Bag #39: Craft Caddy

I always have lots of projects on the go, so this craft caddy is a must.  I made it just the right size and shape for my needs but it could easily be adapted to be bigger or smaller.  Or it could be taller with more pockets.  That’s the joy of making it yourself – it’s just right for you. As soon as I have time, I'm going to make one half the size for smaller bits and pieces. The pockets would look good made from a contrast fabric. As usual, I used cotton fabric throughout, including a calico lining.

I made the main body with foam because I wanted it to be quite firm and upright, but it could be made with wadding for a floppier, less structured bag.  I used wadding for the pockets so that they would have a softer shape.  I allowed an extra inch (2.5 cm) of fabric for each pocket (two on each side) to make room to put things in it.  If you want pockets that hold more, you could increase that.  You might want one large pocket or several smaller ones for pens, tools, etc. I didn’t add any internal pockets because I had plenty on the outside, but they could easily be added to the lining using the same technique.

I cut straight strips from a plain cotton fabric for the binding.  As the edges are all straight, there is no need for bias binding.  When adding the binding for the pockets, I did it all by machine because the inside of the pockets if barely visible.  However, when sewing the binding around the top I decided to sew it to the outer fabric and fold it over onto the lining and hand sew it in place along the stitch line.  This is how I would normally sew binding on a quilt as it needs to look great on both sides.  This suited me because I enjoy hand sewing and had the time to do it, but it’s not essential.  It’s up to you!

The finished size is 16”/41 cm wide and 7”/18 cm deep at the top, 10”/25 cm high and it has a 10”/25 cm square base.

For the main bag, you will need 10” x 50” of outer fabric, lining, and foam and for the pockets  12” x 28” of outer fabric, lining and wadding.

Skill level – intermediate, but easy for a quilter who would be familiar with quilting and binding.

I used my normal stitch length (2.5) throughout but increased it to 3 for top stitching.  I used ½”/12 mm seams for the outer bag (due to the thickness of the foam) 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:

• Making bag handles

• Free motion embroidery

Step 1: Cutting out

I ended up using a different cord as this
was too floppy.

Cut out the following:

10” x 10” (25 cm x 25 cm) Bag sides and base (Cut 5 outer fabric, 5 bag foam, 5 lining)

12” x 7” (30.5 cm x 18 cm) Pockets (Cut 4 outer fabric, 4 wadding, 4 lining)

2½” x 85” (6 cm x 216 cm) Binding

2” x 44” (5 cm x 112 cm) Herringbone tape cut into two 22”/56 cm lengths

28” (71 cm) length of ½”/12mm Cord or tubing for the handles cut into two 14”/35.5 cm lengths

Step 2: Quilting

I cut my wadding a little bigger and trimmed it to size after quilting.

Assemble the quilt sandwich for the pockets.  Place the lining right side down, put the wadding on top of the lining and then add the outer fabric right side up.  Do this for all 4 pocket bundles. Pin the sandwich together at regular intervals.

Lower the feed dogs and, using the free motion embroidery foot, sew a random design to hold the quilt sandwich together.  Alternatively, sew straight lines up and down using a walking foot.

The side panels will need partial quilting.  Place the foam behind each layer of outer fabric and quilt the top 4” (this is all that will be visible when the pockets are sewn on.  Do not add the lining to the quilt sandwich, this will be added later.

The base will need quilting all over but again it will only be the foam and the outer fabric.

Quilting tends to make the edges uneven, so it is a good idea to trim to straighten them.

Step 3: Binding the top of the pockets

Fold the binding in half lengthways and press. 

 

Keeping it folded in half, pin the raw edges of the binding to the top of the lining side of one of the pocket pieces so that the raw edges of both fabrics meet.  Sew.  Fold the binding over the top edge and down onto the right side of the quilt sandwich so that it covers the stitch line.  Sew just above the folded edge.

Do this for all 4 pocket pieces. 

Step 4: Sewing the pockets to the side panels

Take one pocket piece and one side panel.  Place the side panel right side up and lay the pocket on top, also right side up.  The bottom of the pocket needs to match the bottom of the side panel.  Sew close to the edge down each side to hold them together.  This line of stitching should be within the seam allowance so that it is not visible when the bag is assembled.

Find the centre of the side panel and the pocket and sew a vertical line of stitching to create 2 pockets on each side.  Alternatively, sew as many vertical lines as you want to create appropriate size pockets for your needs.

Sew along the bottom edge, close to the edge, gently gathering the pocket.

Do this for all 4 pocket pieces.

Step 5: Assembling the outer bag

Pin the 4 side panels together at the side edges, right sides together and sew.

Pin the base to the side panels, right sides together and sew.

Turn the bag right side out.

Step 6: Making the handles

Fold the herringbone tape in half lengthways and sew the open side together as close to the edge as possible, starting and stopping approx 2½”/6 cm from each end.

