Cabana Mesh Tote bags

I love this Cabana Mesh Tote pattern! I bought it from a local SewVac/quilt store and have used it to make nearly 100 bags. I buy the mesh by the 100' roll online, as well as the grommets, and the interfacing by the bolt at JoAnn Fabrics. I wish I had documented every single one, but alas....

It started with bags for the Baritone section for the 2014 Region 10 Competition, personalized to reflect each Baritone's favorite color or passion (blue, animals, green):

Those got so much interest in the hotel lobby the next morning as all the Sweet Adelines were checking out! I filed that reaction away and let a plan ferment.

Another member's mother had passed away and I made a quilt and wall hanging for her from her mother's favorite tops. I also made a bag for her:

Then I agreed to quilt an "Opportunity Quilt" for the Region for the 2015 Competition fundraiser for the Young Singers Foundation. The winner of that quilt also got a bag in which to carry it home:

As Sweet Adelines came to the quilt table to admire it and purchase opportunities, I also asked them to "vote" on a price they'd be willing to put on the bag (I had different colored paper slips for $15, $20, and $25. All they had to do was drop their chosen price slip into a can.) I suspected $20 would be the price most would be willing to pay for a bag like this, and the results bore that out in spades. Why did I care? Because my plan for the remainder of the year was to make and donate 50 more bags for the 2016 YSF fundraiser. Not only did I meet that goal, but I exceeded it by 10 bags. Every bag was unique, and every bag sold!

Some I shamelessly targeted for specific choruses, using their chorus colors:

The purple stars and the four gold/white fabrics were the only additional purchases I needed to make to enhance my stash. Everything else that went into the 60 bags came from what I already had on hand. 

There were various cultural themes:

 

Critters of all sorts were represented:

   Cats

 Chickens

Cows

Dogs and frogs

 

Food made an appearance:

There were some subdued color combinations that I hoped would appeal to some:

 along with some that are simply classic:

Then I went for brights and florals:

and primary colors:

 

and a few others that defy a category:

Actually, the purple and lime was made for a specific Sweet Adeline, if she wanted it. She absolutely did!

Cats, always helpful:

I had made one more bag, but because of the logo (cut from a shirt purchased ages ago) it couldn't be included without incurring massive fees for copyright usage. Instead, it was given to our chorus director that Christmas.

The following year, 2016, I was commissioned to make individual bags for Region 10's top quartet "Live It Up!" as part of their send-off gift on their journey to compete on the International stage. I took a photo of only one. They all used the same fabrics, but each were placed slightly differently, and obviously each member had her own name and part embroidered on a square! (Yes, I invested in an embroidery machine.) This project DID involve quite a bit of additional fabric shopping. What a shame.

My latest project was 4 bags for my own quartet, AH!HA, incorporating both our logos and our names in our own handwriting. I lurve my embroidery machine!