Super Simple Party Favor Bag

I'm always searching for a way to use up scraps and leftovers, so here's a cute and fun way!



I made these bags for my daughter's 3rd birthday party, just big enough to hold some princess wands and bead necklaces for the girls, and some rocket balls and army men for the boys. And, of course since this is me, they are completely and totally reversible! AND, they take 30 minutes to make. 45 if you're a beginner. I promise!



Ready to make one? You totally can!

All you need is:
- two 18" x 8" cuts of coordinating fabric
- 15 inches of nylon webbing
- scissors
- sewing machine
- straight pins
- iron

note: I used scraps.. which means the straps on my bags varied from 12.5" to 18.5" and they all look fab, so perfection isn't necessary.

Step 1: Gather your materials.


Fold the first piece of fabric over, right sides together, so the fold is at the bottom and the raw edges line up. Press a crease into the bottom. This makes it easier to center the gusset later.


Now, sew up the edges, starting from the fold and sewing about 1/2" from the raw edges. Do this on both sides of the fabric.


So that you have this. The fold is at the top of the picture, and the raw open edges are at the bottom (so the laying bag is upside down in the picture)


Clip the corners off.


Next, to make the gusset, open out your bag, and with one finger in the corner, spread your hands and fingers out to form a triangle. Try to line the seam up with the creased fold and pinch them together. Hopefully the photo shows this better.


(This is how your hand looks inside the bag)


Here is where you pinch the triangle together.


Now, sew a seam across the triangle, setting the point on about the 1 1/4" or 3cm line on your machine's guide plate.


Repeat for the other corner and you have this:

Notice how my left side is horrible crooked. That is because I didn't line up the seam with the crease when folding. I could (should) have gone back and redone it, but these are party favors, and like I said before, perfection isn't necessary!
Clip the seam allowances off the triangles.


Turn the first bag right side out, and see your pretty gusseted bag! Notice at the bottom how the seam and the crease don't line up? The bottom won't be exactly square because of that. I really should have fixed that. Take that as a "what not to do" lesson.


Now do the same thing for your other piece of fabric. Go ahead, go back up to the top and follow the steps again if you need to. I'll wait for you right here.

Ok, now that you have two bags. Turn one right side out and leave one inside out, like shown.


Take the one that's inside out and insert your webbing strap into it. Then line up the raw edge of the strap with the seam on one side of the bag and pin it down. Be sure to center the strap over the seam. Repeat for the other side seam.


Next, insert your other bag into the first one. They should have their right sides together, with the strap in between. Line up the seams and pin both sides.


Now, insert the open edge of the bag over the arm of your machine, and starting about two inches before the side seam, sew around the edges, with about 3/4" seam allowance.


Stop about two inches after the second side strap/seam area and backstitch/reinforce the end of the seam. This is how we are going to turn the bag out.


Turn the bag right side out. You have this when you get it all untangled:


Now decide which side you want inside (but since they are completely reversible, it doesn't matter much) and stuff it inside. Press the corners all the way open with your fingers or a safety pin. If this bag wasn't so small, I would recommend pressing the top edges flat, but it's not necessary.


Insert the open end onto the arm of your machine, and starting on one strap, sew about 1/4" in from the edge.


When you get to the opening, make sure it lines up with the rest of the edges and sew it closed. Use your free hand to guide the fabric and make sure the fabric stays pulled all the way out. Continue sewing all the way around until you meet the thread where you started.


Done!


And you have a super cute, really basic party favor bag! Or a little purse for a sassy toddler. Or a holder for army men and crayons.


Now go make a few more!


And don't forget the boys!


Questions, comments? Something not make sense? Comment or email me at alexiajeandesigns at yahoo dot com.

Minky Scarves

Last winter, I used some scraps of minky to make three brown scarves. One was for myself, and two were for a door prize for my Mops group. Then I decided I loved my brown scarf, so much that I made myself a white one, a camel one, and a black and white damask one.

So this winter when I started wearing my minkies, and getting compliments, and an order for one from a friend, it finally crossed my mind that I should sell them. Duh! So here are a few picture of what I have made. I still have more white and brown fabric, if anyone would like to order one! $15.