This photo shows the cord I originally used.  I wanted a firmer handle
so I changed it after the bag was finished.

I was much happier with this style of cord.
It's the same diameter but firmer.

Thread the cord or tubing through the tape to create the handle shape and trim so that it is completely enclosed by the tape.

Step 7: Attaching the handles

Turn the raw edge under and pin the handles to opposite sides of the bag.  I placed mine approximately 1”/2.5 cm from the side seam and the end of the handle was about 2½"/6 cm from the top edge.

Sew a box or ‘X’ on the handle to attach it to the bag. 

Do this for each end of the handles, making sure that they are not twisted.

Step 8: Making the lining

With right sides together, sew the side seams of all 4 lining pieces and then, still with right sides together, sew them to the base.

Step 9: Assembling the bag

Place the lining inside the outer bag so that the wrong sides of the fabric are together.

Sew them together around the top edge, making sure that the handles are kept out of the way.

Sew binding all around the top edge, trimming back the edges where necessary so that the binding can be folded over the raw edge and sewn to hide the other stitch lines.

I’m really pleased with this bag.  The fabric is so appropriate. It’s just what I need to keep my forthcoming projects organised. Now I have no excuse for untidiness!

In this project I learnt:

• I have wanted to make ‘stuffed’ bag handles for ages but I was waiting for the right bag.  I originally used a soft plaited rope which made the handle really floppy.  After finishing the bag, I decided I didn’t like the look and changed the ‘stuffing’ for a firmer braided cotton cord.  I was much happier with the effect as the handles were able to stand up by themselves. Next time, I might try plastic tubing and sew how that compares.

• I have done free motion embroidery before but I’m very out of practice.  I was aiming for random swirls but it took a while to find my rhythm.  The first pocket wasn’t very good – varied stitch lengths, jerky movements and angular rather than curving shapes.  After a short while it began to get easier.  I increased the speed and moved the fabric more slowly which resulted in more regular stitches. I used a thread which matched the fabric so that quilting isn’t that visible – it’s more of an impression of quilting so I doubt if anyone would notice the flaws.  Overall I’m quite happy with it despite its imperfections!

Bag #31: Drawstring Bag

It’s the start of the school holidays here in the UK but the shops are full of ‘back to school’ supplies.  Now would be a good time to make a child’s PE Bag.  However, this drawstring bag would also be the perfect size for a project bag.  I made this one for an elderly lady to use for storing a holiday knitting project.  There’s room for some yarn, her knitting needles and the sections she has already knitted. She’ll look very stylish on her next cruise!

It’s always nice to make a personalised item because it has obviously been made especially for the recipient.  It also means that no one is going to pick up their bag by mistake.  In fact, I think I’m going to make one for myself when I have time. It would be really useful to take to craft events.

For this bag, you will need a 13½” / 34 cm strip of calico which is usually sold on bolts/rolls which are very wide and 2 ½”/6.5 cm strips of several different fabrics which could be cut from a fat quarter pack or jellyroll.  The letters were cut from the same fabrics.

The finished size is 12½”/31.5 cm wide x 14½”/37 cm high.

I used my normal stitch length (2.5) throughout but increased it to 3 for topstitching.  I used ¼”/6 mm 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 satin stitch

• Using decorative machine stitches

• Inserting eyelets

• Using jellyroll strips

Step 1: Cutting out

Cut out the following:

12” x 13 ½”/ 31.5 cm x 34 cm Bag bottom (cut 1 calico and 1 medium weight iron-on interfacing)

2 ½” x 17”/ 6.5 cm x 43 cm Fabric strips – assorted fabrics (cut 7)

14” x 13 ½”/ 35.5 cm x 34 cm (cut 1 medium weight iron-on interfacing)

Small amount of fabric which co-ordinates with the fabric strips for the letters

16 ½” x 13 ½” / 42 cm x 34 cm Lining (cut 2 calico)

Heat n bond (small amount)

86"/218 cm Cord (I used 4 mm cord – about 3/16”)

Eyelets (I used 5.5 mm eyelets - about ¼”)

Stopper toggle button

Step 2: Attaching the letters

Draw letters for your chosen name onto the paper side of a piece of heat n bond.  Cut out the letters roughly, slightly larger than you drew them.  The letters will need to be back to front because they will be attached to the wrong side of the fabric.

Place each letter with the non-paper side on the wrong side of your chosen fabric.  Iron to attach.

Cut out each letter, accurately following the line you drew on the heat n bond.

Attach the interfacing to one side of the calico bag bottom (this will be referred to as ‘the wrong side’).

Fold the calico in half so that the 13 ½”/ 34 cm raw edges meet -  the right side of the fabric will be on the outside.  This will enable you to see where the name will go. The fold will be the bottom of the bag.

