Help! Maker's Bag Pocket Problem

[kkintea]

The Maker's Bag arrived today and much to my chagrin, nothing in my EDC fits in the pockets in the front zipper compartment. If you do not have the MB, there are 4 equally-sized pockets in the front compartment - the one that zips. I imagine if you had.... a lot of pens.... perhaps a lot of knitting needles (?)... multiple sets of chopsticks....something else long and narrow, you would love this organization. However, I can't fit my very thin, narrow wallet (just slightly wider than a credit card), my iPhone, any of my mini TB pouches, my TB wallet with work ID card, nada. I could put these items into the front compartment, loose, but that would defeat the entire TB organizational system I'm using. There's also only 1 o-ring, so I cannot tether everything. These pockets are very long, so I cannot take my small items out of the pouches or I won't be able to fish them out. What are folks putting in these pockets?? Inside the main compartment, my iPhone 6+ just fits into one of the side pockets that flank the middle pocket. It would also go into the black water bottle pockets; however, with my 13" MBA inside, these pockets are useless because of the width of the computer. What a bummer, but I don't know if I can keep a bag that doesn't function the way I need it to. I'll keep trying, but any advice would be appreciated.

TL;DR There are 6 pockets that I cannot use in the Maker's Bag.

[jess]

Very interesting. I haven't gotten a chance to really play with mine yet but saw your post and took a quick peek at the pockets you mentioned. On first glance I have no idea what I'd use them for. My phone is too large (iPhone 6+) I only carry one or two pens at a time and my knitting needles are all circulars. Maybe my sunglasses will fit in one of them? And a granola bar or some candy? I do usually have snacks in my purse at all times.

[adalangdon]

Very interesting. I haven't gotten a chance to really play with mine yet but saw your post and took a quick peek at the pockets you mentioned. On first glance I have no idea what I'd use them for. My phone is too large (iPhone 6+) I only carry one or two pens at a time and my knitting needles are all circulars. Maybe my sunglasses will fit in one of them? And a granola bar or some candy? I do usually have snacks in my purse at all times.

Haha, the first thing I thought when I saw those was "granola bar pockets". True enough, mine held a granola bar today. It fits an iphone 5C too, FYI, but it is so deep that I have to dig to fish it out. Not practical when you're desperate to hit the answer button.

Other suggestions: stationery (like fat markers, since they're too big for normal slots? Small post-its??), namecards, mints (like Eclipse), uh... ... ... yeah, I would've preferred 3 wider pockets instead.

[moriond]

There was an interesting post over at Ravelry that mentioned the Ottlite Rechargeable LED Travel Light as possibly fitting in the Maker's Bag pockets. It might have been a better match to the main compartment pocket, or perhaps because of the tri-fold design, you could fold this over so that two of the folded segments fit inside the pocket. Here's one of the uploaded pictures:

A quick search didn't bring up the detailed specs at Amazon or the Ottlite site. The Ravelry post was in the Finally here... the Maker's Bag thread, but people were still waiting for their ordered bags to arrive when it was posted, so please don't automatically assume that it fits. (You could post your question there). Some items I can fit in: a portable bluetooth speaker (FoxL model from Soundmatters) shown in this post and in this one, small size stapler, 8-pack set of Staedtler Lumocolor markers (probably a better fit to a smaller number set of markers), actual tools (a long time ago I had to carry a set of Allen wrenches for equipment), travel eating utensils (though I have other packing options), reading glasses in case (though I usually don't find these worth carrying), a rolled rain poncho. I bet you could make a coffee travel kit that would fit here (I'm mainly a tea drinker), haircare items (some brush/comb sets), presentation remotes, external battery chargers (I think the Anker Astro E5 16000mAh fits nicely here). I haven't had a lot of time to experiment, because the product debut occurred during a time of massive work load here.

Hope some of these ideas work for you.

moriond

[GoStanford]

In the internal drop pockets, I have an iPhone 4S in Otterbox case (an old phone, but small and sturdy) and some pens. In the under-flap zip pocket, I don't use the drop pockets. I like wide pockets as in the Pilot.

[MrKnitster]

Circular Needles

Actually, I am in the middle of project that uses three sizes of circulars and some double pointeds. These pockets were perfect to keep the needles separate, available, and not tangling my yarn cakes!

[Ca1i]

A small organizer pouch fits nicely in two of these pockets together. I knew my mom's seam ripper would come in handy :-). Only problem is that this also removes the pocket from the inside so don't do this unless you want *both* the pocket inside the main compartment and inside the zippered pocket removed/enlarged.

