Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Homemade Miche Shells

    So I recently bought myself a Miche Bag. For those who haven't heard of Miche before, they are a purse company that sells four different kinds of bags, and then a whole bunch of 'Shells' or covers for them. The shells attach to the base bags with magnets and allow you to change the look of your bag without moving all your junk over to a new purse. Quite handy if you ask me. I have a friend who has all four base bags and at least a dozen shells for each. When I first saw them I was intrigued, and after a while I knew I needed one of my own... but which one? There are a whole bunch of cute shells for the Petite and Classic base bags, but I find they don't open up enough for my taste, and the Prima is much to big for what I need it for. In the end I chose the Demi and it's so roomy, I love it!


    So I got my bag, and stocked it full of all my daily junk, but I still hadn't picked out my first shell. It's harder than you might think. Plus, if there's one thing I'm extra picky about, it's purses(and if there's two things, it's purses and shoes). I kept looking online on Etsy and Ebay and such, and saw a lot of people making their own covers for their Petite or Classic Miches and the ability to customize just made their bags that much more awesome. I knew I'd have to at least try to make a shell for my Demi. 


    I have to admit I was a little nervous to draft this pattern because it needed to fit properly to be functional. Although I've been making bags and purses for most of my life, making things to fit, or a specific size, has never been a strong point for me(this is why I tend to make things to carry, not things to wear). So to minimize my losses(the main reason my fabric stash is out of hand is because I'm afraid to waste beautiful material on a not-so-great project), I grabbed a skirt from the thrift store for $3.99 to use to test my pattern.


    I still have to sew on the flaps for the magnets, and line it I guess... So far I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. It's being held on with pins in that picture so I could see how it looks and take a picture, but you can see it fits almost perfectly. I need grommets, magnets, and corresponding fabric to line it with, so I'll try to get to the craft store sometime this week. I'll post again when I finish it. I'm also considering making matching straps because I'm not sure what I think about the beachy/tropical shell with black leather straps... Let me know what you think!

Comments/Criticisms welcome :)

24 comments:

  1. Awesome, I will be looking for the finished project and would love to buy a pattern if you ever make one to sell! This is also my favorite size of Miche. I had the classic and got rid of it due to it's small size, but I loved the versatility of the shells.
    nurserachet59@hotmail.com

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  2. I would love the pattern!! Let me know if you will sell it!! jczetocha@drtel.net

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  3. Would love this pattern as well if you decide to sell. (jackandsher.french@yahoo.com)

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  4. Consider this a third request for the Demi pattern, should you decide to sell :-) (gina at lintqueen dot com)

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  5. Add another request for the demi pattern (BarrieLyn@aol.com)

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  6. Rally interested, please can I buy your pattern, I've had a classic for years and now it's breaking I'm going to level up to a demi, but can't afford all the shells (plus never many to my taste!)
    I have a prima I make for by eye, so this would save me making my own.
    Thank you very much x

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  7. I love how you used a thrift store find for fabric! I already make classic shells but haven't tackeled demi yet so my base bag is still bare, too. I've had problems with magnets from the craft store ( too weak or too thick) so I planned to just rely on clipping a strap through the grommets instead. Do you think that would work?

    Also, I planned to skip the little flaps over the top. Did you use them on this one? Do you think I should plan on adding them anyway? For my classic shells, I ordered rare earth magnets from the internet (3/4 x 3/16 in. n50 for $0.33 each). Do you think I will need more like this for the dwmi or will regular magnets work fine?

    Thanks tons!

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    1. In RE: magnets, I would stay with the rare earth magnets for any bag that uses magnets because they are (1) very strong and (2) will not ruin the magnetic strips on your credit cards.

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  9. I also would love the demi shell pattern if you start selling them!! Was going to try to figure it out on my own but if you sell your pattern, I can start sewing instead of experimenting!!!

    Kindness Always,
    Susie

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  10. Wow, I would love to buy that! Beautiful

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  11. I am just in the process of finishing my first demi shell. I'll post a picture when I finish it. The pattern is quite easy to make, the hardest part was sewing it in the sequence to make it work. I love my Miche bags and have had all 3. I like the demi best however I like a pocket on the front rather then the ones on the sides and there aren't many shells that have the pocket so I decided to design my own.

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  12. I finished two of my shells and love them. I have received some nice compliments on them. The most difficult part is getting strong magnets and I have ordered some for future shells.
    I don't know how to send pics to this site so you can see them.

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  13. I'd really love to try my hand at making one for my Demi bag. Would really love to have your pattern! ginaward@cox.net
    Thanks so much!

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  14. Would love your pattern--how can I get it? rotzien99@yahoo.com
    Thanks. Judy

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  15. Really interested in obtaining your pattern please - busy_asa_beaver@yahoo.com.au Thank you

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  16. I would love to make a Demi cover! Please contact me at pdixon0221@aol.com

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  17. please sell the pattern! let me know if you do decide to!

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  18. please sell the pattern! let me know if you do decide to!

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  19. This is a patent infringement by the way. Miche is vigorous about protecting their patent through the court system

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  20. This is a patent infringement by the way. Miche is vigorous about protecting their patent through the court system

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  21. Interested in buying your pattern. DandDThornton@comcast.net

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  23. I would like to know if you ever did a DIY for a Prima bag.
    Also, where did you get your magnets and are they the kind that don't hurt credit cards?

    Thank you =)
    Diana

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