This was written by Leslie for the Miss Matatabi Makers series.

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This month I am back to sewing for my little gal and she was excited to be able to pick out fabric again. Anika is starting kindergarten in September and needs a bigger backpack. I sewed her one for preschool and was looking forward to tackling another one.

I showed my daughter Cotton + Steel’s canvas fabric from their latest collection and she chose the cute apples. She also scrolled through the other Cotton + Steel’s fabrics in Miss Matatabi’s shop and fell in love with the little pandas. Me too! I chose the Honeymoon and Paper Bandana designs to add to the mix.

I stumbled upon the Matsuri Bag pattern on Instasgram and I knew that it would be a great bag for Anika. I really liked the shape of it as well as the pockets on the side. I made a few adjustments – I made it a bit wider and deeper (to fit her much loved lunchbox) and I changed the straps to more traditional ones since I didn’t need the bag to be convertible.

I always enjoy adding some fun touches to my projects such as the patchwork pockets and straps. These are great ways to show off other fabrics that coordinate with the main fabrics.

Anika is in love with her new backpack (and me too) and it is giving her one more reason to be excited to start kindergarten. Yay!

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Thank you, Leslie! Connect with Leslie on instagram, pinterest, and flickr.