Tote Bags Part 1

I'm making tote bags for the Scout House fundraiser.  I'm a little nervous because part of the design is cutting apart and sewing on the "I came I danced  I Concord" T-shirt. It just feels wrong to cut apart a shirt that's still intact.  But before I get to that, I need to make the bags.

I have set of instructions and bought yardage for two bags.  But once I took a close look at the instructions and compared it to the size of the T-shirts, I realized I needed to modify the original layout.  I wanted my bag to be shorter and wider.  You know the saying, Measure twice, cut once?  Well I need one: Calculate thrice, measure twice, cut once.  I knew when I was cutting the fabric, even though I had measured at least twice, that it felt wrong.  After I cut it, it was obvious something was wrong.  I went back to my calculations and discovered I missed a step which was to have added 7" to the overall length. Seven inches.

Cripes!  Where do you think I went wrong?

Um.... perhaps my rule should be Calculate clearly, measure twice, cut once.

Fortunately, since I purchased the material based on the original instructions, I bought more than I needed.  Unfortunately, had I cut it correctly, I could have used the extra material. I think I had enough for 3-4 bags.  At this point, I'll be lucky if I can make the pair without buying more.  <sigh>   I believe I now have the correct calculations and laid it out so that all the pieces will fit on the remaining material.  However, I shall wait until tomorrow before I work on it again so I can give it a fresh start.