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The Bag Making Bible: The Complete Creative Guide to Sewing Your Own Bags
The ultimate practical guide to sewing fabulous bags from expert Lisa Lam Detailed photographs illustrate every technique in this unique book, from choosing fabric to inserting fastenings.
Expert tips, trade secrets and inspirational advice result in professional and beautiful results.
A capsule wardrobe of eight exclusive designs features easy-to-follow instructions and full-size patterns.
Whether you're getting started, improving your technique, or want to design your own, this is the book you'll grab for every bag you make.
Expert tips, trade secrets and inspirational advice result in professional and beautiful results.
A capsule wardrobe of eight exclusive designs features easy-to-follow instructions and full-size patterns.
Whether you're getting started, improving your technique, or want to design your own, this is the book you'll grab for every bag you make.
160 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
November 22, 2014
I have an idea to make the perfect work bag. I haven't yet found a pattern out there, but with the right knowledge of techniques and an ok pattern, I can probably make something that will work.
After reviewing Big City Bags by Sara Lawson, I put the book in my database (I am a librarian after all!). In the course of testing the records and the search results, I came across Lisa Lam's The Bag Making Bible and had to look through it for more ideas.
If you have this book and Big City Bags, you have everything you need to make almost any bag out there. Big City Bags by Sara Lawson has good techniques, but is mostly a project book. Lisa Lam's book focuses more on techniques, but has projects to go with each technique. The projects are not the focus of the book. In fact they are even hard to find, hidden as they are in the midst of detailed instructions for techniques.
One of the different aspects of this book is that the techniques build on each other. This is a more down and dirty, 'here's everything you need to know' kind of book than Big City Bags. It goes from very basic (explaining parts of the sewing machine-pg.14) through intermediate (explaining a pattern with a glossary of terms) to advanced (modifying patterns). You will have to think, because skills or techniques you learn in one section are referred to again in another section.
On careful examination of the table of contents, I saw that the projects were, indeed, named and given a page number as a subheading under the main point/heading of the chapter. I like this idea, because by scanning the list of techniques, I can find projects that will illustrate the technique I want to learn.
The book is laid out in a pretty standard way: Table of Contents, Foreword and Introduction. The introduction has one line that explains the premise of the book "I have purposefully moved away from quick and easy bag projects because I believe that when you spend a little more time in creating something special you will cherish the results all the more." This is a great description of the premise of the book.
The first sections after the above are all about the basics. They start with Basic Equipment. The author has good photos of the basic equipment, some of which I have never seen in a bag book. I like it that these unusual tools are included. I did wonder why no rotary ruler was included in the list, though a rotary cutter is included.
The sewing machine section includes some information on machine stitches and photos of the machine feet.
The next section is called Anatomy of a Bag, which covers all the aspects of a bag from parts you have heard of like flaps to parts like the gussets, which are less common.
The basics continue with 'Getting Started', which discusses using patterns, 'Understanding Patterns','Fabric Preparation and Cutting,' Modifying Patterns and then the book continues on to the techniques and projects. The 'Understanding Patterns' section is good also for garment sewing.
'Choosing Fabrics' is very complete. It includes a description of different types of fabrics and the pros and cons of each. The section talks about how best to use the fabrics for bags. This section has a subsection on choosing interfacing and interlining. Again, there are descriptions and definitions of different types and weights of interfacing.
I like the section called 'Working with Colour and Pattern.' The author has some beginner level suggestions. While there is no color wheel, the section gives the reader some suggestions about choosing colors as well as using pattern/motifs.
This is where the projects come in. The techniques are all associated with projects and the project teaches the reader those associated techniques. For example, in the Structure and Reinforcement section, there is a chart of 'Volume Adding Features'. These are darts, pleats, etc and the chart tells the reader the benefits and suggested uses of each. The project photos have good detail shots and lots of instructions which, together, help understand how to use the featured technique while putting the project together.
The book has sidebar boxes throughout the book. The color and pattern section has boxes about using texture and sourcing fabrics. Some of the sections have a 'Need to Know', which covers important concepts that don't fit into the other text.
I like the section on 'Linings.' It includes a chart of different types of pockets (charts are a good way to get a lot of information across quickly) as well as photos of the linings.
As with Big City Bags, zippers are covered really well. This book helps me understand what Sara Lawson was doing when I followed the directions for her Flush Zipper Pocket on the Petrillo Bag pattern. I was able to make the pocket from Sara's excellent directions, but didn't understand the underlying concept until I read this book. This is a great example of why these two books work really well together.
