About this blog

I make bags and post tutorials on how to make them. I'll tell you what went well and warn you about any disasters.

Sunday 30 October 2016

Bag #43: Sew-in Frame Bag



I bought this 8”/20 cm frame with a view to making a vintage style bag.  Later on I changed my mind and decided to make an evening bag.  I found a lovely patterned velour which gave the bag softness and texture. 

There are lots of different frames out there, so you need to be able to make a pattern for your size of frame.  The technique is quite simple and I have explained it below.

The amount of fabric required is a 10” or 25 cm strip of each fabric if you are making an 8”/20 cm frame bag like mine.  See my comments at the end about choosing your lining. I used a quilt wadding to pad the bag and attached a firm iron-on interfacing to the lining to give it more body.  I chose not to add any pockets inside.  Having quite thick seams makes the fabric stay in the frame more easily – I think cotton would have rattled around in this large frame – I would have had to add some cord inside the seam to fatten it up.

The finished size is 8½”/21.5 cm high (excluding the carrying handle), 13”/33 cm wide at the base and 2¼”/5.5 cm deep at the base.  This frame had attachments for a chain handle but I didn’t have one.  I might add one later on.

Skill level: Intermediate – the sewing is quite straightforward but you need to make your own pattern for the purse frame.  Some experience of sewing is useful because it will help you to work out the shape you want.

I used a stitch length of 3 throughout as the fabric was bulkier than my usual cotton.  I used ¼”/6mm seams for the outer bag and slighter wider seams for the lining.

I have included metric and imperial measurements but they are not exactly interchangeable, so you should stick to either one or the other.


Skills used in this project:

  • Using a sew-in bag frame


Step 1: Making the pattern


On a large piece of paper, draw round the top of the purse frame, marking the centre.
Pivot one of the top corners so that the hinge swings out by about 1”/2.5 cm.  Draw a line from the top of the purse frame to the hinge.  Make a mark ⅜”/1 cm further along the same diagonal line.  This will be your hinge mark. Fold the paper in half and copy the hinge mark onto the other side of the paper.  You know your bag will be symmetrical now.



You have now designed the top of your bag. The bottom is up to you.  I wanted my bag to be quite large (I made my pattern 10”/25 cm tall) and to have a wider base (mine was 15¼”/ 39 cm at its widest point).  But you could curve the bottom and put in a dart to give it a rounded shape.  Or make it much shorter and more purse-like.

Working just on one side of the bag, I originally drew the side diagonal line right down to the horizontal base line.  To create the flat bottom, I measured 2”/5 cm along the bottom and side line, folded them so that they met and drew a line from one mark to the other.  This created the corner cut outs.


Step 2: Cutting out


For an 8”/20 cm frame like mine, cut out the following:

10“ x 15¼ “ /25 cm x 39 cm Bag sides (cut 2 outer fabric, 2 wadding, 2 lining, 2 interfacing), shaped according to your pattern, above.


Step 3: Assembling the outer bag and lining

Mark the hinge position on the fabrics.

Attach the wadding to the wrong side of each of the outer fabrics, by pinning, ironing or gluing, as appropriate.



Place the outer fabric pieces right sides together and sew the side and bottom seams, starting at one hinge mark and finishing at the other hinge mark. Do not sew the corner cut outs yet.

This is what the corners should look like
when sewn (shown here in the lining)

Next, starting with one corner, flatten the fabrics so to corner becomes a straight line, match the seams and sew across. 

Do the same for the other corner.

Attach the interfacing to the wrong side of each of the lining.

With right sides together sew around the sides and bottom from one hinge mark to the other.

Then sew the corners as above.


Step 4: Attaching lining to outer bag

Turn one of the bag pieces right side out (it doesn’t matter whether it is the outer or the lining) and put it inside the other one.



To sew the top seams, pin the lining bag to the outer bag, right sides together.  Sew the lining to the outer bag along the top seam, as shown in the photo.

On one side of the bag, leave a gap of 4”/10 cm for turning.

Turn through and sew up the gap (it won’t be seen, so it doesn’t have to be neat).  If using a fabric that irons well, this step isn't really necessary as you can just press the edges under and they will stay that way when you sew in the bag frame - this black fabric was quite slippery and I wanted to be sure that both lining and outer fabric were attached to the frame.


