#SewPINK Initiative Blog Hop 2025

I'm so excited to be joining ByAnnie.com's #SewPINK Initiative Blog Hop again this year! I want to tell you a little about my personal experience as a breast cancer survivor and of course share some pretty bags! Thanks so much for reading!

In 2020 and 2021 I shared about the importance of screening as a person at high risk for being diagnosed with breast cancer due to my family history. This year I still want to talk about screening but from a slightly different perspective.

In 2022 I was diagnosed with breast cancer. My cancer was found on a routine MRI that was part of my high risk screening. For those with a strong family history, the American Cancer Society recommends alternating mammograms and MRIs every 6 months. Surprisingly, I found out the hard way that not all doctors are willing to do this - my doctor told me I was overly anxious and that I was wasting his time. Finding a doctor who was willing to follow this protocol is how my cancer was discovered - it was found on my very first MRI after transferring my care.

All of this is to say... Please advocate for yourself! You deserve to have your concerns heard and for your doctor to not just listen, but to also take appropriate action to help you stay healthy. Even if you are also an anxious person, it doesn't mean your concerns aren't valid. Even if screening just ends up providing peace of mind, that's okay. You deserve to have that too.

(Here is a photo of me recovering from my bilateral mastectomy with the kitten I guilted my family into letting me get. Her name is Maxine.)

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Now on to the bags! For the blog hop I made two project bags using ByAnnie.com's Project Bag 2.0 pattern. There are 4 sizes to choose from and each size uses a quilted panel, vinyl, zipper, and bindings! This meant lots of opportunities to add my favorite fabrics, colors, and details! 

I made both the medium and small size. The medium size has a fabric panel at the bottom of the bag while the small size is vinyl only. The zippers have fabric strips on each side, making it easier to sew the vinyl and also adding a cute detail! 

I also used ByAnnie.com's Stiletto Tool to help guide my binding and Basting Tape for basting and applying the zipper and binding. They're both so helpful! If you've never used a stiletto tool or seam tape for these jobs, I think you'd be amazed how much easier they make it! 

Although you can't even see them, Soft and Stable and Shape Flex 101 are some of the most important parts of any bag I make! Last but not least, ByAnnie.com has a huge variety of Handbag Zippers - there are zipper tapes and pulls in any color you could want! It's especially fun to mix and match the tape and pulls! 

Some other fun details I like to add to my bags are labels like these from Lolly Tags and Sarah Hearts. I also used a variety of thread colors and I quilted a classic diagonal grid on the small size and just followed the lines of the fabric design for the medium size. You can see I used linen for the back of the medium size which added some nice texture! 

I'm so grateful to have had a chance to be part of the blog hop again this year and I hope you have enjoyed seeing my projects! Most of all though, I hope you feel encouraged to take the time to take care of yourself and advocate for the care you deserve! 

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You can find a full calendar for this year's blog hop here: