a two colour twist ....

I made this 2 colour variation of the basic boxed bag (step by step tutorial here). You must first decide what proportions of each fabric you would like, as you can create a 50/50 split or just have a little of the second fabric showing as I have here. The main thing to remember is to add 1/4" seam allowance to each piece to allow for the joining of the fabric. For example, a finished size of 10" with a 70/30 split would require 1 x 7 1/4" piece and 1 x 3 1/4" piece for each side. The fabrics should be joined using a 1/4" seam allowance before the pattern pieces are cut to shape and assembled. The other thing to be aware of when creating a two colour piece is to make sure the joins between the fabrics line up at the seams when sewing the front and back together. The two colour version is therefore slightly more advanced than a single colour bag, but provides opportunity to play with mixing different coloured and patterned fabrics.

Mx

boxed bag for the boys !!

 

I made this simple wash bag as a gift for a male friend. This is a variation on the bag in the last step by step tutorial, showing how fabric choice can change the look. I used thick upholstery fabric with a jeans print for the outer, to give it stiffness which helps hold the shape without the need for interfacing. I used a shower curtain to make the lining water resistant, so it's perfect for use as a wash bag.

 

Mx

Basic boxed bag...

Continuing the theme of zipper pouches, I decided to return to the boxed corners with this step by step guide on how to make a fully boxed, lined pouch/bag. This makes a neat but roomy bag, perfect for cosmetics or stationary!

 

To start, back your lining fabric with some medium weight iron on interfacing to give it structure and help hold the boxed shape. Then, cut the following:

• 2 x outer fabric measuring 7 1/2" x 10 1/2" 
• 2 x lining fabric measuring 7 1/2" x 10 1/2"
• 1 x cardboard square template measuring 1 1/2"

You will also need a 8" zip and cotton to colour match the fabric. The handmade label is an optional extra I like to add into all my sewing projects. A short length of coordinating ribbon to use as a zip pull is another optional extra finishing touch which can look nice.
 

Using your square template, trace around each of the corners of all 4 fabric pieces. Cut the squares of fabric off and discard. 

 

Make a sandwich with the lining right side up, zipper tape teeth facing up and outer fabric right side down. Pin and sew using 1/4" seam allowance with the zipper foot on your machine. Fold the fabric back away from the zip and create another sandwich to attach the other side. 

 

Lay out flat and press. Top stitch along the edges of the zip for a neat finish. Part open the zip to allow for turning through.

 

Now turn so the outer fabrics are right sides together and the linings are right sides together. Pin around the edges, leaving the cutaway corners and a gap in the base of the lining. Add your handmade label into the side seam of the lining if you are including one.

Sew around the edges using the 1/4" seam allowance, ensuring you do a locking stitch at either end of every length of stitching, (putting the machine into reverse to create a short length of tripled up stitches to hold everything in place). 

To shape the boxed corners, open the fabric out where you have a gap in the stitching and pinch the seams together to create a flat edge. Try to ensure the side and base seams align before pinning and sewing.
 

 

For the corners near the zip at the top of the pouch, you need to pinch both the lining and outer fabric corners together. I find it easiest to pinch the corner of one fabric and ensure this is lined up, then still gripping this, pinch in the other side and bring this into line. It can be a little more tricky to ensure all the layers are aligned with each other and central to the zipper tape. Once all of the corners are pinned, sew on the machine using the same 1/4" seam allowance. You may wish to reverse stitch over the zip when sewing the top corners to reinforce the ends of the zip. 
 

Turn through to double check everything is OK on the right side before turning back through. Cut away the excess from the ends of the zipper, (using old scissors so you don't blunt nice fabric ones!) You might also want to go back around the seam allowance inside using pinking shears, zigzag stitching or an overlocker, to prevent fraying and remove excess bulk. 
 

Turn back through and slip stitch the gap in the lining before pushing this into the pouch. Give it a final press, loop the ribbon through the zip pull, knot and trim the ends to complete the pouch.

Don't forget to save your scraps... all of those little squares cut from the corners can be used in little patchwork projects and mini makes!!

 

Mx 

for the little kiddy winks ...

 

I bought these plain white bodysuits to customise for gifting. I used the screen sensations 'kiddywinks' screen and masked each design to screen print them separately with different coloured screen sensations inks. I used the 'smoothie' for the unicorn, 'niagara' for the bunny and 'seaglass' for the dinosaur. I think these cute little designs work perfectly to customise clothes for a baby.

 

Mx

Front zip pouch

For this tutorial I wanted to create another variation on the zipper pouch, this time moving the zip part way down the front panel. This is easy to make without a lining, however, I like my pouches to be fully lined for a more professional finish. Adding a lining means this version is a little more tricky than a basic pouch, but I think it is worth it. Follow the step by step instructions below to sew your own...

