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To answer your question on how to insert these frames, I stopped by the Ghee's booth at this year's Sewing & Stitchery booth in Puyallup,WA, and picked the brain of owner and handbag expert Linda McGehee. She provided Sew News with the various handbag and hardware samples shown here as well as frame-insertion instructions.
An internal-flex frame is enclosed inside a casing at the bag upper edge and joins like a hinge on each side (1).
In order to use a flex frame, first construct a bag with a casing along the upper edge. The casing can be external as shown on the featured purses or internal (2), which doesn't show on the outside of the bag (3).
Make an external casing slightly larger than the frame and gather it as on the featured bag, or make the casing the length of the frame. For an internal frame, the casing ends should stop approximately 1" from each side seam.
Once you've constructed the bag and casing, insert the flex frame with the silver center of each frame piece facing the bag interior.
After inserting both frame sides, align the ends together like a hinge (4).
Secure the frame by sliding a self-piloting rivet through each hinge. The rivets are very sturdy and difficult to remove once inserted. Double-check that the frame pieces are inserted facing the right direction before inserting the rivets.
For handbag ideas, patterns, hardware and internal-flex frames, visit ghees.com.
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