The Reversible Tote

Not to be outdone by the drawstring bag, here's another bag which has been extensively road-tested in various forms. 

You know how depressing it is when you have to bring work home.  The sight of my stiff black document bag is enough to darken skies and hunch my back.  I coped with this moody prospect by putting my work papers in colourful happy plastic folders (none of those poorly-made plastic office folders for me, especially those with "URGENT" stickers pasted all over them).  But that was not enough.  To make work seem less like work and more like fun, I started my search for the ideal A4 tote.  Most of those in the market are either too big (and therefore, most demoralising) or too shopping-ish (and therefore, most distracting). 

So, out came the sewing machine, and I made an office tote for myself.  It was the ideal size but I put in too much padding and made the handles too long.  It served its purpose well enough but somehow lacked the panache.

Recently, I saw my sewing friend carrying a beautiful tote, like it was manufactured fresh from those Japanese craft books I read as bedtime story.  I begged and she agreed to make some for the stall.  So, after 3 hours of intense sewing yesterday, here's presenting to you (again, making its 1st public appearance), the reversible tote.

Isn't it cool?  There's even a pocket for keys, EZ-link card and office access card, for easy accessibility. I don't know why I'm so obsessed about the office access card.  Maybe it's because I forgot to bring mine to work last Friday when I changed handbag and was extremely inconvenienced as a result.

I've already pre-ordered mine and once in possession of the bespoke, my boss can expect more completed "homework" from me.