Information about zippers leaks over into the section called 'Closures.' Again, Lam includes a chart of different types of closures with benefits and suggested uses. There are photos different types of closures and how to insert them. I really liked the instructions on adding a pull tab to a zipper. This would have really helped me in some projects I have made recently.
Different types of trim, such as tassels, and edgings, such as piping, are also covered. Ready made handles and the different types of pockets that can be used are defined and instructions are provided.
I do think this book, and most bag books, could have benefited more from photos of the inside of the bags. I thought this, especially, when I saw The Organized Office Bag project. There are plenty of gorgeous pictures of the outside, but, frankly, the inside is heart of the matter for me. How many pockets are there?
This is a comprehensive book and would be a great addition to any bag maker's library. It is a necessity for anyone who wants to understand bags and their components to an extent of designing or modifying patterns.
After reviewing Big City Bags by Sara Lawson, I put the book in my database (I am a librarian after all!). In the course of testing the records and the search results, I came across Lisa Lam's The Bag Making Bible and had to look through it for more ideas.
If you have this book and Big City Bags, you have everything you need to make almost any bag out there. Big City Bags by Sara Lawson has good techniques, but is mostly a project book. Lisa Lam's book focuses more on techniques, but has projects to go with each technique. The projects are not the focus of the book. In fact they are even hard to find, hidden as they are in the midst of detailed instructions for techniques.
One of the different aspects of this book is that the techniques build on each other. This is a more down and dirty, 'here's everything you need to know' kind of book than Big City Bags. It goes from very basic (explaining parts of the sewing machine-pg.14) through intermediate (explaining a pattern with a glossary of terms) to advanced (modifying patterns). You will have to think, because skills or techniques you learn in one section are referred to again in another section.
On careful examination of the table of contents, I saw that the projects were, indeed, named and given a page number as a subheading under the main point/heading of the chapter. I like this idea, because by scanning the list of techniques, I can find projects that will illustrate the technique I want to learn.
The book is laid out in a pretty standard way: Table of Contents, Foreword and Introduction. The introduction has one line that explains the premise of the book "I have purposefully moved away from quick and easy bag projects because I believe that when you spend a little more time in creating something special you will cherish the results all the more." This is a great description of the premise of the book.
The first sections after the above are all about the basics. They start with Basic Equipment. The author has good photos of the basic equipment, some of which I have never seen in a bag book. I like it that these unusual tools are included. I did wonder why no rotary ruler was included in the list, though a rotary cutter is included.
The sewing machine section includes some information on machine stitches and photos of the machine feet.
The next section is called Anatomy of a Bag, which covers all the aspects of a bag from parts you have heard of like flaps to parts like the gussets, which are less common.
The basics continue with 'Getting Started', which discusses using patterns, 'Understanding Patterns','Fabric Preparation and Cutting,' Modifying Patterns and then the book continues on to the techniques and projects. The 'Understanding Patterns' section is good also for garment sewing.
'Choosing Fabrics' is very complete. It includes a description of different types of fabrics and the pros and cons of each. The section talks about how best to use the fabrics for bags. This section has a subsection on choosing interfacing and interlining. Again, there are descriptions and definitions of different types and weights of interfacing.
I like the section called 'Working with Colour and Pattern.' The author has some beginner level suggestions. While there is no color wheel, the section gives the reader some suggestions about choosing colors as well as using pattern/motifs.
This is where the projects come in. The techniques are all associated with projects and the project teaches the reader those associated techniques. For example, in the Structure and Reinforcement section, there is a chart of 'Volume Adding Features'. These are darts, pleats, etc and the chart tells the reader the benefits and suggested uses of each. The project photos have good detail shots and lots of instructions which, together, help understand how to use the featured technique while putting the project together.
The book has sidebar boxes throughout the book. The color and pattern section has boxes about using texture and sourcing fabrics. Some of the sections have a 'Need to Know', which covers important concepts that don't fit into the other text.
I like the section on 'Linings.' It includes a chart of different types of pockets (charts are a good way to get a lot of information across quickly) as well as photos of the linings.
As with Big City Bags, zippers are covered really well. This book helps me understand what Sara Lawson was doing when I followed the directions for her Flush Zipper Pocket on the Petrillo Bag pattern. I was able to make the pocket from Sara's excellent directions, but didn't understand the underlying concept until I read this book. This is a great example of why these two books work really well together.
