Lunch Bags!: 25 Handmade Sacks & Wraps to Sew Today (Design Collective)

I wished I had purchased this in book form rather than on kindle and that's the drawback. I think a book form would be easier to follow. But having said that, if you are a seasoned sewer you will be able to follow the patterns. The ideas are great and there is something for everyone. I think carrying your lunch to work or school saves quite a bit of money and having an attractive bag to carry it in will certainly encourage you to do it. Also there are snack bags too that are reusable. Most of the bags can be laundered too.

First of all, I bought the Kindle edition so I want to address that since I thought it might be weird to buy the Kindle edition of a sewing book. But really, it's not an issue at all. I don't even own a Kindle device, but I opened it on my computer and iPhone and was able to refer easily to the instructions as needed. Also, there is a link to the patterns online so it's easy to print them off. Certainly, it's more convenient that photo--copying from a book. It would probably be a little easier to browse and flip between patterns in a hard copy but it's definitely a viable option. As far as the book itself:Pros:Different authors: It's fun having patterns made by different people, since they think and construct things in different ways.Variety: There's a surprising amount of variety in the book, given that they are all lunch-bag related patterns. Several are a basic sack construction, but they are made using different techniques which allows you to choose the best or to combine techniques to get the perfect bag for you. Plus, there's a cute felt food lunch pattern (which I already own) which is kind of a fun bonus if you have any kids in your life that might enjoy receiving some play food. The banana is quite popular in my house.Cons:Different authors: I'm not certain how the contributors were chosen but I had the impression that they were simply people who created their own patterns and sold the finished items successfully online, not necessarily people who have sold PATTERNS successfully in the past. The instructions remind me of the way I would write instructions, somewhat awkwardly listing the exact steps they use. For many of the patterns I had to read them through a few times before the light came on and I realized what the author was trying to say. The patterns themselves are fairly simple, but would probably be frustrating for a beginning sewer.I love this book, have already made one pattern from it and will use it a great deal but be aware that it's not the most clearly written instruction book out there.

This has got to be the BEST book yet on making lunch bags and sandwich wraps !! There are a LOT of projects with info about each designer. There are no patterns included but none of these need more than clear cut instructions which this book does have. I would strongly recommend it. Why "brown bag " it if you can make having lunch really fun and also put your sandwich in something that does not need to be thrown out !!!!

I purchased this book with great excitement. The projects are fun and inspiring and I could not wait to get started on the lunch box shown on the cover. However, the diagrams and instructions are obtuse and lack basic, useful measurements. To start, at no point do they say the finished measurement order (i.e., L, W, H or W, L, H, etc.). every pattern and country has their own traditions. For one of the patterns (the cover project), you need to use a mini-sized drawing and blow-it-up by 200%. Why couldn't they simply give the measurements of the piece? Is is not that tricky a shape. This step ended up being totally unnecessary. I simply measured the drawing and using the finished measurements figured out how to draft it. More diagrams would be useful to show how pieces will be joined. For the more complex patterns, something as simply as labeling the alignment points with A, B, C would be helpful. The written instructions are really hard to understand (and I'm an advanced sewer). In several projects, they recommend only a 1/4 inch seam allowance. For items with so many layers and hard-use, I find this pretty skimpy. If you are prepared to do a lot of testing and figuring, then this book is fine. But, if you are new sewer, I'd give this a pass and get  Sew & Stow: 31 Fun Sewing Projects to Carry, Hold, and Organize Your Stuff, Your Home, and Yourself! .

I have used a couple of the patterns from this book. My son's lunch bag has outlasted several other lunch bags we have purchased for him. He loves that he got to pick the fabric and that his mom made it for him. It is also nice that it is a one of a kind so there is no chance someone else will grab it by mistake. The patterns are well written and easy to follow.

I'm an intermediate sewer, and am having extreme problems doing one of the patterns. The directions are not specific enough to really guide you on where and what to sew. Granted, I have only tried this one pattern (the last one), but shouldn't they have edited the book so that they were ALL readable and made sense? This one sure does not and makes me so frustrated I want to throw it away.

I am trying to get away from plastic wrap use because it uses oil and they are thrown away after each use. This book has sandwich wraps that are easy to make and very useful. My daughter and I made 6 of them over the holiday.. the family members who got them wanted a couple more each to give as gifts :-) Nice use of materials and a great way to stop using plastic wrap. good book easy to use easy to sew.

I wanted to see some more trendy designs, but was disappointed to see that not many have any bottle space or big luch box closure where curries etc can also be taken without spilling. These are more of small dry lunch bags. Not like much. Waste of money

great book so many easy to use bags

As lancheiras são lindas, fáceis de fazer e as instruções são fáceis também. Requer conhecimento de inglês porque não há fotos do passo a passo. Muito práticas essas lancheiras.

A cute book with cute projects - quite a few of which I thought I might possibly make. The photography is lovely, and I like the little bio and photo of each of the designers. Their websites are also listed so I'll be visiting them to see what else they have to offer. There were a few "unusual" projects (a crocheted apple cozy??!) and a cute kids felt lunch set toy - the rest of the bags ranged from simple (but very nicely executed) to about an intermediate-plus level of complexity. Certainly there's a project for skill levels, and projects for a wide age range. The "Executive Insulated Lunch Purse" by Denise Clark is a spectacular bag - my favorite in the whole book - and would be lovely for women in a professional/office setting, or for a SAHM like me to make and show off or gift :DA few little things I would change:1. Although I can't find them now that I'm looking, I remember noticing several grammar/spelling errors that made me think that the book wasn't very well proofread. Some of the font colors were a bit light so it was a bit of a strain to read the text. Perhaps younger readers wouldn't have the same problem :D2. The seam allowances were not standard from project to project! Some projects didn't list a specific seam allowance, and the rest ranged from 1/4" to 1/2" -- make sure you read through the instructions before starting a project, to find out this rather important fact!3. The construction instructions included very few photographs or line drawings. There were a few general technique explanations at the back of the book and only a few drawings in some of the projects. I've been sewing for 35 years and I still find it easier to have a little picture or photo guide to make sure I'm doing things properly - beginners would benefit even more!Overall I would give the book a 4.5 out of 5 (I could only pick 4 or 5 in the ratings above)- I think it's a book that will prove quite handy for people who want to do some lunch bag sewing - I know I've already got my first project picked out!

Libretto carino, ma nulla di favoloso, sui 25 progetti proposti alcuni sono di una banalità disarmante ma un paio meritano davvero.Consigliato alle vere appassionate che amano possedere libri di handcraft!