The Dayna Pack


I’ve spent the last 2 months doing almost nothing but sewing masks, so when one of my mask customers asked if I made fanny packs, I jumped at the chance to make something different!

I gave my customer a few choices of fanny pack patterns, some I have made, and others I haven’t, but which seemed like they would be easy enough, from posts in the various Facebook sewing groups I’m a member of.  He was most interested in the Dayna Pack, by Linds Handmade, so I purchased the pattern and was off running.

This pattern lends itself well to a variety of materials.  My customer requested the bag out of solid black cotton, which was simple enough.  The pattern offers advice on creating the bag out of any mix of cotton, leather, vinyl, or cork.  Using all cotton, I opted to interface everything with Wovenfuse, a favorite interfacing of mine.  The pattern didn’t call for it, but I also chose to add a layer of Thermolam for a little added structure.  It’s still a very floppy bag, as intended, but the added fleece makes it feel like you can hold more than keys without it falling apart.  For my next time making this bag, I’m thinking to try using some of my faux-leather for the exterior of the bag, and I imagine it will go together well.  

The pattern description does not lie – it truly is a quick and forgiving sew.  I spent more time cutting out the pieces than I spent sewing the project.  I didn’t time myself, as sewing with a toddler around often causes disruptions, but I definitely feel like it took me under 2 hours from tracing the pieces onto my fabric to adding the final (optional) rivets to the finished bag.  It’s a very straightforward sew, and I would imagine any confident beginner would do well making this bag.

As written, the pattern fits waists approx. 36″-52″, but the beauty of self-made items is that you can sew a shorter or longer adjustable strap based on your needs!  The adjustable length also allows the pattern to be worn as a waist bag, or as a crossbody bag, as that’s one of the current trends for fanny packs these days.   

The bag holds my cell phone, my keys, and a small card/coin pouch without issue.  The pattern could easily be modified to add credit card slots to the inside of the bag itself.  The pattern also includes information for how to print the pattern at a smaller size, if you’re interested in “mommy & me” style bags. 

The true test of a bag pattern for me is how anxious I am to make my next one.  The Dayna Pack pattern definitely gets high marks.  It was a quick and easy sew, it uses materials I generally have on hand, the cost to make is reasonable, and lends itself to a price point which customers will hopefully also find reasonable.  I have ideas for more of these bags, and I’m hopeful that I can sell them fairly quickly! 

Plan Your Content

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If you’re considering adding a blog to your site, you’ll want to have a plan beforehand. Planning your blog will help your subject matter remain consistent over time. It’ll also help you determine whether or not there’s enough material to maintain a steady stream of posts.

One pitfall many new bloggers run into is starting a blog that isn’t posted to frequently enough. A shortage of recent posts can give your visitors a bad impression of your business. One may think “I wonder if they’re still in business” or “they may want to hire a writer.”

A blog, like any other customer facing aspect of your business, communicates your brand. If it isn’t maintained and given proper attention, people will notice. Post regularly and keep your content fresh. Give your audience a reason to visit often.

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Categories and Tags

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If you write about a variety of subjects, categories can help your readers find the posts that are most relevant to them. For instance, if you run a consulting business, you may want some of your posts to reflect work you’ve done with previous clients, while having other posts act as informational resources. In this particular case, you can set up 2 categories: one labeled Projects and another labeled Resources. You’d then place your posts in their respective categories.

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Pages vs. Posts

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If you’re new to WordPress you may be wondering what’s the big deal behind Pages and Posts. At first glance they appear to be one and the same: if you were to create either a new page or a new post you’d be presented with nearly identical interfaces and in many cases the public appearance of pages and posts will look the same.

Don’t let this fool you. There’s a very fundamental difference between the two and that difference is what makes CMSs, like WordPress, great platforms for integrating blogs with traditional websites.

Pages

Think about the kind of pages that make up a typical website. Most often you’ll see pages like “Home”, “About Us”, “Services”, “Contact Us”, etc. Within WordPress these are often treated as Pages; documents that have no particular regard for the time they were posted.

For example, when you visit the “About Us” page of your favorite company’s website you don’t expect the content to be very different from what was available there a week ago.

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