Pazienza.

My hands hurt today but it obviously won't stop me from typing.

Remember this bag, the one I wanted to finish before my last trip to NY? I finished it today. Okay, okay, I know many of you know I have piles of unfinished projects sitting around... in NY, now in Italy, there might even be some left over in Ithaca, New York and Harrison, Maine. I have most likely left scraps of unfinished projects in every city in which I've set foot but part of the reason I am here is to slow it down, concentrate, and finish what I start.

Sewing through eight layers of camel skin is not easy an easy feat, but I actually find it quite therapeutic when I can concentrate. I only punctured my fingers twice, once with the puntorollo and once with the hand sewing needle. As you might remember from my first bag, I have to puncture the leather with the puntorollo and then pull two needles through the path it created in the layers of leather. I had pre-punctured the two panels with the sewing machine, so all of the holes are lined up. It takes some precision and a lot of patience to get the puntorollo to pass through the hole, through the additional layers of leather, and back through the corresponding hole. This also takes its toll on your fingers, as it requires great strength to pass a needle with a blunt tip through so many layers.

And here is the finished product: A one-shoulder backpack that can also be slung across the body with a bandana lining.

I have just a few more weeks of school to go...