Step 5: Sewing on the frame



With the outer fabric now facing outwards, push the top seam firmly into the frame and clip to hold it in place.

If the stitches will be visible on the inside, consider using an invisible thread (I wish I had!).



Starting at the centre, sew along one side of the frame to the end using a running stitch and fill in the alternate stitches when sewing back towards the centre.

Sew the other half of this side of the frame in the same way.

Do the same for the other side of the frame.




Your bag is now finished.  Time to get dressed up and go somewhere fancy to show off your new bag.  Make sure it’s not anywhere to dark or other people won’t be able to see it!


In this project I learnt:

  • When choosing a lining fabric, it is worth thinking about the type of frame you have and what colour thread you will use to sew on the frame. I have made sew-in frame purses before and I was able to make my stitches almost invisible.  I hadn’t realised that this frame made that impossible.  I used heave duty black thread but it really stood out and it looked so untidy on the inside.  I should have used an invisible thread or a black lining fabric so that the stitches didn’t look so gruesome. 
  • This was a cheap frame.  The fixings on the inside for the chain made it really hard to get a needle through some of the holes and it is one of the few times I have snapped a needle.  Perhaps a more expensive frame would be better designed.
  • I enjoy hand sewing but this frame took ages to sew and I got really bored before the end.  I would happily use a sew-in frame for a small bag or purse, but for a larger one, in future I shall definitely stick to glue-in frames. 





Sunday 23 October 2016

Bag # 42: Metal Insert Handle Bag



I have lots of bag hardware but I’ve always been too scared to use it.  I decided it was time to bite the bullet and have a go.  I bought these metal handles at the Festival of Quilts.  They were dirt cheap so I wasn’t expecting much from them.  It turned out that they were really easy to use.

I think this bag looks really smart when made out of faux suede, but it would look equally good in cotton or faux leather.  I used a quilt batting for the wadding and a firm iron-on interfacing, although a lighter one would have been adequate (I like my pockets to be strong!). It would be great for daytime or a smart evening out.  I found this colourful cotton lining in my stash which creates a wonderful surprise when I open the zip. It’s most unlike me to go for a colourful lining.  My gut reaction is to choose a matching black, but I’m trying to be more adventurous.

There is a mobile phone pocket and an envelope zip pocket for extra security. The mobile phone pocket fits a 3” wide phone, but it could be made wider and pen slots could be added if required.  

I thought long and hard about the closure.  I think a magnetic clasp would have worked better. My zip didn’t look great so I have suggested a slight amendment to how it should be attached.

For this bag, you would need a 12”/30.5 cm strip of each of the fabrics.

The finished size is approximately 11” high x 11” wide x 2” deep (28 cm x 28 cm x 5 cm).

Skill level: Difficult – There are lots of steps and as I didn’t like everything about the bag, I have suggested different ways of making it which are not accompanied by pictures.  For example, you would need to know how to fit a concealed top edge zip or magnetic clasp. Also, I haven’t made a pattern so you will need to create the bag’s shape yourself. Not one for beginners.

I used my normal stitch length (2.5) throughout but increased it to 3.5 for topstitching.  I used ½”/12mm seams for the outer bag and slighter wider seams for the lining. I have stated wherever I used narrower seams.

I have included metric and imperial measurements but they are not exactly interchangeable, so you should stick to either one or the other.


Skills used in this project:
  • Using metal hardware
  • Working with faux suede


Step 1: Cutting out

Cut out the following:

12” x 13”/ 30.5 cm x 33 cm Bag Sides (cut 2 faux suede, 2 wadding)

12” x 5½”/30.5 cm x 14 cm  Bag top (cut 2 faux suede)

12” x 8”/30.5 cm x 20 cm  Lining (cut 2 lining, 2 interfacing)

10” x 6”/25 cm x 15 cm Envelope pocket (cut 2 lining, 2 interfacing)

6” x 6½”/15 cm x 16.5 cm  Mobile phone pocket (cut 2 lining, 1 interfacing)

10”/25 cm Zip*

3” x 2”/7.5 cm x 5 cm Zip tab (cut 1 faux suede)*

4” x 9”/10 cm x 23 cm Zip casing (cut 2 faux suede)*

*Alternatively, you might prefer to use a magnetic clasp instead.



