Gingham "straw" basket bag DIY - Liz Lisa alternative

When the Liz Lisa strawberry jam series was released last June in 2016, I wanted the whole look, but I knew that I needed to focus my attention (and money) towards the big ticket items - the clothes.

I was lucky to get both the OP and the top and skirt for the set up in red. I decided to pass on the cardigan, hat, bag and shoes but was determined to find an alternative. For the cardigan, I found something comparable from Tralala and for the longest time I've been meaning to try and do a DIY project for the bag and hat. With the Liz Lisa spring 2017 strawberry gingham series released, I knew I had to stop lollygagging and get working on it! I haven't been able to find a hat I'm happy with yet, but I was able to find something for the bag.

Inspiration - Liz Lisa リボンかごBAG

I knew I wouldn't be able to replicate this exactly, especially with the shape and the construction (since I'm in no way a seamstress or even mildly a crafty person), but I knew I would be able to put something reasonable together that would at least be nice for a few uses. I wouldn't necessarily advise doing this exactly the way I did, but this blog post will just serve to document what I did to get my finished product - even if it wasn't 100% correct lol. 

Materials I used -

Lauhala bag (my local substitute for the straw bag)

1.5 yards of red gingham fabric (way too much but I knew I was going to mess up and I did)

1.5 yards in length of white eyelet lace

4" red ribbon (front bows)

1" red ribbon or red shoe string (for the drawstring)

Obviously, the amount of each material you need will be very reliant on the size of the bag that you choose.

Tools - fabric scissors, tape measure, sewing machine, thread to match the fabric, hot glue and/or fabric glue, iron/ironing board

Process -
(This isn't meant to be a tutorial because I don't necessarily recommend what I did but I did want to include an explanation!)
I started by measuring the bag and figuring out what size I needed to make the drawstring bag that I was intending to essentially use as a "lining". Since I'm a complete novice at sewing and envisioning this kind of thing, ofc I got it wrong not only once but twice, but that's okay wtf. Making the drawstring closure in and of itself was not difficult but it did take me a while because I didn't have enough straight edges to work with. I basically sewed the bag closed on two sides and then at the opening, I folded over the top edge of the fabric once to create a straight edge and then ironed and then folded over again with enough room for the ribbon that I wanted to use as the drawstring. I ironed and pinned it in place then sewed the edge down. I then inserted the ribbon shoelace in one end and out around through the other side and then vice versa.

Once the drawstring bag was done, and I was satisfied with the size, I used fabric glue to secure it to the inside of the lauhala bag. Thin pieces of the fabric were wound around the handles and glued in place. Then I just hot glued the lace along the top outer edge.

I made the bows for the front from the thicker ribbon by overlapping the ends and then just pulling the thread through to cinch it in the middle. I folded the same ribbon in half and sewed it closed for the hanging ends then hot glued everything together and onto the bag.

Finished product!

It's clearly a crude imitation of the original bag, but based on what I was expecting for my level of DIY skill (which is abysmal), I think it appears pretty close to what I envisioned! The main features of the bag are represented as I wanted and the red color stands out well.

with Liz Lisa strawberry jam OP, Liz Lisa paper can can hat, gingham cherry earrings by Rebby and Liz Lisa 3D flower pumps -

with Liz Lisa gingham top, Liz Lisa strawberry jam skirt and Liz Lisa heart suede pumps -

with Liz Lisa cotton frill top, Liz Lisa cotton frill shorts, Liz Lisa corsage actress hat and Flag J sandals -

with Liz Lisa cami 3-tier OP, Tralala ribbon button cardigan, Liz Lisa gingham cherry pearl necklace and Liz Lisa flower cage wedge sandals -

with Forever 21 floral dress, Spinns cardigan and Liz Lisa t-strap sandals -

Despite wanting the bag specifically to match with the strawberry jam series items, I think the bag can work as a nice accent with other outfits as well! I think it's particularly nice against all white :)

It took me a while to put together (and a lot of help from my mom) but I'm really happy with the result! That being said, when we were done with it, my mom told me that she wouldn't help me make another lol - it was way too much trouble. But I likely won't need another bag like this for a while ...except maybe in a different color hahaha. No, just joking. I give people like Rebby who regularly do DIY projects like this a lot of credit. It's definitely not my cup of tea but I do feel a small sense of satisfaction that I was able to finish it!