Concord & 9th

Concord & 9th Summer Tote and Friendship Card Hop

annamahtani

Welcome to my blog! If you are hopping along, you have just arrived from Michele Margaret. This is my first ever card hop! I’m so grateful to be part of friendship card hop hosted by the talented Courtney Kreeber.

My project for today is a 3D tote. This special die set is called Everyday Purse – a collaboration between Inking Idaho and Concord & 9th. When I first saw this die and what it could become, I was instantly smittened!

I am creating this “tote” for a special friend of mine. My youngest brother passed away suddenly late last year and it had been so difficult for me and my family. My friend was there every step of the way – comforting us and helping us navigate through the grief. She had lost her younger sister to cancer a few years ago and she knew all too well how it felt.

So on a brighter note, I know she is a big fan of the beach and loves bright summery colors so I decided to make this monogrammed tote that really suits her personality.

Monogrammed
Summer Tote

Here is how I made it:

I stamped with light brown ink a couple of panels of ivory cardstock with a background stamp from Altenew called Rustic Linen. I also stamped the same background stamp on brown cardstock which I will use for the straps. I wanted the body of the tote to look like fabric. All the colors of inks will be in the supply list at the end of my blog post.

Then I took the Concord & 9th Tropical Vibes Turnabout stamp and used it to make the design for the body of the tote. I did selective stamping – pineapples in yellow, the leaves in green and the tiny floral accents in pink.

Tropical Vibes turnabout stamping

After stamping out the body of the tote, I proceeded to die-cut all the other elements I needed. I only made one small alteration in the die-cutting. I used the “paddle-shaped” die to cut little tiny stitched squares by first die-cutting the brown cardstock then, re-inserting the die-cut into the die in the opposite direction to cut out the little “handle” off. See the photo below.

Here is a photo of all the elements laid out. I didn’t end up using the tag instead opted to use another die-cut to embellish my tote as you will see later in the tutorial.

Now for the assembly:

First, I laid out the panels onto my grid mat and glued the straps on either side of the body making sure it was even on both sides. Because its a tote, the straps extended all the way down to the bottom of the bag. Then I repeated the same step on the other side of the body.

Then I took both pieces of the body and connected them from the bottom. I used liquid glue for this as it gives you some time to wiggle the pieces into place. There is an online tutorial from Inking Idaho on how to do the basic assembly here.

After the bag was assembled. I glued the straps and connected them at the top to give the tote a long handle.

For the tag, I didn’t use the tag die that came with the set because I wanted to create the illusion that the tote was bigger than a regular handbag or a purse. I opted to use the “closure” die and just cut it down on both sides to make it look like a “tag”. Then I stamped and die out some flowers from the Toucan Paradise set, also by Concord & 9th, and attached it to the tag. Then attached that tag to one side of the bag using the tiny tag strap that came in the set.

For her first name initial “M”, I used the Tall Type Alphabet die and die cut it twice, from green cardstock and from the brown cardstock and layered it for dimension. I attached it to the middle of the bag as a finishing touch.

I took a piece of ivory cardstock just a little bigger than a gift card and stamped the words “Happiness is having you as a friend” and embellished it with the same flowers I used in the bag. I will put this inside the bag along with a note at the back and a gift card to my friend’s favorite store.

Hope you enjoyed my tutorial. I have all the supplies listed below in case you want to pick up this adorable everyday purse from Concord & 9th.

Next stop on the Friendship Card Hop is Tracy Shultz. Please hop along with us and have some fun!

‘Til next time!

❤️

Anna

Note: I am affiliated with some online stores including Altenew, Concord & 9th and Hero Arts. If you use any of the links above, I get a small commission from these wonderful shops at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!

Published by annamahtani

42 thoughts on “Concord & 9th Summer Tote and Friendship Card Hop”

  1. Oh Anne! This is so cool. The selectively inked background is so fabulous. What a cool little purse card for your friend. And the die cutting tips and tricks!!! Spectacular. -Renee’

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  2. I’m so sorry for the loss of your brother. I’m sure that your friend is going to love this adorable tote as a thank you for being there! It came out so beautiful. I love the colors you chose. Very beachy and tropical!!

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  6. This is such a lovely gift for your amazing friend! I love the bright and cheerful pattern and the flowers too! You did a great job, Anna ❤️

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  9. I’m sorry to hear about the loss of your brother, you were blessed to have such a special friend to help you through such a rough time. Your bag is beautiful, I have never seen one like this before, I’m in love with it! I’m sure your friend will love it as well. Great job describing how you did it.

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  10. So sorry to hear about the loss of your brother, you were blessed to have such a good friend to help you through this time. Your bag is absolutely breathtaking, I love it and I am sure your friend will as well. Thanks for sharing your process

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  13. Holy Moly! This is incredible. Love this so much. Looks like a real bag. Thanks so much for sharing your talents with us during this hop

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  14. Hello. I am so sorry for the loss of your brother. My family and I lost my older sis (by 2 years) unexpectedly – it will be four years in March, but she is missed every day. Your friend is really going to love this purse. It is so beautiful. Please take care of your self. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.

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