I purchased this coin purse kit from my first Stiches & Craft Show in 2008.  I remember the day like it was yesterday.  My friend and I were about to head off home when we decided to revisit the stores one more time (just in case we missed something) and found Nikki setting up her stall.  She had these coin purses set up and just looked so cute that made me want one.  Remember, back then I was an absolute newbie sewer and had to ask Nikki about the difficulty rating (see the 3 flowers?).  She told me if I could follow the written instructions exactly, it shouldn’t be too difficult.

Erm…well, 2 years later, ta da!!!!!  My first coin purse.  I really wanted to make this before I visit Nikki at this year’s Stiches & Craft Show and coincidentally she’s running a review competition on her patterns, so read on for my review and maybe vote for my entry?

Name of the pattern 75mm Coin purse (frame kit)

Difficulty rating Probably not for the absolute beginner – unless you can sew accurately and follow instructions (and know that the white fabric included is actually woven interfacing!  Yep, only just figured that out).  Best suited for someone who has sewn a few projects already – the intermediate sewer.

Were the instructions easy to follow? (And did you learn anything new from them?) Nikki’s instructions are very thorough with plenty of tips and notes through out to guide you.  It’s just like having her there in your sewing room to tell you what to do.  I am also a visual learner, so there are enough diagrams and pictures to help along the way.  A good tip I learnt from this project was how to stop the lining moving around inside the purse when it’s in use and of course how to attach the purse to the frame.

Did the finished project look like the one on the pattern cover or did you ‘tweak’ it? (If tweaked, what did you do change?)

What do you think?  I’m always excited when my finished project looks like the one on the pattern cover.  It also means that the instructions were clear enough to achieve the result.  No tweaking yet on this pattern as this was my first go at it.  But maybe next time.

Were you happy with the finished project?

The finished project was a cute and tiny coin purse – 7.5cm(w) x 6.5cm(h) x 4cm (d) which I was extremely happy about until I turned to look at the bottom of the purse and realised I didn’t cut the fabric correctly – the tree trunks don’t match up properly.  But because of this minor cosmetic flaw, I’m about 99.5% happy with the finished project.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? The pattern was fairly straightforward and the construction was only slightly fiddly as this is a small coin purse (so accuracy is paramount).  But because this is a small project, it took me no more than 2 hours to complete this (will probably be quicker next time though especially when it comes to crimping the frame).  You got to love projects that can be finished within a day, don’t you?

Would you make this pattern again? Would you recommend it to others?

Yep, definitely would make this again especially when I still have enough of this beautiful Birch Forest fabric by Lara Cameron to make 2 more.  Of course, I would recommend this to others – such a useful item and makes a great gift too, not to mention that it takes less than a couple hours to whip one up.  Hmmm….Christmas presents, anyone?