Decide where you want each letter to go, peel off the paper backing and iron them in place. They will now be the right way round.

Stitch them in place using a stitch of your choice e.g. satin stitch, blanket stitch, free motion embroidery.  I adjusted the zigzag on my machine to create a satin stitch.

You could also add an appliquéd image on the other side of the bag, but I chose to leave mine plain.

Step 3: Joining the fabric strips

Pick 2 fabric strips and sew down the long side, right sides together, to join them. Continue joining strips until they are all joined together.  Press the seams open. 

Now is the time to add decorative stitches along each of these seams if you want to.

Cut the strips in half to create 2 identical pieces.

Attach interfacing to the wrong side of the strip fabric.

Step 4: Creating the bag

Sew the bag bottom to the fabric strips, right sides together.

With right sides together, sew up the bag sides.  

Turn right side out.

Step 5: Attaching the lining

Join the 2 lining pieces, right sides together, by sewing down both the long sides and one short side (this will be the bottom), but leave a gap of about 4”/10 cm in the bottom for turning. You will also need to leave a gap at the top on one side for the drawstring.  The top ¼“/ 6 mm will be the seam allowance but the next 1”/2.5 cm will be the drawstring channel. This is where you will need to leave a gap in the seam large enough for your drawstring. Topstitch either side of the drawstring gap to secure the seam allowance.

Place the lining over the outer part of the bag, right sides together, and sew all round the top.

Sew up the gap at the bottom of the lining.

Push the lining inside the bag and secure the bottom corners by pinning them in place.

The lining will be longer than the outer fabric so it will overlap onto the outside of the bag to form the drawstring channel.  Find the new top of the bag and press.

Top stitch along the top and bottom of the drawstring channel.

Step 6: Attaching the eyelets

There will be an eyelet in each of the bottom corners which will go through all layers of the fabric.

Attach the eyelet by punching a hole and hammering the eyelet into place.  I used an eyelet kit which included the eyelets and fixing tool.

Step 7: Inserting the drawstring.

Thread the cord through the drawstring channel.

Thread the cord through the stopper toggle.

Thread a cord end through each of the eyelets and knot the ends.  I chose to have the knots on the front of my bag.

If this is for a child’s PE kit, they’ll probably have a new kit for next year.  Why not pack it away in their new PE kit and forget all about it until September?  When they return to school, they’ll be the envy of all their friends and you’ll have lots of requests for PE bags.

With this bag, Vera can get her holiday project ready and forget about it until it’s time to travel, knowing that she has everything she needs for the most important part of her holiday.

In this project I learnt:

• My sewing machine doesn’t have a satin stitch.  Instead I altered the zigzag stitch.  I tried different widths and lengths and in the end decided to use a 3.5 stitch width with 0.5 length (very close together).  I found it really difficult to do.  Every so often my machine would get stuck and keep sewing in the same spot, so I had to stop, unpick it and restart.  I had researched how to turn corners but it was hard to be consistent.  I went quite slowly but it took a long time and a lot of thread.  I doubt if I’ll use it again in the foreseeable future but I’m glad I tried it.

• I used decorative stitches along the seam lines of the fabric strips.  I have had my computerised sewing machine for just over a year and haven’t really used the decorative stitches.  I wanted a chance to try them out and this was it.  Some of the stitches looked lovely e.g. the snowflake and I shall certainly use that again, but most of them took a long time and weren’t anything special.  I’m glad I tried them but I think I’ll stick to functional stitches in future.

• I’m getting more confident at using eyelets now.  I’ve used them often enough to no longer have to read the instructions each time or worry that I’ll ruin the whole project.  Eyelets weren’t really an essential in this project but I like the look of them – I think it adds a professional finish and I’m going to keep using them whenever I get the chance. I now have them in several sizes so there’s going to be no stopping me. 

• I used a cotton cord which wasn’t very good quality.  As it was rubbing against the eyelets and the toggle it was already starting to fray.  I think I’ll replace it with a synthetic one when I have the opportunity.

• I like bags made with lots of different fabrics but I’m not confident at mixing colours and fabric because I’m not sure they’ll look good together.  Using a jellyroll or fat quarter bundle is a safer option because they have usually been selected to co-ordinate.  I didn’t have a jellyroll so I cut the same size strips (2 ½”/6.5 cm) from fat quarters. Using the same fabrics for the letters worked well.  I shall certainly try to incorporate more colours/fabrics in future bags.

Bag #19: Quick and Easy Make-Up Bag

This is a really easy small bag that looks amazing.  I made the one with the mannequin fabric and I've been using it to keep my mini patchwork essentials - fabric, card, scissors, thread and completed patchwork hexagons. It would also work as a lovely make up bag. I fell in love with the button fabric and made another bag using that but it looks a bit plain.  I think it needs some embellishments.  Any suggestions?  Then I saw the giraffe fabric and couldn't resist making another bag, this time for my mother, who loves giraffes.  She hasn't seen it yet, but I guess she will now.