Decide what shape you want the bag to be.  I chose to have a gentle sloping curve at the top and a tight curve at the bottom.  I drew round a mug for the bottom curve and hand drew the top curve.  It needs to be symmetrical on both sides.  I cut one side of the large faux suede and then folded the fabric in half lengthways and marked the shape I wanted on the other side.

The bottom curve needs to be cut from all matching fabric pieces – bag sides, bag side wadding, bag lining and interfacing.

The top curve needs to be cut from the bag sides, bag side wadding and bag top.


Step 2: Creating the shape (optional)
Darts sewn in the faux suede/wadding

I cut darts in the bottom corners so create a more three dimensional effect.  Mine were 1½” deep but I didn’t like the end result – too boxy and they lost the gentle curve, so I recommend 1” darts.


Sew darts in all bottom pieces (faux suede, wadding, lining, interfacing)


Step 3: Making the envelop pocket


After attaching interfacing to both pocket pieces and the lining, pin one pocket piece to one of the bag linings, right sides together, with the long side of the pocket along the top edge of the lining.  Draw a ⅜” x 7”/1 cm x 18 cm rectangle centrally about 1½”/4 cm from the top of the pocket.  Sew around this rectangle through all the layers that you have just pinned together.  


Cut a slit in this rectangle (as shown in the photo) making sure not to cut the stitches. 

Push the pocket through this ‘letterbox’, shape in the lining so that it sits flat and press. You will now have a neat opening to attach the zip.

Pin the zip to the pocket so that the right side shows through the aperture in the bag lining.  Sew all round.

Pin the remaining pocket piece to this one, right sides together and sew around all four sides, keeping the bag lining out of the way as you do not want to sew through this.  


Step 4: Making the mobile phone pocket

After attaching the interfacing to the wrong side of one of the pocket pieces, place the phone pocket pieces right sides together and sew all round, leaving a 2”/5 cm gap at the bottom for turning. Turn through and press.


From 1”/2.5 cm at each side of the pocket fabric, create a ½”/12 mm pleat.  Pin the pocket to the centre of the other lining piece and sew down each vertical side, keeping the pleats out of the way (as shown in the photo).


Now sew the pleats in place by sewing from about ⅓ of the way up the pocket on one side, along the bottom (to close the gap and sew the base of the pocket), then about ⅓ of the way up the pleat on the other side.  


Step 5: Attaching the zip

My original method of attaching the zip didn’t work, so this is an alternative way which I think would work.

Sew the zip tab onto the closed end of the zip. To do this, fold all the raw edges under by 
about ¼”/6 mm, fold in half so that the short edges meet and sew the tab to the end of the zip, sewing across the zip and all the way round.

Sew the zip casing to the zip. The short edges will form the sides of the cases.  Fold these under and sew.



Fold the casing in half so that the long edges meet, right sides together.  Place the fabric over the zip so that the one edge of the zip sits neatly in the fold. The open end of the zip will match one end of the casing and the other end with the tab attached will hang beyond the casing.

Push the teeth at the open end of the zip in towards the fold so that the teeth will curve inwards when you sew.  Curving the teeth at the end will prevent the slider from coming off. 

Sew along the zip casing to attach one edge of the zip.  It can be either right or wrong side up at this stage as they look the same.

Do the same for the other zip edge.

Fold the casing back so that the right sides and the zip are exposed.

Top stitch along both sides of the zip for a professional finish.


Step 6: Assembling the lining



Place one lining piece and one bag top, right sides (straight edge) together.  Slip the zip casing centrally between them, raw edges meeting, with the slider facing the bag top.  Sew.

Do the same for the other side of the lining and other bag top.

The zip casing is now sandwiched between the lining and the bag top.

Make sure the zip is open – this will be necessary for turning through.

Now sew the lining pieces and the bottom 1”/2.5 cm of the bag top together, right sides together, leaving a gap at the bottom for turning.


Step 7: Assembling the outer bag


Place each bag piece over the lining and mark where the sewing has started (1”/2.5 cm above the zip). 

Sew the outer bag pieces together starting from one of these marks, all the way down the side, across the base and up to the corresponding mark on the other side.


Step 8: Joining the lining to the outer bag



Pin one of the bag sides to one of the bag tops, right sides together and sew round the top, starting at one side seam and finishing at the other.

Do the same for the other bag side/top.

Trim the wadding as close to the curve as possible.



