Wallet-to-Tote On the Go

I made this "Wallet-to-Tote On the Go" for someone's upcoming birthday in a few weeks, so please don't tell!  It's a very cool gadget-y tote bag that can zip up into a little wallet.  It even has an additional little zipper pocket on the bottom of the bag.  I can picture the recipient putting her farmer's market cash in the little zipper pocket and then putting the produce she buys in the big tote.  Or something like that.  I mostly just made the bag because I knew it would make the recipient smile.

It starts out looking like a cute little dumpling zipper pouch with a strangely-placed outer zipper pocket.

Well, I guess it should actually sit up like this so the outer pocket can open without the contents falling out.

You unzip the big zipper and SHAZAM!  It's a tote!  I didn't take a picture of the lining, but it's the same as the lining for the small zipper pocket.  It's the leftover fabric from Charlotte's nursery curtains.  The outer striped fabric is the leftover fabric from the valances I made for Erin once upon a time, as well.

I kind of goofed and accidentally assembled the bag so the handles are along the short sides instead of the long sides.  Whoops.  Still usable, though.

The bag is a little too small to be used as a grocery sack.  Unlike in California when I got dirty looks for getting my groceries bagged in plastic, the baggers in Michigan (if one even deigns to show up -- I have bagged my own groceries several times because one never materialized) roll their eyes at me and sigh when I give them my reusable bags to use.  I can just imagine what would happen if I handed them a bunch of little zipper pouches and told them to use those.  Corey might need to do the grocery shopping from then on because I would be banned with my mug shot put up near every check stand (underneath which would be the label "CRAFTY DO-GOODER: BEWARE!").