Bags Bags, and More Bags -- a Little How To

This is the fabric I chose for the outside of the bag.  I cut as big a piece as I could from the fabric which I dye painted many many years ago!  It is about 23 inches wide and 18 inches long (sideways in the pic!).

Because this was fairly heavy fabric, I marked the squares in the corners that I needed to cut.  They were about 3 inches.

Here is the outside fabric with the squares cut out.  The next step is to sew the side seams after placing the fabric right sides together.  Then you sew the bottom seam.

Then you pull the two sides apart so that the bottom seems and side seams are on top of one another and sew.  This form the squared bottom.

I attach the straps at this tiime so they are laying against the front and back.  I make sure they are even.  If you don't have straps, you make them with the instructions below.

This is the Kaffe Fassett favric I selected for the inside.  You sew this slightly differently.  You sew the sides as you did the outside, right sides together.  However on the bottom seam, you leave a 5 inch opening.  You sew the squared part the same also.

Although not shown here, I made straps from 2 1/2 inch strips about 22 inches long.  I interface with a 2 inch piece of interfacing centered in the middle  I also iron over the 1/4 inch seams down to make the sewing easiers.  I fold it over and sew next the edge on both sides with matching thread.

  
You then place the outside bag insde the lining, pinning at the edges and where the straps are, making sure the straps are safely stored between the two layers.  Sew all the way around the top.

Then you pull the outside bag through the whole you made on the bottom of the lining.  Then you sew the lining hole up.  Stuff the lining neatly insde the outside piece  Then carefull top stitch along the top of the finished bag and voiila!.   

This is the finished bag..

This another bag.  I had to add some pseudo-suede as I didn't have a very larrge piece of the painted fabric.
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Finally Found a Good Use for All Those Dye Painted fabrics I Did Many Many Years Ago on Heavier Fabric!!

 

I have shown my methods for making bags before but this is a different version which basically requires very little sewing and cutting and can be made any size.  My younget daughter indicated she would like some so that has occupied me for a few days!  This is dye painted fabric on the outside on a heavier cotton fabric.  I delved into my extensive stash of Kaffe Fassett fabiics and picked out some that I was not crrazy about for the linings.  the bags are essentially reversible so if one side gets really dirty, just turn it to the other!.  Each of these three bags are about 18 x 20 x 6 finished.  I didn't put in amy pockets but they are easy to add also.

I made this one extra large and am keeping it for toting baby quilts to quilt club each month!  I have seven quilts folded in this one!

This is the fabric for one of the next ones.  Today I concentrated on cutting out the fabrics and linings and  handles for 4 more bags.  I will take them to one of our Open Sew events and finish them there.

My next post will contain the step-by-step directions on making each one!  It is really easy.

My next challenge is that I have some smaller pieces that I did in a class back in the 90s with .Elizabeth Busch.  The panels are each about 24 in x 24 inches so I am going to add some pseudo suede to each piece to make the bags.  I think I will do them using a combination of this technique and one i have shown before which uses more pieces but results in a similar bag.

A Little How To for the Many Bags That I have Made

This is one of the simpler bags you can made and I have made it in many sizes.  Below are directions for constructing the bag which you can make the size you want.

1. Assemble the fabric.  You will need enough of 2 fabrics to cut out a front, back, 2 sides and a bottom,  You might want some for additional pockets as well. You will also need some fusible interfacting.  I also cut out two 2 1/2 in x 22 in strips of interfacting and fabric for the handles,  This is pretty consistent for straps no matter the size of the bag.

2.  Decide what size you want the bag. For instance, say one that is 18 in high, 12 inces wide and 4 inches deep.  You would then cut fabric for back and front, then sides and then the bottom,  You need to cut the lining, main fabric and the interfacting the same  size,  I add a alf inch to each dimension so I would cut 19 x 13 inch pieces for the front and back

 19 x  5 inches for the sides and 5 x 13 inch piece for the bottom, 

3. Iron the interfacingt onto the front and back pieces.

4.  Iron the interfacting onto the straps.  Fold the straps in half and fold over the sides so that they are one inch wide  Sew down both sides,  Attach to the main fabric by laying the strap facing the bottom of the bag and sew down.  Fold up so the straps are facing the top and sew around a once inch square.

5.  Place lining fabric on top of the main front and back right sides together making sure straps are not caught along the top.  Sew along the top and then open up,

6.  Do the same for the two side pieces.

7.   Pin the lining/main fabric pieces together so they don't slip, then sew the side pieces to the main pieces leaving a 1/2 inch opening at the bottom,  Pin the bottom on and sew all the way 

to about 1/2 inch from the sides.  Trim all the seams to 1/4 inch.  

8.   On the right side sew about 3/8 of an inch at each seam.  This is so there will be no raw edges in the bag.

At the beginning, you might also decide to add a pocket to the lining or the outside and this should be done at the time you are adding on the straps,

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Bags and Birds

Well, I have made a lot of these Market Bags in the past following the pattern.  However, my oldest daughter says they are just too small so I decided to measure the bags she had and make some more to her liking.  Of course the original bag nicely fits on a yard of fabric without any messing around.  Needless to say, adding two inches to each dimension takes a bit more fabric!  Of course, all I had were assorted half yard pieces that I had grabbed to bring down to the beach with me so I did my best and did by a little fabric for the lining of two of the four bags I cut out.  These don't stand up quite as well as the original bags.  I had to use two different fabrics as they really take about 1 1/4 yards with the new measurements for each bag.  These two are flying as I write out to Seattle for my younger daughter (no, my kids don't ever read my blog so it is safe!)  I do like the new size (14 inches x 16 inches x 8 inches).  The only measurement that stayed the same was the 8 inches!  I also changed the handles to come out of the top between the lining and bag rather than attached to the sides as they are in the original.  Really, the only thing left of the original pattern is the reverse French seams, a treatment I really like!

I also made a "Potato Chip Bag" (Pattern name) making the straps much, much shorter for my 3 1/2 year old granddaughter -- I thought it looked about the right size for her.  Hopefully she will like it.

I finally finished all the quilting and the binding on the fourth of the "serendipity" quilts I have made.  This is one of my favorites and has been claimed by my oldest daughter but first I think I will enter it into our quilt show next spring.  I am very happy with how it turned out even though you really can't see the quilting (and there is a lot of it).  It is about 76 inches by 56 inches.

Hopefully you can see some of the quilting in this closeup of one of the center blocks.

I have started the long process of hand quilting the background of the Baltimore Album style quilt.  I am doing the classic mattress padding in 1" grid.  Hopefully, I will get this done.  It is fairly easy quilting and sateen is very nice to quilt through so maybe....    

 There haven't been any new birds at Carolina Beach Lake (well, the weather has been a bit nasty until today) but this is a female Scaup and there seem to be quite a few of both males and females, Greater and Lesser there each day.

This is the male scaup and you can see a little of the irridescence on his head here.  The Ruddy Ducks, Long Tailed Duck, Grebes,  Buffleheads, Cormorants and Coots are all there as well as the mallards.  I am missing seeing the Northern Shovelers though!

I am looking forward to my new camera for Christmas though -- just a slight upgrade with a few more megapixels to crop down!  These pictures have all been taken with my little Canon point and shoot with the 35x optical zoom recommended by Lillian Stokes!  It's ability to get some of the longer range pictures does  compensate for being so much slower than the SLR!