Information about zippers leaks over into the section called 'Closures.' Again, Lam includes a chart of different types of closures with benefits and suggested uses. There are photos different types of closures and how to insert them. I really liked the instructions on adding a pull tab to a zipper. This would have really helped me in some projects I have made recently.
Different types of trim, such as tassels, and edgings, such as piping, are also covered. Ready made handles and the different types of pockets that can be used are defined and instructions are provided.
I do think this book, and most bag books, could have benefited more from photos of the inside of the bags. I thought this, especially, when I saw The Organized Office Bag project. There are plenty of gorgeous pictures of the outside, but, frankly, the inside is heart of the matter for me. How many pockets are there?
This is a comprehensive book and would be a great addition to any bag maker's library. It is a necessity for anyone who wants to understand bags and their components to an extent of designing or modifying patterns.
February 18, 2012
I got The Bag Making Bible for Christmas, and having a spare couple of days last week set myself the rather scary goal of making my first bag from the book. I'm a pretty novice sewer/seamstress, with an ancient sewing machine and not very much technical knowledge, so I was pretty daunted by the task that I set myself. I didn't start with one of the "easy" bags, but launched into "The Organised Office Bag" with a beautiful 50s/60s print fabric that I had bought in a factory seconds shop.
At first glance, the instructions appear quite sparse, but they include everything you need to know about how to make the bag. The trick is not to make assumptions. I did this once, and ended up having to unpick the strap I'd made as I hadn't read right to the end of the sentence.
I completed the bag in 12 hours, and the materials cost me about £15. I've already had people asking me where I bought my bag from, and saying that they would expect to pay £60 or more for something similar, which is a testament to the quality of the instructions that even a novice like me can follow them, and get it right enough that the finished product looks amazing.
I'm well chuffed with my first bag attempt, and I'm looking forward to trying something else from the book soon.
At first glance, the instructions appear quite sparse, but they include everything you need to know about how to make the bag. The trick is not to make assumptions. I did this once, and ended up having to unpick the strap I'd made as I hadn't read right to the end of the sentence.
I completed the bag in 12 hours, and the materials cost me about £15. I've already had people asking me where I bought my bag from, and saying that they would expect to pay £60 or more for something similar, which is a testament to the quality of the instructions that even a novice like me can follow them, and get it right enough that the finished product looks amazing.
I'm well chuffed with my first bag attempt, and I'm looking forward to trying something else from the book soon.
December 2, 2023
I learned a couple tricks
February 26, 2026
Ei mitään omiin projekteihini sopivia malleja. Mutta erittäin paljon hyödyllistä tekniikkaopetusta.
January 3, 2026
So much helpful content. I will reference it frequently, I am sure.
May 17, 2011
What an awesome, awesome book! Absolutely love every purse and bag in it and can't wait to begin making them. All kinds of color photos to illustrate the different steps and techniques, which is a must for this visual-learner and beginner level student. As the description says - it is way more than a set of patterns for a handful of different bags - it is loaded with all kinds of ideas and instructions for how to customize your bag. Fun, fun, fun!
January 21, 2016
If you ever want to learn how to make bags, this is THE book! I'd give it more stars if I could! I've been obsessively designing bags since 2011 & this book got me started.
November 24, 2021
Even though I mostly carry the extremes of either a backpack or a phone wallet (with slots for only a driver's license and a credit card), this book convinced me to try something else. I look forward to trying out several patterns. There are lots of photos and numerous side bars of tips and quick explainers. There are not enough illustrations, though, as sometimes a drawing can show things that a photo cannot, like how to pull a bag inside out or through a gap, which happens a lot in bag making, apparently. That's the only knock I have on this book. I guess actually sewing up a bag will show how well the author explained how to do it! I'm reading this book over a decade after publication and the fabric "palette" is a bit dated but the bag hardware is as beautiful as ever.
January 5, 2020
Making your own bags
Although I found the sewing aspect of making bags useful, I was disappointed it didn't have at least one or two patterns in the back for me to try out. I'm more a visual learner then a reading learner so found the instructions a tad confusing in some places. The pictures helped a lot, but I would have preferred pictures as you go in construction of the different bags, the learning experience would have been much richer.
Although I found the sewing aspect of making bags useful, I was disappointed it didn't have at least one or two patterns in the back for me to try out. I'm more a visual learner then a reading learner so found the instructions a tad confusing in some places. The pictures helped a lot, but I would have preferred pictures as you go in construction of the different bags, the learning experience would have been much richer.
July 2, 2022
It's definitely not a bible, but it is a great complimentary resource for those interested in making bags.
