I don’t know what I had been expecting when I put the finishing touches on this bag, but after all the time it took to bring this piece to fruition, I supposed I was thinking it would be something a bit more momentous than walking the dog,

But after the time I spent struggling to thread the felted pieces through the imperceptible holes that were left by the strands of plastic I had threaded through the edging in two places, the truth is that both the dog and I were ready for a walk.

The first part of the finishing was deceptively quick.

I got out my scissors and snipped the threads that I had used to keep the chain I had threaded through the end of the hyperbolic tassel in place so that the pieces would felt as a unit:

After using some sharply pointed tweezers that I have to dig out the remnants of the thread, I removed the plastic strips I had woven through the areas where the tie and closure would be attached.

This created four v-e-r-y small holes, and these holes were integral to my plan to attach the closure:

Using a coilless safety pin attached to the end of the felted chain that would serve as the tie:

I threaded it through the barely perceptible (emphasis on barely) holes that had been left from the plastic strips, and after wrestling with all of the pieces a bit, I finally managed to get everything in place.

Here is the view of the back:

and here is the view of the front:

If I were to make this bag a second time, I would do some things differently.

I would work through either the back or front loop only so that the resulting fabric would be less dense and more malleable, I would double the plastic strands so that the holes would be imperceptible rather than almost invisible, and if I were in a hurry, I would use a merino wool which felts more quickly (but doesn’t have the same sheen).

But for now, I am done with this bag, and I will move onto whatever is next, plying my craft one stitch at a time.