I now feel that most sewers I know have made at least one Genoa tote.  It’s no wonder – such a satisfying pattern, with such a practical and pleasing result!

The pattern description says: Designed with denim in mind, the Genoa Tote borrows it’s name from the Italian city, where the first denim trousers were made. The Genoa Tote is fully-lined, features a zipped pouch and a clip for keys. The leather straps can be made in two lengths and two widths, and are attached with double capped rivets, creating beauty, strength and longevity.

I have tended to do as the description says, and have sewn my Genoa totes from denim. This one is lined in printed drill, and was a birthday gift for my delightful sister-in-law Donna.

I really do love those leather handles! Donna’s was the Medium size, which is probably my favourite. However, I recently gave the Small size a go too.

It’s really a bit hard to tell the size without something else in the photo for scale! As you can see, this one was also from denim. I cut the straps from some leather scraps that I had in stash. They are fairly soft, so don’t stand up well on their own, but the colour goes nicely with the lining.

The crochet print lining was designed by Cam and has been in stash for a few years. I’m really happy to have finally used it in something special! The pocket fabric is a Denyse Schmidt quilting cotton also from deep stash.

I’ve seen some beautiful versions of this bag sewn from leather. I’ll add that idea to my to-sew list!