Bow Tote {Pin a Week 2/52}

I've been meaning to make some kind of tote for my seminary books for a while now. The bag I've been using just doesn't cut it, not when I'm hauling scriptures, a notebook, two thick manuals, a folder overflowing with papers (which desperately needs to be organized... oh well :P), pens, and anything else I need for the lesson that day. When I saw this tutorial on Pinterest, I knew I had to try it out.

Click here to view the tutorial

As you can see, I changed it up a bit to make it my own. 

Besides the obvious difference in my choice of fabric, I added another pocket inside (Because this world could use more pockets, especially in purses and skirts. Am I right?), and I also just sewed the bow right onto the anchor strap. On the original, the center of the bow wraps around both the bow and the anchor strap, but I liked the contrast of the gray against the blue and it kind of messed it up to do it that way. I also made the bow a little smaller and the bag bigger so my books would fit comfortably. 

Oh, and one tip if you are going to make this yourself... make sure you sew the straps on the right way. Trust me, I learned the hard way that involved a good amount of seam ripping and grumbling. Whoopsie. ;)

My seam ripper is both my best friend and my worst enemy... 

I think it turned out pretty cute though, if I do say so myself. ;)