Totes

Here are a few of the totes I have been sewing...

Front, with pockets

Pockets inside

Back side showing snap

Several more totes finished or "in production" (no photos yet)

Keeping Busy!

Just a few photos... sorry, no instructions this time!

Baby bag for a friend to give to her relative - pockets inside

Front of bag, with handles

Fleece slippers made from moccasin directions

link to directions for moccasins

One more sock monkey and a Lady bug!

Fleece poncho - extra small

Fleece poncho - small

Now where is my wrapping paper???

Gift bags

One way to make a small gift something special is to make it 2 gifts in one... the contents AND the gift bag!
Here is one way to make small (or larger) gift bags.

This little one stands 6 inches tall.

This one is just right for a votive candle.

Here is how they were made....

Start with a scrap of cloth; this piece is 4 x 15 inches. Too small to sew easily, but I used it anyway!

Do something to finish the raw edges first; this is "PINKED"; the other bag was "serged".

Fold in half and sew up the sides leaving at least 2 inches open at the top.

I use a piece of wood inserted along the seam so I can press the seam open.

See... flat seam!

This is what seams look like if NOT pressed flat!

Nice, pressed flat!

Fold the top edge to the inside so that the edge is about 1/4 inch lower than where the side seam ends.
Red pin shows seam end.

Fold the other top down and sew around bag forming casing for drawstring.

 This is where the "4 inch is too small" realization set in... very tricky to sew around with out catching something I did not want sewn. The photo above shows the bag inside out... but I had to turn it right side out and sew inside the bag, holding the top open and re- positioning every few inches.

Insert ribbon or string through the casing.

Insert a second ribbon starting from the other side.

Tie the ribbon tails in an "Over hand" knot and trim at an angle.

Home decor weight taffeta in lovely Christmas colors!

Cut a long piece 6 inches wide. Notice the threads falling off the edge; pinking will not be enough control for this cloth.
I own a Serger and I love to use it!

One long strip, enough for 4 bags.
Pieces are 6 x 18 or 6 x 20 (2 of each).

Edges serged.

A note about dealing with plaid and checks.... plan ahead!

Bag on left was my first attempt.
I cut my long strip into 4 pieces with out taking the plaid into consideration

One more note about appropriate cloth...some Home decor cloth needs a lining!

This is lovely cloth, but the back side has loose thread "carries" that would get caught and pulled.
I might make a purse out of this cloth, with a nice lining!

Fold in half (wrong sides together) and place 2 pins about an inch up from the fold.

Fold at the pins creating a pleat at the bottom of the bag.
Now the right sides are together and wrong sides out. (this cloth is same on both sides!)

Sew the side seams leaving 4 inches open (between pins).
Bottom fold is on the right side of this photo, top to the left.

Press seams open!

Fold the top down. Make sure the top edge overlaps the beginning of the side seam.

Sew the casing.... this bag has a ruffle too.

Insert ribbons and tie the ends.

If your cloth has a one way up design, you will need a bottom seam rather than a fold.

These cars would be upside down if folded.
The corner is sewn inside, no pleat.

Right side out and right side UP on both faces of the bag!

Cooler Bag for groceries

I have purchased, used and ruined several plastic cooler bags. And I am now using my own tote bags for groceries ... so it makes some sense to have my own thermal, insulated grocery bag.  This is the story of one bag.
(I have made so many bags, one friend calls me "the Bag Lady"!)

I had an old auto window shade; I was planning to fix it!

All the edges were raggedy!

I bought 2 packs of bias tape for the fix job, so I used them for this project instead.

Looking back, now that the job is done, I probably should have used DUCT tape instead of trying to sew plastic together! Maybe next time.......

Cut the top flaps off for a clean edge to work with.

Cut the side flaps off. (save for practice stitching!)

Cut 2 sections for side panels.

Cut the side panels to match the height of the bag and finish edges with bias tape.
Panel on the left shows what will be the finished "inside".
Panel on the right shows the stitching.

Bias tape all around the large piece.

Close up of bias sewn once, the rough edge is then trimmed away.

Now that all the plastic, insulated pieces have a bias tape edge.... I stitched the bias tape together to form a box shape with a lid flap. Next time I'll just duct tape the box together!

So the size is this: 

2 sections of the shade for the front, 1 section for the bottom, 2 more for the back, and 1 section for the lid flap. 

The auto shade was already creased into these sections!

Looking inside

The lid flap fits into its own pocket; so the outer bag holds the lid open for filling up!

The outer bag is not attached to the insulated box; so either one can be cleaned as needed.

Three yards of cotton web strap support the bag all the way under the bottom and up the other side.

Upholstery weight zipper tape and a "reverse head" make a sturdy closing.

On the first trip to the store with this bag I found that it will hold:
2 half-gallon cartons of milk
2 dozen cartons of eggs
1 cottage cheese carton
3 bags frozen veggies....  with room to spare!

Pizzas had to go into the plastic "cold" bag with the broken handles!