Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Envelope Bag Tutorial


I like to be environmentally friendly when I can. When I found small bamboo sporks at an eco-store I thought they'd be great to carry in my purse to use for impromptu snacks instead of plastic cutlery. However, I didn't want my sporks rolling around in the bottom of my purse with who-knows-what so I made a little bag to keep them in (bonus: machine washable if when it gets dirty.)

This is my first tutorial so I'd love to hear if you use it and if it was easy to follow!

First, cut two shapes (rectangles with flaps) from fabric - I used different fabric for the lining and the outside but they could be the same. If you have an item to want to fit inside the finished bag take this into account before you cut!



Next sew the side seams on the rectangle leaving about 3/8" unsewn at the top (the end with the flap).



Turn the lining right side out and slip it in the outer envelope.



Stitch around the flap, adding a hair elastic at the peak to act as a button loop. This is the trickiest part - start on the straight edge (about 1 inch from the side seam), go over the side seam, around the flap, sew the hair elastic in (leave most of it sticking out on the wrong side) and back to the next straight edge. Be sure to leave enough room on the straight edge for turning right side out!!

(I got the hair elastic idea from Chickpea Studio's tutorial. What a great idea!)

Now your bag should look like this:





Turn it right side out through the space you left on the straight edge. Iron it nice and flat and sew the opening closed. I chose to topstitch along the length of the straight edge but you could also slip stitch the opening closed. Last thing to do is sew on the button. If you're keeping something bulky in your bag put it in and see where the hair elastic reaches to and sew your button there.





Ta-da! You're done! Enjoy your bag.

18 comments:

  1. Where did you get the fork spoons? They are great! I like the tutorial, it looks like fun. I'll have to try it.

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  2. I got them from an eco store in Stratford, Ontario. But I found the same ones on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Bambu-Bamboo-Sporks/dp/B000FLV9GI

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  3. Great idea and tut! So simple and sooo cute! Thanks for sharing!

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  4. That looks like so much fun!! It would be perfect for keeping tampons in so that they don't roll around in the bottom of my purse!

    I am getting together with a group of friends tomorrow night. would it be OK if we made them as a group?? I'll give you the credit, and send pics....

    let me know!
    Thanks,
    lolaagain@gmail.com

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  5. I'd love to see what you and your group come up with! Funny thing, I'd also been thinking that these bags would be great tampon keepers. I got some fat quarters on the weekend now I just need to sit down and sew!

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  6. Great tutorial! It's a must. Thanks for posting it.

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  7. I'm planning on making one for my diabetic tester...so cute

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  8. Super cute! I made an awesome coin purse with this! But the only part that was confusing was the tricky part, I got a little puzzled and didn't really understand which part I was supposed to sew. It worked out, but the light colors in the picture didn't help so much. Thanks for the great tutorial!

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    1. Yes, the tricky part is tricky to explain as well as to do! I should try redoing the tutorial. Thanks for the feedback!

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  9. Hi! My name is alison and I make crafts and sell them, and half the profits I make go to charity, a different cause every month! I was wondering if you had a problem of me making these to sell, its for a good cause! Id make sure you were recognised for them, they are just so adorable!

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  10. wish it were a bit more detailed with more pics for us beginnners, but cute idea!

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  11. Didn't really understand it fully, had to stray from the instructions a bit, but all in all, worked well for me!

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  12. Adorable..I love small, easy projects like this! Need instant gratification!

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  13. Very cute, and practical.

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  14. Great project, I am so excited to try this! I'm not very good at sewing though, do you think using hot glue would work just as well?

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  15. next time on your tutorial use a contrasting thread so we can see where you stitched, red would have been a great color for this one. I am a very beginner.

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  16. This was such a cool tutorial!! Love the idea and can't wait to get started!! ;)

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