 

Add iron on interfacing to the wrong side of the lining fabric (following the instructions on the interfacing). Then, cut 1 x outer fabric and 1 x lining fabric into rectangles of the following measurements:

• 6 1/2" x 7 1/2" 
• 5" x 7 1/2"
• 2" x 7 1/2" 

You will also need coordinating cotton, an 8" zip, a hand sewing needle and a handmade tag (optional) to complete the pouch.
 

First, take the 2" pieces and create a sandwich, lining right side up, zip with teeth facing up and outer fabric right side down. Line up the top edges of the fabric along the outer edge of the zipper tape and pin in position.

 

Sew along the edge with a 1/4" seam allowance using the zipper foot on your machine. Fold the fabric back, press and top stitch. 
 

Repeat the sandwich for the other side of the zip to attach the 5" fabric pieces. Lay down the lining right side up, zip with teeth facing up and outer fabric right side down. Make sure everything is lined up along the top edge of the zipper tape, as well as in line with the fabric on the other side of the zip and pin.

Sew with a 1/4" seam allowance. As before, fold the fabric back, press and top stitch.

 

To prepare the zip, you will need to create a stopper across the end. This is done using a hand sewing needle and thread to tack across the zipper teeth to hold them closed. The tacking won't be visible on the finished pouch, as it is hidden within the seams. Open the zip so the zip pull is not going to be trapped in the seams, but allow a large enough gap to turn through later.

 

Now to attach the back, fold the lining fabric up towards the zip, so it is out of the way of the outer fabric. Then, place the 6 1/2" outer fabric piece onto the project so right sides are together. Line it up and pin along the bottom edge, then sew across the base with a 1/4" seam allowance. 
 

For the lining fabric, pull the outer fabric out of the way and pin the largest lining fabric piece in place with right sides together. This time sew across the base leaving a gap in the middle for turning through. 
 

At this stage, the project should look like the first image above when opened out. To sew up the top and sides, you now need to fold the lining fabric in to face right sides together and the outer fabric in to face right sides together (second image). If you are adding a handmade label, fold the tab to sit between the lining layers and pin in position with the raw edges facing out so they will be caught in the seams. 

You then need to fold the project in, so the sewn base edges line up and the fabric is sandwiched with the zip in the centre and looking like the neat rectangle above. Pin around the sides and top, leaving the base edge.
 

Sew around the sides and top so that all of the layers are joined together on three sides, (along the base edge, only the linings should be joined to each other and the outer fabrics joined to each other with a gap between). To reinforce the zip, reverse stitch to add extra rows of stitching along either end of the zip when sewing around the edges. 
 

Before turning through, remove excess bulk. Trim away the ends of the zipper and snip the corners, then carefully remove excess fabric within the seam allowance all of the way around the edge. You can either use pinking shears, (as I have here) or an overlocker to do this. 
 

You can now turn through, using the gap in the base of the lining to reach around and through the open zip to pull the layers back out. This is quite tricky so just take it steady and be patient. Once you have the layers the right way round, you can use a bamboo turner to help push the corners into shape. Finally, give it a press and slip stitch the gap in the lining closed. As an extra finishing touch, you can tie on a piece of ribbon around the zip pull. 

Mx 

circle pouch...

Cut the fabric as follows:

• 2 x 4 1/2" circles from outer fabric
• 2 x 4 1/2" circles from lining fabric
• 2 x 4 1/2" circles from batting
• 1 x 2" square from outer fabric

You will then need to cut one of each of the circles in half, leaving a full circle and 2 half circles in each of the outer, lining and batting fabrics. You will also need a zip at least 5" long and a metal key ring.

Take a half circle of batting, outer fabric and lining and sandwich with the zip. You need the batting first, then outer fabric right side up, followed by the zip facing down and the lining faced down on top. Make sure the flat edges line up along the top edge of the zip, then pin and sew together with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Fold the fabric layers back and create another sandwich using the other half circles, attached to the other side of the zip. Place lining right side up, then zip right side facing up, outer fabric right side down and batting on top. Again, ensure all the flat edges line up along the edge of the zipper tape. Pin in place and sew with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Carefully trim away the excess batting along the seam to reduce the bulk. Then, fold the fabric back and give it a good press, making sure all the layers of the fabric are laying flat away from the zip. Top stitch along the edge of the zip to create a neat finish.

Now for the tab...
1. fold in half crease, then open out
2. fold raw edges in towards the centre crease
3. with the raw edges sat along the centre line, fold the fabric in half
4. top stitch down each side of the tab

You must now prepare your zip. Unzip the zip half way back. On the outer edge of where your circle sits, you need to tack across your zip. You need to hand sew around the teeth several times to hold the zip closed (don't worry it wont be seen in the finished pouch!)

