Knock-Off Weekend

The beginning of a beautiful knock-off

I saw this bag on the Berroco website. Yesterday, at my daytime SnB here at the office, one of my fellow knitsters showed me an ad from Vogue Magazine for a Ferragmo bag with a leather top and raffia-like body....very similar to the Berroco bag pattern. The Ferragamo was priced at $1,600!!!

The minute I see something like this, I consider it a challenge! I have to immediately drop whatever I'm working on (about 10 other projects) and take the challenge. I ran over to Yarns Unlimited here in Santa Monica at lunchtime and picked up a couple of skeins of yarn that I think will look raffia-like in color. Have you ever tried to crochet or knit with raffia or soutache? It's very stiff and hard on your hands, which makes the process painful. Who wants to get crippled for a purse? Not me.

I've decided to crochet my bag, not knit it. I think that crocheted bags are sturdier than knitted bags and require LESS lining and stiffening. You won't find me buying the Berroco Cotton Twist or the Berroco Suede...although these are not really ultra-expensive yarns, they are not budget. I'm using a strand of TLC Amore' in the color of Sand and a strand of good ol' Red Heart acrylic in the color of Warm Brown. For the top of the bag, I'll use a strand of the Warm Brown with a strand of something darker....in the rusty/orange family, to simulate leather. I'm crocheting a basic basketweave pattern. The Ferragamo also had corkscrews hanging from the bottom of the bag. I may or may not add these....we'll see. Lisi at the Stitch Cafe in Valley Village has a kit for a version of this bag too! It's so popular.

The "Lorraine" bag from Berroco

Since I'll be stuck in the house on Sunday due to the L.A. Marathon going right through my neighborhood, here's to a rainy weekend of creation! Have a great one!