The Backpack Saga Part 1

H:
I have been sewing my backpack for the last week.  I think I have about 12 hours into the project so far, but that does include bathroom breaks, snack, meals, procrastination and a few misreading of directions, two resulting in the need to use a seam ripper and one required a creative use of webbing as a patch.  But we're not going to talk any more about that right now.

I told Dave that his pack was going to be AMAZING because I'd have figured out how to make one by the time I was done with mine.  His response was that we could always buy another kit and I could make myself a "perfect" one too.  Um... no!  I'm only sewing 2 backpacks!!!  I have other things to get to anyway.  

It turns out that I haven't taken a lot of in progress pictures because I have had my head down and have tried to plow through as best as possible.  

Here's the shots I have so far:

Oh my are there seams!  And for every seam there is a top thread and a bobbin thread and each thread has a beginning and end to snip.  This pile of thread is just a tiny bit of those seams!

Preparing to cut the foam padding for one of my shoulder straps.

This is the bag inside out and almost finished seaming up.  I still have 6 more pages of instructions and I've already made it through 8!

A view of the inside of the pack which will eventually become the outside.

And here is a lovely shot of the current sewing zone.  Previously, and still currently to some extent, it was/is the computer area.  Yes, that's a bag of yarn hanging up above the chair.  And it is hanging next to a felted bag.

Back to the sewing.