The wallet is designed with a fabric cover stiffened by interfacing and held closed by an elastic band. The interior envelopes are closed with magnets, with one zippered pocket for change. The inside of the wallet has slots for cards, though I doubt I will ever use it because I would be afraid of them falling out. It's hard to see the slots in the picture below, but there are three in front and back.
Pros: The pattern is rather clever. There were some things that I didn't expect and I initially liked the approach. I like the removable envelopes so that I don't have to carry the whole wallet if I don't need it. And the wallet does fit into my purse (barely) whereas my cheap plastic coupon file from Walmart did not. I like the zippered coin envelope because I always had change flying about when I was using paper envelopes. I expect the fabric envelopes will last far longer than the paper.
Cons: Let me first start with the supplies list. The hardest thing for me to find were the magnets. My local hardware store did not carry magnets with the right width. You really do need to have magnets that are 1/32 inch in width. You can have a larger diameter, but the thinner the magnet, the thinner your wallet. I ended buying some from babemagnet for a reasonable price. The magnet search delayed the project the longest.
I used a hair elastic for the closure, but I think 1/8" elastic would have been a bit better. The hair elastic is already stretching out of shape.
The pattern is clever, but could use some refinements. This is just my inner pattern making voice. My construction of the zippered envelope ended up being very sloppy, partly my fault, but partly not. I think some of the pieces could have been adjusted to incorporate the turn of cloth concept to accommodate the bulky seams.
There are some time consuming processes such as fusing the interfacing to the envelopes which drove me batty. In any event, the same Etsy seller that sells the patterns also sells finished wallets and envelopes. Considering the cost and time involved, save yourself the trouble and buy one already finished. I can't remember the price on the finished wallets but they should retail for more than she is selling them, considering the labor involved. Her Etsy shop is currently on vacation, so sign up for an email notification when she reopens.
DH still won't use the cash wallet or envelopes. I should have picked something more manly for the fabric. He'll probably still pullout the cash he needs and stuff it in his wallet or pocket.
Cost: The cost ended up being more than I anticipated. The pattern is a bit expensive to buy ($10), and then add in all the supplies and it ended up costing almost $50. Sure, I can customize the wallet with whatever fabric I choose, but I'm not sure it is worth making yourself.
My Fail: I used an iron-on transfer to label my envelopes. I didn't trim close enough around the transfer (fail) and so I ended up with awful looking labels. And the labels are on dark fabric. Doh! Let's not talk about the zipper pocket.
Would I make this again? No. The cost and time consuming construction just doesn't make it worth it to me. I am not sure that I am entirely satisfied with the results, nor am I sure that I want to buy this style again. There are other Etsy sellers selling cash wallet systems and I may explore those. I will use this wallet until it wears out before replacing it with something else.
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