Top stitch around the edges of the bag top for a neat finish.

Turn the bag through the gap in the lining.

Sew up the gap.


Step 9: Inserting the handles

Place pins around the bag top to hold all the layers in place.



Starting on one bag side, decide where the metal handle should be positioned and draw round the inside. 



Cut away all layers of the fabric, cutting slightly wider than the drawing line.



Place the outer metal piece on the outside of the bag with the prongs pointing through the gap. Tuck the fabric in and attach the other part of the metal insert, pushing the prongs down to attach it.



Attach the other handle to the other side of the bag.

 


Now you have a smart bag, yet surprisingly roomy bag for special day or evening out.  Now you just need to organise that treat.


In this project I learnt:
  • The metal hardware was really easy to apply.  If you have ever inserted a magnetic clasp, this uses the same principle.  They trick is to make sure that both sides of the fabric are pinned so that they don’t move and to cut the fabric a little wider than the gap in the handle so that wisps of fabric don’t stick out. Although there were some parts of this bag that I wasn’t happy with, the handle wasn’t one of them.
  • I like the shape of this bag but the base didn’t end up quite as I imagined.  I wanted a curve, but I made the darts too big and it has ended up looking too square. 
  • I have used faux suede before and it is just as easy to work with as any other woven fabric. I gave a lot of thought to the closure and decided to use a zip which ran the whole width of the bag.  It didn’t work because it was too wide and won’t lay flat.  A shorter zip that doesn’t join at the sides would work better with the thick faux suede or a magnetic clasp.
  • The pockets worked brilliantly and looked amazing – I’m really pleased with them.


Sunday 16 October 2016

Bag #41: Christmas Sack



As all crafters know, Christmas makes begin in July when the shops start to fill with festive supplies.  So, by now, most sewists will have completed many of their projects and gifts.  After all, who has the time in December?

I had most of the hessian left over from last week’s bag and wanted to make a Christmas gift sack.  This is a small one just big enough for a pet or adult; it would leave a child very disappointed.

You could keep it completely plain or add an appropriate appliqué design for the recipient including personalising it with their name. Mine is for my cat, so I added a cat face and the words 'Santa Paws'.  I used acrylic felt which I bonded to the hessian and then sewed, but if you were short of time and didn’t want to sew, you could buy self-adhesive felt which would save on the sewing time.  I haven’t tried it myself so I don’t know if it would stick to hessian.  I wouldn’t sew through it because I don’t think the adhesive is safe for sewing machines, but if anyone knows otherwise, please let me know.

I used French seams to avoid raw edges inside.  This was really good quality, sturdy hessian, but the edges began to unravel while I worked on the free motion embroidery, so I would recommend sewing a straight line of stitches all round, close to the edge, just to hold it together while working on it.  They will then be hidden in the seam allowance.

Thanks to Tilly Rose for the helpful tips she kindly gave me on free motion embroidery when I spoke to her at the Knitting and Stitching Show at Ally Pally, London last weekend. It may not look it, but it’s a vast improvement on my previous attempts!

Usually I would make a channel for the drawstring to go through but I thought the hessian would look more interesting if I made eyelets from it.  If you don’t like this look, you could make the top hem longer so that it includes a channel on the inside or add a colourful sew-on channel on the outside.

You will need 20”/half a metre of hessian and that will leave you with enough to spare to make last week’s bottle gift bag out of the leftovers.

The finished size is 16”/40.5 cm high x 10”/25 cm wide x 4”/10 cm deep when loosely filled with goodies.

Skill level: Easy if you buy self adhesive felt.

I used a stitch length of 3 throughout as the hessian was slightly bulkier than my usual cotton and ½”/12mm seams for the same reason.  . Hessian doesn’t have a right or wrong side, so where I refer to the right side, it’s just whatever side you have chosen as the outside of the bag.

I have included metric and imperial measurements but they are not exactly interchangeable, so you should stick to either one or the other.


Skills used in this project:
  • Machine appliqué
  • Free motion embroidery
  • Sewing eyelets
  • French seams


Step 1: Cutting out

Cut out the following:

14” x 21”/35.5 cm x 53 cm Sack front and back (cut 2 hessian)

39½”/ 1 m Drawstring  (mine was ½”/12 mm wide)

Felt for appliqué 

Heat n bond (or other similar product e.g. bondaweb) unless using self-adhesive felt

Embellishments (I also used a ribbon for the bow)


Step 2: Applying the image

If using self-adhesive felt, draw your image, cut it out and stick it onto the hessian.

