Today, we are going to show you how to recreate this  Burberry Small Canter Check and Leather Tote: 

The Canter is a beautifully simple design, and a perfect every day bag. It expands for those days when you need to tote around a little "extra" but don't want to lug around a bigger bag. It features the iconic Burberry plaid and measures 10" wide x 11" high x 4" deep. It's the perfect size for carrying by hand or tossing over your shoulder. With piping details, purse feet, an interior zip pocket and a snap closure, who wouldn't want to add this bag to your wardrobe? For 895 USD this beauty could be yours. 

Like the look of the Burberry Canter?  Lets be our own brand.

Pattern + Hardware + Fabric= Handmade Couture

Pattern:

Charlotte City Tote by Swoon Patterns is the perfect pattern for us to recreate our inspiration bag. 

The Charlotte features many of the featrures as our inspiration bag: piping, expandable panels, a magnetic snap closure, purse feet and an interior zip pocket. The overall style is similar and at 12" wide x 11" high and 6" deep it's close to our inspiration bag, The only modification that we need to make is to omit the vinyl accents on exterior and side panels of the bag. 

Hardware: 

For this bag, we only need the hardware indicated in the pattern as written:

(1) Magnetic Snap Closure:

(1) 1/2" Swivel Snap Hook:

(1) 1/2" D-ring: 

(4) 3/4" Rectangle Rings:

Fabric:

To recreate our inspiration bag, there is some gorgeous plaid leather available here. 

To get an idea of what a bag made with this leather would look like, By Piera created this gorgeous handbag with this plaid lambskin (pattern by Blue Calla Patterns)

I wasn't able to locate a plaid vinyl or faux leather that would be suitable for bag making for those not comfortable with leather. However, there are some great options in other durable fabrics, such as this beautiful gaberdine, available here. 

There are so many options for plaid fabrics available. Flannels, quilting cottons, and even heavier twill type wovens, many are widely available in stores and online. If flannel, be sure to get a high quality fabric, as you don't want your bag pilling up on you with use. 

You can make this in whatever fabric you are comfortable working with! A fun cotton print, canvas, cork or even denim! That's the benefit of creating your own, it's what YOU want it to be. Handmade can be couture too!

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Photos and content provided and written for Emmaline Bags by Cyndi Farfsing, from The Nosy Pepper. Cyndi's blog is chock is full of more bag photos and make making tips. Check out her bag series "It's in the Bag! Better Bag Making Series," to learn a ton of new bag making skills.

Share your projects made from Emmaline patterns and/or with Emmaline hardware in our facebook group Emmaline Sewing Patterns Group, or on instagram with the hashtags #emmalinehardware, #emmalinepatterns, #emmalinebags, or tag us @emmalinebags.