[tpnl]

Right now, in my MB front pockets under the zipper (from a IT technology person use case):

Pocket 1: Pens, Small Multitool, Flashlight

Pocket 2: Excel gum pack, business cards, Emergency contact card for my company's DR

Pocket 3: Bluetooth speaker (Soundmatters Dash 7 - like the Jambox mini)

Pocket 4: Small 2500mAh battery pack

On O-Ring - Small TB pouch with Bluetooth earpiece. I can also clip another TB pouch with earphones, transit tokens, emergency meds (aspirin, etc)


I agree that the side pockets are harder to use when holding a 13" sized laptop. However, if your sleeve is thin, you can position it so only the back part of the side pockets are blocked by the laptop, making the side pockets more usable (still not as convenient if there was no laptop but better).
For the main compartment, a TB Freudian Slip may help as it has more zippered pockets to secure your wallet, etc.

Hope this helps with ideas

Cheers!

[marytattoo]

I've not played with those pockets much but in one I have pens and a small hand sanitizer. In another I have a grocery list. I keep a baggie with small packs of nuts and raisins in my bag and I may transfer those to the pockets. A smallish comb would fit. So would gum for those who "imbibe"!

Something to keep in mind - if those pockets get loaded up with "thicker" stuff, it will chunk up the line of the bag. It's intent was to be for knitters. Now, crafters in general. There are crafting tools for which those pockets excel.

My phone is larger than the largest iphones. In its (non-otterbox) case, the end pocket barely contains my phone. It's not ideal. So for now I just stick it in the bag, at the end, facing the pockets to avoid scratches. I decided carrying travel mugs in the bag for edc is not ideal for me so in one bottle pocket I have a small umbrella and in the other, a small bottle in which I carry pain meds.







This is a rough set-up. The plastic baggie in the main section has a small knitting project. I also have a SE holding my wallet, Travelers Notebook, and ereader; today there's also a hard back book. In the front zipper I have some coupons - (Bed Bath Beyond always sends lots). In the rear zipper are 2 OPs, one with things like Tide-to-go and the like, and in the other, charging cord, plug, ear buds. This is not the final look, but it's what's there for now. I don't use tons of pouches any longer for daily treks because they add weight. I drive so don't have to worry much about pick-pockets.

(mods-if you want to move my pics to the photos section, that's fine. I put them here in response to the questions.)

[giantsteve]

Right now, in my MB front pockets under the zipper (from a IT technology person use case):

...

On O-Ring - Small TB pouch with Bluetooth earpiece. I can also clip another TB pouch with earphones, transit tokens, emergency meds (aspirin, etc)
...

Cheers!

Thanks for the great information on how you use your bag.

Not to go off on a tangent, but does Toronto really still use transit tokens instead of some sort of mag stripe card / other tech based fare system?

Best Regards, Steve

[Ilkyway]

Great question, I have a pocket knife in one, a flashlight in a second and three pens in a third but I too am interested in what other people put in there too.

Ilkyway

[maverick]

Sorry, not the best picture (taken with an old iPhone 4 because I wanted to show my iPhone 6 in the picture). We have:
* keys tethered to a key strap, in the first organizer pocket (going from left to right).
* iPhone 6 with Tech21 case in the second organizer pocket.
* a folding knife and Zebra SC62 flashlight in the third pocket.
* a pen in the fourth pocket (and if I could find my lip balm, that's where it would be!).

We also have my Clear Organizer Wallet tethered to a key strap floating in the open area (edit: sorry, my brilliant photography skills failed to capture the Clear Organizer Wallet - doh!).

[bermudajes]

Sorry, not the best picture (taken with an old iPhone 4 because I wanted to show my iPhone 6 in the picture). We have:
* keys tethered to a key strap, in the first organizer pocket (going from left to right).
* iPhone 6 with Tech21 case in the second organizer pocket.
* a folding knife and Zebra SC62 flashlight in the third pocket.
* a pen in the fourth pocket (and if I could find my lip balm, that's where it would be!).

We also have my Clear Organizer Wallet tethered to a key strap floating in the open area.

Very helpful picture! Can you (or anyone) tell me - how many O-rings are there in that interior pocket?

[maverick]

Very helpful picture! Can you (or anyone) tell me - how many O-rings are there in that interior pocket?

There is one o-ring in the front zipppered pocket, at the very left.

[kkintea]

Two questions for folks with MB + FS:

1. Is it the case the the MB-FS has the same 4 narrow pockets inside? I saw a picture on Ravelry (@moriond, did you see it?) where it looked like the MB-FS pockets are the same as the MB zipped exterior that I have not found useful. The advantage I see is that the two pockets are split into 2 zip compartments, so I'd still get the effect of having a bigger pocket.

2. Can I put the SCB-FS in the MB? Specs-wise, it seems like it would work. Anybody with both the MB and the SCB-FS who could post a picture, that'd be fantastic. Contemplating how I could get the most use of one FS.