If using plain felt, follow these instructions:



Decide on the image you want on your sack. I drew a basic outline, but you could print an image from your computer (subject to any copyright restrictions). As you will be attaching it to the back of your appliqué pieces, the image would normally need to be reversed.  However, as felt doesn’t have a right or wrong side, it isn’t necessary here. (I didn't work this out until afterwards and painstakingly reversed my images!!)

Trace the image onto the paper side of heat n bond and cut out roughly (no need to cut out exactly at this stage).

Iron onto felt (with other fabrics, iron onto wrong side).

Cut out accurately following the traced line.

Peel off backing and arrange the image so that you are happy with it.  Iron the sticky side of the felt (it has a slight sheen) onto the hessian.



Sew round using free motion embroidery. I used a contrasting thread as a feature but I wasn’t very good at it and all my mistakes show! Using a co-ordinating thread is more subtle and mistakes don’t show as much but it means you have to keep changing the thread if you have a multi-coloured design.

Add any embellishments. Delicate embellishments are best added once the bag has been finished. I added a ribbon which I sewed on after the bag was finished as I didn’t want it damaged during the assembly process.


Step 3: Making the eyelets



Make 4 eyelets on each side of the bag, starting 5”/12.5 cm from the top.

Measure the tape and make them twice the width of the drawstring.  My drawstring was ½”/12mm wide, so I made them 1”/2.5 cm square.  This can be done using free motion embroidery or normal stitching.  I used free motion embroidery on the front and normal stitching on the back.  They don’t look much different but the free motion embroidery was much quicker and easier.  I used a dark thread to make a feature of the stitches.

 
Cut out the inside of the eyelets just inside the stitching line.


Step 4: Assembling the bag

As you can see, I forgot to cut out the eyelets,
but remembered before the bag was fully assembled.
To make the French seams, with wrong sides together, sew a ½”/12 mm seam around the sides and bottom, leaving a gap next to the eyelets on each side (same size gap as the eyelets). Press.



Turn inside out so that the right sides are now together.  Sew a slightly wider seam around the sides and bottom to completely encase the raw edges, again leaving a gap next to the eyelets.  I trimmed the raw edges slightly to make sure that they would fall within the seam allowance.  Press.



Now for the top hem.  This is quite a deep hem so that it won’t be visible when the bag is in use. Turn the end under by ½/12mm (so that the raw edge is hidden) and then fold over again so that you have a 2”/5 cm hem.  Sew all round close to the bottom of the hem. Press.

Turn right side out.  Press.

Thread drawstring through eyelets and tie a knot at each end.



Fill with presents for that extra special person/pet.  It will look great under the Christmas tree when December arrives.


In this project I learnt:
  • This bag would be really dull without the appliqué. I wasn’t sure whether the felt could cope with a hot iron, so I started off using a medium iron but the heat n bond didn’t stick.  I put a piece of plain cotton fabric over the felt when ironing on hot and it was fine.  I read afterwards that you should iron from the wrong side of the main fabric when using thicker appliqué.  It pays to read the instructions!  I drew my own images and printed the letters using Word Art.  My drawing wasn’t very good so I probably should have printed an image too!
  • I’m not very good at free motion embroidery, but there’s only one way to get better and that’s practise. I took on board the advice Tilly gave me and I could definitely see an improvement by the end, so my next attempt should be better.  The problem is that I leave long gaps between my attempts and forget everything I’ve learnt.  I’m going to try to do a little every day in future to improve my confidence and skill.
  • I really like this style of eyelet.  It goes well with the rustic feel and look of the hessian.  I wasn’t sure if they would be strong enough, so I tried it out first on a scrap of fabric and was really impressed with how sturdy it was.  I used free motion embroidery for the eyelets on the front of the bag and a normal stitch on the back.  The free motion embroidery actually looked slightly neater and was much quicker.
  • I tried out French seams at the start of this year and have used them several times since.  It is such an easy way of creating a neat, professional looking seam in an unlined bag. They also give the bag extra strength for heavier gifts.  I wasn’t sure whether they would be too bulky when using hessian, but no, they were fine when pressed.