Turn a Vera Bradley Crossbody Bag into a Shoulder Bag in Less Than 5 Minutes { No-Sew Project }

A few months ago, I was at the mall with my family because my oldest was taking a coding class at the Microsoft store.  The class was an hour long, so I went across the way to browse at the Vera Bradley store.  It had been awhile since I had been in there.  I asked my daughter to join me.

Big surprise!  My browsing turned into buying.  My daughter and I both loved the Lilac Tapestry print and I couldn't pass up a chance to have another set of mother-daughter coordinating handbags.  I went pretty, but practical, and picked out the Small Trimmed Vera Tote.  My daughter had a little more trouble though.  She used to be all about crossbody bags, but now that she is a little older, she really wanted a shoulder bag, like a mini hobo or something with a shorter strap.  The problem was that Vera Bradley didn't carry any smaller bags that weren't a crossbody style at the moment.  We looked at the Vera Bradley Little Crossbody bag, and I decided I could probably do a little altering and shorten the strap on that bag for her.

When I got home, I had a feeling of doubt.  What if I shortened the strap on that bag and my daughter changes her mind?

How I shortened the strap on our Vera Bradley crossbody bag with no sewing . . . 

Step 1.  Adjust the 56" strap to the desired length, even though you will have a tail of excess fabric.  (I would say that ours was adjusted to have a 6" or 7" drop.)

Step 2.  Tie a knot at the base of the strap to keep the strap from being lengthened or shortened any further.

Step 3.  Tuck the tail of excess fabric into the exterior pocket on the backside of the bag.  Secure it inside the pocket with a small safety pin to make sure it stays put and does not interfere with the functionality of the pocket.

That's it!  The tail blends in well whether you have a print or solid fabric bag.  Because the tail is tucked into the pocket on the backside of the bag, it really isn't noticeable at all.  My daughter was very pleased with the result, and I feel good that I can easily turn this bag back into a crossbody bag if she so desires.

Although I haven't tried this with other styles of Very Bradley crossbody bags, it should work if you have the following:

• An adjustable strap
• A strap that is not too wide to tie in a knot neatly
• A pocket on the backside of the bag that runs the nearly the full width of the bag.

What easy no-sew projects have you tried?  Share them with us in a comment here.

Fun & Trendy RMLA Girls Fashions {plus 20% Off Sophia's Style Promo Code}

Thank you to Sophia's Style for providing a gift code for us to shop their site for girls summer fashions and for providing a 20% off promo code for my readers.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Have you and your daughter ever shopped on SophiasStyle.com? This online boutique offers everything from school uniforms to formal wear and everything in between for both boys and girls.  Be sure to set aside a chunk of time because your daughter will want to look at everything her favorite brands have to offer, such as KidCuteTure, Hello Kitty, Sophie Catalou, and more.  One brand our daughter owns quite a few dresses from is RMLA.  She loves them all because this brand adds a lot of special touches that make their clothes especially fun for girls to wear.

RMLA Colorful Kaleidoscope Knotted Top Hi-Low Sleeveless Dress

We spent quite a long time shopping on Sophia's Style.  Of the many things that were added and removed from our shopping bag, this RMLA Kaleidoscope Knotted Top Hi-Low Sleeveless Dress was the one item our daughter was not indecisive about.  It was love at first sight for her.

Our daughter wore this dress to a birthday party this summer.  It was a country-themed party with straw hats and mustaches.  This was really the perfect dress because the knotted denim top with the rhinestones on the faux flap chest pockets gives the dress a hint of country western style.  The high-low hemline and lightweight colorful printed fabric makes this dress ideal for summer.

RMLA Stripe Flower Lace Skirt Cardigan Top Outfit and Bixbee Pink Sparkalicious Girls Medium Duffle Bag

In addition to the RMLA dress, we ordered this super-cute and sporty RMLA Cobalt Blue Stripe Flower Lace Skirt Cardigan Top Outfit.  Lace overlay seems to be a huge trend this summer.  This outfit features a faux tie-front cardigan trimmed with lace at the sleeves and has built-in shorts underneath the skirt.  The floral applique on the striped top is also embellished with rhinestones.  This RMLA 2-piece set also comes in Pink, Purple, and Seafoam.  I was tempted to get one of each color because this is such a cute outfit and it's playground-friendly, making it perfect for back-to-school.

Oh, I can't forget to tell you about the Bixbee Pink Sparkalicious Medium Duffle Bag!  Can you guess what's inside?

Yes, this pink glittery duffle bag now houses our daughter's Taekwondo uniform for her to bring to and from class.  Just because she can break boards with her hands, elbows, and feet, doesn't mean she can't have a pretty Taekwondo bag, right?

Do you have a confident, colorful, girly-girl who would love RMLA fashions as much as my daughter?  Before you shop, grab SophiasStyle.com promo code: KARENSFRIENDS to save 20% off your entire purchase through 7/6/2015.