Using 2 sliders on the zip makes it look really professional and it means that you don't have to open the zip all the way to get something out. 

To make this bag, you would only need a small amount of fabric.  I used fat quarters and used less than ⅓  of the fabric. 

The finished size of the bag is approximately 6½" x 4½".

I used my normal stitch length of 2.5 throughout but increased to 3 for the topstitching.

Skills used in this project:

• Using a zip with 2 sliders
• Inserting a zip on a curve
• Keeping it simple

Step 1: Cutting out

Cut out the following pieces:

6” x 8” outer fabric (cut 2)

6” x 8” lining (cut 2)

6” x 8” medium weight interfacing - iron-on or sew-in (cut 2)

For all of these pieces, form the shape by cutting out a 1” square from each bottom corner (the bottom will be one of the longer sides) and shaping the top by drawing round a tea plate on each upper corner.  Fold in half to make sure that it is symmetrical.  Alternatively get the PDF pattern here. 

You will also need:

2“ x 6” plain co-ordinating fabric for the zip tabs (cut 2)

2” x 6” lightweight iron-on interfacing (cut 2)

12” zip with 2 sliders (I used an N3 continuous zip on a roll and cut it to size)

Step 2: Making the zip tabs

I find it easier to make the zip tabs a bit wider and longer than is needed and trim to size.  In the photo, I made the zip tabs much too long but I have amended the pattern accordingly.

Iron the interfacing to the wrong side to both zip tab fabric pieces.

Fold in half so that the short edges meet, ensuring that the wrong sides are together.

Fold each short edge under by ¼" and press.

Before attaching the zip tabs, make sure the sliders are both attached so that they face in different directions, both towards the centre, so that the opening will be in the middle of the bag and not at each end!

Place at tab at each end of the zip so that they overlap the zip by about ½".  Sew across to secure. 

Trim the sides so that they are the same width as the zip.

Step 3: Inserting the zip

Pin/Iron the interfacing to the wrong side of the outer fabric.

I usually sew the outer and lining fabrics to the zip in one go, but I have found that with curves, I get a smoother finish if I attach them separately.

Pin and sew one curved side of the outer fabric to one side of the zip. The right side of the fabric should be facing the zip sliders.The zip/tabs should reach the start of the corner cut out or be slightly longer.  Mine were far too long here so I had to trim them later. It is best to find the centre of the bag and zip by folding each in half and start by pinning at the centre, moving outwards.  This will ensure that the tabs are the same length at each end.

Pin and sew the lining to the same side of the zip but on the underside to make a zip sandwich. 

Do the same for the other lining and outer fabric when sewing them to the other side of the zip. 

Trim the fabric around the curve so that it sits neatly along the zip.

Top stitch along each side of the zip to hold all the layers firmly in place and create a professional finish.

Step 4: Sewing the bottom seam

Make sure the zip is open.

Match the bottom edge of the outer fabrics and sew, right sides together.

Do the same for the lining, but leave a gap in the centre of the bottom seam of about 4" so that you can turn the bag through. It is a good idea to make the bottom lining seam about ⅛" bigger than the outer fabric seam (⅜" instead of ¼") as the lining fits more snuggly inside if it is slightly smaller.

Step 5: Making the corners

Finger press the bottom seams open. 

Flatten each of the corner cut outs so that they form a straight line, right sides still together. 

Do the same for the lining.

Pin them together and sew across both at the same time.

Do the same for the other corner.

Step 6: Assembling the bag

Turn through the gap in the lining and sew it up either by hand or machine.

Your cute little bag is now complete.  Fill it with make up or other goodies - it is such a versatile size that you will want one for every occasion.

In this project I learnt:

• When using a zip with 2 sliders, it is really important to check that they are both facing towards the centre before you start.  It sounds obvious, but I didn't when I made the first bag and had to stop half way through and take the zip apart to correct it.  I won't make that mistake again!

• I use continuous zips.  I attached all the sliders to the zip but found that it caused some damage to the zip by misshaping it (just visible on the button bag).  I may have just been unlucky or attached them wrongly, but in future I shall store the zip and sliders separately and attach the sliders only when I am ready to use them.

• Inserting a zip on a curve is harder than using a straight line so it is worth sewing the outer fabric first and then the lining.  I'm still not very good at top stitching around a curve but I'm getting better.

• Sewing both the lining and outer fabric corners at the same time made it very easy.  There were no seam lines to match up for a change as there was no side seam to match with the bottom seam.  This method also holds the lining firmly and neatly in place so that it looks super smart inside as well as outside.

• This is one of my favourite makes so far this year.  It is simple, pretty and versatile.  It could be made larger to hold toiletries or how about a matching make up bag and toiletry bag?  I might give that a go when I next have some spare time.