Inspired by the Taco Bell bag that had once housed a Crunchwrap Supreme, just over 13 months ago I crocheted a “pocket purse” that I intended to use to hold the stuff I take with me when I walk my dog but for which I don’t always have a suitable pocket.

Here is how that “pocket purse” looks more than 365 days of dog walking later:

I have long thought that my mother needs a small bag like this, and with the sawtooth sunflower throw completed, the pocket purse project rocketed to the top of my “to-do yesterday list.”

I started with a 3.75 mm hook and, in order to ensure that the resulting purse would be easy to find, I elected to use Red Heart Super Saver hot red, a color I think of as a vibrant neutral.

In just over an hour, I had crocheted the body of the bag in its entirety:

Happy with the color, but finding the decorative scheme too demure for my taste, I decided that after the success of my “put a cookie on it” tote, I would try a “put a dot on it” approach.

First, I made the dots (12 of them as it happens):

and then I laid them out in various arrangements until I found one that pleased me:

If tomorrow’s crochet day only goes half as well as today’s, I expect that I will be able to put this project in the “ta-done” column by the next sunset, and my mom will, at long last, have a light weight, easy to carry (and easy to find) bag.