May 1, 2025
Great reference for making bags of all types and shapes!
February 2, 2013
I borrowed this book from my local library as I wanted to see what it was like before buying it.
I thought the different sections of the book describing the different techniques for bag making were really good.
I appreciated the way the book referred back to sections instead of repeating the same instructions for the projects.
I didn't have the book long enough to use it to make a bag, but even reading through the book I think that a few diagrams in the instructions for each bag would be helpful.
Although I would buy this book if I was looking to make bags more seriously.
I thought the different sections of the book describing the different techniques for bag making were really good.
I appreciated the way the book referred back to sections instead of repeating the same instructions for the projects.
I didn't have the book long enough to use it to make a bag, but even reading through the book I think that a few diagrams in the instructions for each bag would be helpful.
Although I would buy this book if I was looking to make bags more seriously.
November 16, 2010
I checked this book out of the library and while I didn't like any of the bag projects, I do think it would make a good reference book on how to create your own bags. There are great instructions on how to make different types of pockets and lining. Right now, my brain needs a pattern, perhaps when the kids get older...
October 27, 2014
It is helping me as I set off to make my first bag with my new sewing machine. Need to master skills before Christmas. It is clear, well illustrated and has a reasonable selection of styles. The author uses the as a guide to design and techniques and does not expect her bags to be slavishly copied. Enjoyable and useful
April 20, 2014
I love this book, it was the first time I had followed patterns and Lisa's instructions made it really easy. The skills are transferable so once you have made a few of the bags you are ready to adapt and design your own bags. The finished products look good. The bags are time consuming, there are no short cuts but you get what you put in.
October 1, 2015
So many wonderful bag projects to make! The pictures are good, the bags look to be well-made and cute - the instructions are good, but not fabulous, as they're a little hard to visualize, but still solid. There are a lot of nice tips for making your bags your own and for finishing techniques to make your sewing look really spiffy. I can't wait to try out making some of these bags!
September 8, 2016
The bag making bible
Love this book very detailed with lots of information on all the material's you can use for bag making and how to change the pattern to your own design and you also get the patterns for the bags in the book which are all gorgeous everything explained so its easy yo understand with photo images for guidance
Love this book very detailed with lots of information on all the material's you can use for bag making and how to change the pattern to your own design and you also get the patterns for the bags in the book which are all gorgeous everything explained so its easy yo understand with photo images for guidance
April 15, 2011
So far I have only given this a quick read and I am impressed with all the information that will allow me to make a bag of my own choosing. There are many choices of pockets, handles, closures, etc. I haven't tried to follow any instructions yet so I'm not sure if they are clear yet.
February 24, 2012
Lisa Lam is incredibly gifted at providing clear, detailed, unambiguous pattern-making directions. She can easily turn any complicated project into a hassle-free, inspiring and creative experience.
Her book is as warm and personable as her blog. She is a treasure and a delight!!!
Her book is as warm and personable as her blog. She is a treasure and a delight!!!
April 16, 2015
One word excellent
If you are into bag making......then this is the book for you. Lots of ideas, patterns and pictures. Clutches to travel bags.....this book has well explained projects that anyone can try. This book is a treasure and a must-have.
If you are into bag making......then this is the book for you. Lots of ideas, patterns and pictures. Clutches to travel bags.....this book has well explained projects that anyone can try. This book is a treasure and a must-have.
May 31, 2016
Loved a few of the patterns in this book. The reversible purse on the front with flower closure, the clutch, the totes. Great ideas, but not sure the styles are for me. I like the reversible purse, the weekender and the 10 pocket tote. Easy to follow patterns with lots of pictures.
November 15, 2010
very informative... good ideas.
September 15, 2012
Worth every penny for the written-and-visual instructions on various techniques.
January 29, 2013
I havn't done any of the projects in the book yet, but I really like all the projects & the detailed instructions. I'm looking forward to working with it soon.
July 22, 2014
I appreciate the comprehensive step-by-step instruction of the nuts and bolts of creating any type of bag. Great reference.
December 21, 2013
This book is the equivalent of several patterns & may be one of those books I NEED to own--just to have it on hand! Especially loved the overnight bag.
September 1, 2014
Nice little craft book all about bag making. I'll be attempting the multi-tote bag soon, once I've been to the fabric store.
October 24, 2017
Easy to follow and very helpful!
December 26, 2015
I loved that this book took the approach that a handmade bag could still look fabulous and not homemade.
January 10, 2013
Learned a lot of new bag making skills that I plan on using on future bags.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews