Bag done

The side without the pocket; you can see a bit of the exposed-zipper top closure

The side with the exterior pocket

The one appliquéd side seam that avoids cutting off the owl motifs

In comparison to the original bag from which I took the pattern,

aside from the obvious fabric and trim differences, this one is much more structured, the pocket and zipper placement is reversed, and the handles are shorter — partly intentionally and partly because given the length of fabric I had, I would have had to seam them not once but twice to make them as long. These address three things that annoy me about the original: it can't stand up by itself, but collapses if I put it on the floor, making it harder to grab the handles or reach into it; I prefer to wear it on my opposite side; and the handles tend to flop off my shoulder when worn. On this one the handles are actually a bit too short to conveniently wear with some of my heavier RTW coats, which have (too) deep armholes, not that I think this is really a wintry fabric anyway; still, I'd make slightly longer ones were I to sew another of these.