To attach the tab, you need to fold the tab in half so the raw edges are together. Now place on the top side of zip where you have tacked across it. The raw edges should face the outer edge of the circle, with the folded edge towards the centre. Sew across the tab to hold it in place.

Take each of the full circles and sandwich on top of the project. With the zip facing up, add the full circle of outer fabric on top facing right side down, then the batting and finally the lining on top right side up. Make sure the zipper pull is in the middle of this sandwich, open enough to turn but not near the edge to get caught in the stitching or cut off!! Clip or pin the sandwich together, making sure the edges of the circles all line up.

Sew all the way around the circle, easing the fabric around and periodically lifting up the presser foot to get a smooth edge. To make the zip extra secure, you can back stitch over the ends a couple of times as you sew around. You can then cut off the overhanging zip.

 To help the pouch edges look neat and make turning out easier, trim away the excess batting from between the layers.

Trimming around the seam allowance with pinking shears also helps to remove excess fabric and ease the turning out. You can always use normal scissors to clip around the curve if you don't have pinking shears.

The final stage is to turn the project out, press and top stitch around the outer edge of the pouch. The top stitching should enclose the raw edges on the inside of the pouch to create a neat finish inside and out. To finish the edge of the zipper, you could simply leave a gap in the top stitching to allow the zip to close all the way to the top. However, I didn't like the zipper tape being visible when the pouch was open, so I top stitched over the zip. I then used the colour matched thread to hand stitch the teeth together at the very end, using a ladder stitch catching beneath so the thread didn't show and the teeth were pulled tight together (if that bit doesn't make sense and you are as fussy as me and want to know... send a message and ill try to explain in more detail, but I'm sure nobody else will worry about it!!). To finish, simply add the key ring and it's ready to use.

Mx

a neat zip ...

For this sewing step by step, I made another zipper pouch, but used a different technique for the zip on this one which requires a little more skill to create a neater finish.

 

 

To begin with, I added iron on interfacing to my lining fabric to give the pouch more structure. I then cut the fabric pieces as follows:

• Cut 2 x outer fabric measuring 9" x 4 1/2"
• Cut 2 x lining fabric measuring 9" x 4 1/2"
• Cut 4 x small rectangles measuring 1 1/4 " x 3" (2 from lining fabric and 2 from outer fabric)
• You will also need a zip, coordinating cotton and if you would like, a hand made tag. Some contrasting cotton and a hand sewing needle are also handy when altering the zip.

The first stage once you have cut all of your fabrics is to prepare the zip, by adding coordinating fabric stoppers onto either end. To do this, you will need to press the fabric for the stopper tabs, folding each of them in half, wrong sides together. Using a hand needle and contrasting cotton, tack over the zipper teeth 1" from the end of the zipper tape.

 

 

To attach, place the outer fabric tab right side down (opened out fully) onto the zipper teeth, and the lining fabric right side up beneath. Ensuring the end of the fabric aligns with the end of the zipper tape, sew across the zip through all of the layers approximately 1 1/4" from the end using your zipper foot on the machine. Now fold the tabs back along the half way creases to reveal the right sides of the fabrics. Trim the excess to remove the bulk, leaving only the outer fabric and the outer side of the lining fabric (cutting away the end of the zip and inner lining). Repeat for the other end of the zip, ensuring the zipper is pulled open to remain within the new length of the zip.

 

You can then begin construction of the bag. Layer one piece of the outer fabric and one lining fabric, right sides together. Place the zip between the fabrics along the top edge, with the zipper teeth facing the outer fabric. Pin and stitch using a zipper foot, leaving a 1/4" seam allowance. Fold right sides out and press, then top stitch. Repeat for the other side.

  You should now have all of fabrics joined together with a zip across the centre. With a project like this, it may be necessary to trim the edges neat again at this stage to ensure everything lines up.

 

Now, open the zip to allow for turning through once sewn. fold the project so lining pieces are right sides together and outer fabrics are right sides together. Then position the zip so the teeth are facing down towards the lining. Pin your tag within the lining section if you are adding one. Then pin around the edges and sew, remembering ​to leave a gap in the lining for turning through.

To get the really neat points in the corners, it may be a good idea to trim the corners off the fabrics to remove excess... just don't cut through your stitching! Turn out the bag and slip stitch the gap in the lining. Press, then push the lining down inside the bag and push out the corners before giving it a finishing press. You may also need to use a bamboo turner tool to push out the corners without poking a hole through. It's a bit of a tricky one to master, but it does give a professional finish once complete.

 

 

Mx