Written in 2006:
Now, I knit a bag out of this yarn before (2005) and was terribly distressed at all the stretching it did, so this time I thought it through. There are several qualities that this recycled silk sari yarn has that must be kept in mind

1. It is strong--you can put a lot of stuff in it without it breaking
2. It is totally inflexible--if you stretch it out, it will stay that way
3. It’s scratchy and uneven--but fantastically textured…so show it off!

So although I loved the inspiration bag, I was unhappy with how the stitch pattern (yo, p2tog) hurt my hands when knitting. I didn’t have pointy needles with me and my Clovers could not pull off a P2Tog without major arm acrobatics. So I decided on a twisted drop stitch (have you done this before, it’s fantastic!): no need for pointy needles I only had to remember to do a pattern row every 3rd row. Instead of knitting the side gussets in garter stitch from top of bag to bottom (which creates a gusset the stretches down, and in this yarn, never bounces back up),I decided, when I cast off of for the main rectangle, to join a wool yarn (Big Kureyon leftovers) and pick up stitches along half of one side, then turn and knit back to the top, then CO enough stitches for the strap and pick up the stitches for the other side. I knit back and forth in garter stitch (so the bag would stretch widthwise…to allow me to cram it full of books) 2 rows of both yarns, 2 with just the wool. I figured this would give the shoulder strap some give and soften it up, so it won’t dig into my back.

2008 Update:
this bag lasted a loong time, carried many many library books and served as my purse during my NYC visit(my money was, of course, in a smaller zippered bag). It go so stretched out that a hole developed and I stopped carrying it at the end of 2007. I still really want to make another!