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Rating: 
Summary: i am so angry at myself for getting this book
Review: i am an amateur bagmaker and i have made tons of things with my own patterns (have even sold them at shops), but i thought i needed just one book to improve my bagmaking skills and i really regretted getting this book. the "inspiring ideas" are single pages showcasing bags made by art graduates (and they weren't that inspiring, if not at all) could have been compiled on one single page instead of acting as fillers. instructions are very confusing and offer very few illustrations in between. if you want to use the patterns, you will have to enlarge them or rip them out from the book, which means you will have to ruin the binding. it feels like not much love was put into making this book. this book feels more like a magazine than a sewing book. please do not get this book if you already have existing patterns you have made yourself, (and if you live in a country where book prices are four times the amount in US dollars). if you are looking for inspiration, you won't find much inside. if you are already makng bags, you don't need this at all. try some japanese sewing book for cute ideas, or the one from mary mulari. just trust your own, okay.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice book!
Review: I checked this book out from the library and am now going to purchase it. I found the bags in this book creative and inspiring. I have looked into most of the books on making handbags and this is one of the better ones. I am a bit perplexed at some of the negative reviews at Amazon that I have read regarding this book. I think the instructions are easy to follow, and in my opinion, if you know how to sew (and if you have ever sewn the simplest of handbags), the instructions are easy to follow. My only complaint is that the patterns are not easily removed from the book, so unless you want to tear the book apart, they must be transferred to tracing paper. But I don't think this is a reason not to buy this book. Considering that the average handbag pattern is $8.00 (even then they must often be transferred to tracing paper) this book is a bargain. You get many patterns for the price of this book and it doesn't take a lot of effort to make the patterns. There are also a lot of good ideas in this book. Of course the best way to know if you like a book or not is to check it out before you buy it, which I always do.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun and full of clever ideas - a bargain too!
Review: I checked this book out from the library and am now going to purchase it. I found the bags in this book creative and inspiring. I have looked into most of the books on making handbags and this is one of the better ones. I am a bit perplexed at some of the negative reviews at Amazon that I have read regarding this book. I think the instructions are easy to follow, and in my opinion, if you know how to sew (and if you have ever sewn the simplest of handbags), the instructions are easy to follow. My only complaint is that the patterns are not easily removed from the book, so unless you want to tear the book apart, they must be transferred to tracing paper. But I don't think this is a reason not to buy this book. Considering that the average handbag pattern is $8.00 (even then they must often be transferred to tracing paper) this book is a bargain. You get many patterns for the price of this book and it doesn't take a lot of effort to make the patterns. There are also a lot of good ideas in this book. Of course the best way to know if you like a book or not is to check it out before you buy it, which I always do.
Rating:
Summary: i am so angry at myself for getting this book
Review: The reviews for this book seem to be split between people who love it and people who hate it. Yes, this book is not perfect. It is confusing at times, and it is a little difficult to take their "requirements" and translate it to make a bag that's not EXACTLY like the one that's pictured, especially if you've never done anything particularly crafty before. However, it has a lot of great pictures and great ideas, and just reading through the "how to" gave me some ideas on how to make my own bag that combined elements of many of the bags that were pictured. What's good about this book is it doesn't try to take too much on: It walks you through how to make bags in 4 specific categories, and then it shows you variations on those four. At $14 (as of Nov 2003), you're not going to find a good book that's cheaper. It's not perfect, and it does have its limitations, but this is a good place to start for someone trying to figure out what they want to do and wanting to explore some ideas further.
Rating:
Summary: Nice book!
Review: This book focuses on creating four styles of bags: the tote, clutch, drawstring, and beach bag - plus variations on these four styles. The book comes complete with step-by-step illustrated instructions for each type of handbag, which so far, have been pretty clear and easy to follow. Also included are all the necessary patterns, but will have to be enlarged with a copy machine to be of any use. At the back of the book there is a full-color "gallery" of various students' handbag designs. I found this to be useful as well as interesting. However, after making some of the bags I was a little disappointed with the results. I'm finding I have to make modifications to the designs to produce something I actually like. But overall, the book is worth purchasing if you are interested in making your own handbags. It will inspire you, at the very least!
Rating:
Summary: hotel paper
Review: This book has a lot of super cute handbags in it, and has patterns for several basic styles to get you started. The patterns and instructions are fairly easy to follow (I managed and I've never really made anything before). It's inspired me to make them as a hobby and sell them at the vintage/2nd hand store downtown. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone with a love a purses and a sewing machine.
Rating:
Summary: great starting point with lots of great designs
Review: This book has a lot of super cute handbags in it, and has patterns for several basic styles to get you started. The patterns and instructions are fairly easy to follow (I managed and I've never really made anything before). It's inspired me to make them as a hobby and sell them at the vintage/2nd hand store downtown. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone with a love a purses and a sewing machine.
Rating: 
Summary: beautiful but flawed
Review: This book is beautiful to look at and inspiring in terms of purse designs. However, the how-to instructions are unclear and incomplete. Granted, some designs offer better explanations than others. I would not recommend this book to a beginner. It is more suited to be a coffee table book or else as inspiration for the more experienced craftsperson.
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