Reconstructed Picnic Suitcase

[Lothruin]

I made this picnic suitcase for my sis a while back.  She graciously took pics for me.  I had an old hard-sided leather suitcase that was really nice, and a good size.  I found some great cotton flannel plaid that I washed up, then carefully removed the old (and dubiously clean) lining.  This was a little tough.  The lining was basically upholstered onto pressboard and tacked into the suitcase, so I VERY gently removed the tacks and reupholstered the pressboard, then reattached it to the inside.  I did some sewing and in that way also covered the middle divider, which was a wire frame with riveted connections to the suitcase, so I couldn't just pull it out and recover it.  But the flannel is really pretty forgiving, and the center part turned out better than I expected.  Last I added a set of dishes I found on clearance that matched the plaid and used the excess material to make a blanket.  

(Um, I did this several years ago, so my sis might have to enlighten you, as I've forgotten what exactly I did with the material.  I don't remember if I left it as is, sewed it to a tablecloth or some fleece or something, but anyway, there IS a matching blanket.  I do seem to recall some plans of making it waterproof with a vinyl tablecloth, but it is entirely possible I am mistaken, and that really I just gave sis a remnant of fabric and SHE fashioned a blanket.)

Here's the suitcase:



And opened with the folded blanket.  You can see the covered divider helps hold the dishes in place.



And the side with the dishes:



Sis has used it and says it holds up well, so there you have it.  I think she liked it.

[junquette]

that's very cool. Do you have elastic tohold the items in place? I love the suitcase! It's beautiful. I love the colour too!

[Calliel]

Love it! I've always wanted one of those.

[Lothruin]

There's no elastic to hold things in.  I thought about it, but the nature of the way the thing is put together I felt would make it difficult to include elastic.  (Didn't want the elastic to pull the new lining fabric away from the sides, etc.  But, the divider hooks if the dishes are stowed carefully and the other side is nicely full, the divider holds everything in place really well.  Or rather, with the divider's help, everything on one side helps hold the other side in place and vice versa.

[sweets4ever]

Verrrry cute!  I love the colors you use - it's a lovely burst of happiness as soon as you open it.

[Lothruin]

  You can't really tell from the pics, but the plaid actually matches the color of the suitcase, sort of.  One of the very slim stripes in the plaid is the same orangey color.  The predominant colors in the plaid are obviously pink and black, and you can just barely make out the teal, but there's orange in there too, so when you actually see the thing in person, the plaid doesn't look quite so jarringly different.  I loved that plaid, which is why I bought so damn much of it, and it was a $1/yd buy, too, so extra bonus.  I only wish I still had some left.

[craft-matic]

Why, it's beautiful! WHAT A LUCKY SISTER YOU MUST HAVE!

[Lothruin]

heehee