My Kaleidoscope Round Mandala Bag

Let me introduce my second crocheted mandala bag. When I finished my first Wheel of Magic Purse I liked a lot the idea of using mandalas as front parts for round crocheted bags. The circle in general seems full of harmony to me. I think it is an ideal shape: with no beginning and no end, with no sharp corners. I use cross body bags a lot and the round are my favourite. I also find them very womanly.

I designed this mandala some time ago. But recently I’ve found it in my boxes and decided to write the pattern down. I began with potholder first, and then transformed it into a round bag. I should say it took me really a lot of time to choose "right" colors and I had to remake it 7 times. I like how it looks now but I was completely stuck with finding a nice name for this design.

And then I asked people in different groups on Facebook to help me. Oh, there were so many different and awesome name suggested. I liked "Tea for two", and "Chocolate Spice", and "Carnival"... But I decided to name it "Kaleidoscope" - this was suggested by Jolene Groves. It is color neutral and reflecting the mandala's look at the same time. It was among the first names suggested and just shot directly into my brain.

My Kaleidoscope bag consists of two circles joined together with a rectangle. It is of the same size as Wheel of magic – 20 cm (8 inches) large across and 1,5 cm (1/2 inch) deep. I used DK yarn and 2.75 mm (C) crochet hook. Of course, if you choose another yarn weight the bag can be bigger or smaller. This time I decided to use a fake leather strap as I am not very fond of pure leather (for many reasons, but mainly ethical). And I was a success to find one in black color. The strap is adjustable – 120/60 cm (48/24 inches). This bag also has a crocheted clasp with plastic button.

I used lace colorful mandala for the front part and the lining was needed, so I decided to crochet two flat circles of dc’s and use them as a lining. Though one of the testers who helped me with polishing of the pattern suggested that she would sew a fabric lining for her bag. I liked this idea very much and asked her to take progress pictures and to write a short tutorial on that. So hopefully my next post will represent her tutorial! Feels exciting!

The pattern of Kaleidoscope Mandala Bag is available in my Etsy and Ravelry shops!

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