Made this gathering bag to practice sewing

I was gifted a sewing machine for my birthday. I’ve never used one before, but I was told that making a pillow case was the best learner project. Since a pillow case is basically just a big bag, I got the idea from a YouTube channel called Skill Tree to instead make a gathering bag.

The bag itself is held to the case by a saddle stitch. I gave the front of it a sort of shield shape in order to show some of the fabric, making it apart of the aesthetic. The Celtic knot on the front was made with a stamp, but the negative space was darkened with an antique finish. This is the first time I successfully used an antiquing finish without darkening the entire piece.