Zippy Pouch Tutorial {and Giveaway!!!!} {Giveaway CLOSED}

Remember the Zippy Pouch I showed off a few posts ago? How about a tutorial? Okay, great! Here are the instructions with pictures.



To make the Zippy Pouch, you will need:

*Scraps of two different fabrics (about 1/4 yard of each)
*Scissors or a Rotary Cutter
* Cutting Board or Ruler
*Sewing Machine
*Pins
*9-inch zipper
*Fusible interfacing

Fabric cuts:
*Outside of bag: Two 8-inch by 10-inch pieces of fabric
*Lining: Two 8 x 10 pieces
* Strap: One 2.5-inch by 6 inch piece (longer (9-12 inches) if you want a wristlet handle, shorter (3-5 inches) if you just want to clip a key ring to it)
*Zipper End covers: Two 1.5x2.5 pieces in the contrasting fabric
*Interfacing: two 8x10 pieces, and one to fit the strap piece



1. Fuse the interfacing into the main fabric. Go ahead and fuse the strap piece too, and set it aside.



2. Fold the zipper end covers in half lengthwise (bring the short ends together) and press. The photo below shows the full size piece on top, and the folded piece on bottom.



Now, open it up and fold the ends in to the fold and press. (Basically, you are making a very short piece of binding/bias tape).


Insert the end of the zipper into the piece all the way to the fold. You may need to trim the end of the zipper some. Be sure to cover the little metal piece up enough that when you stitch over it you won't break your needle on it.


See? Nice and snug in there. Now, stitch very close to the edge of the cover, being careful not to hit that metal piece.


For the other end, repeat the process with the pressing and folding, but this time open the zipper (to get the zipper pull out of the way) and pin the zipper closed. Stitch the same way as before, very close to the edge, being careful to avoid the metal piece.


Here is your zipper after the ends are sewn on.


Now, take your main fabric and lay it on your surface. Place the zipper on it, right side down with the zipper pull on the left.


Then place your lining fabric on top, right side down, lining up the top edges neatly. Pin in place.


Stitch the entire length of the fabric, through the zipper ends, on the outside edge of the zipper. Turn the whole thing so the wrong sides of the fabrics are together, and press.


Next, lay your second main fabric piece on your surface, right side up. Lay the pressed piece we've been working on on top, main fabric down. Then lay your last peice of lining fabric on top, right side down. Pin all pieces together. Be sure your like fabrics are together-- lining to lining and main to main. Stitch in the same way as before - close to the zipper but not too close, on the outside edge. Hopefully this picture shows the stack well.


Once you stitch, you will have this:


Now it's time to make the handle. Fold your fabric lengthwise, right sides together, and stitch with a small seam allowance.


Turn the tube to the outside using a safety pin, loop turner, or this simple but ingenious trick.


Press the strap flat with the seam in the middle. Topstitch close to both edges if desired. (I did.)


Arrange the fabrics to that the like pieces are together now. Pin your strap near the zipper, in between the main fabric layers. Be sure the raw end of fabric match up and the strap goes toward the inside.


Also, pull the zipper end covers toward the lining fabric, which make the zipper itself fold toward the main fabric. Be sure to sew it like that. Stitch around the entire rectangle of fabric, leaving a 3-4 inch gap in the bottom of the lining for turning. Also, when sewing over the zipper ends, try to sew right next the them, and not through them. If you have to sew through them, it's okay too.


Almost finished! Clip the corners and turn the bag right side out. Press the lining, and sew the hole closed, stitching very close the the edge.



Stuff the lining inside the bag, and press the entire bag.. And there you go! Stuff some stuff inside and go show it off!


p.s. This is what your zipper ends should look like:




Nifty, huh?


{GIVEAWAY CLOSED}
Now, for my surprise! One lucky reader is going to WIN this bag! To enter, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post, telling me if you understood the instructions well enough to make a bag yourself! If there is anything I left out, feel free to tell me. I'm still working on my tutorials, and want to know if they are any good :-)

Also, for additional entries you can:
*become a follower of my blog
*become a fan on Facebook (or "like" me)
*post a blog post about the giveaway/tutorial on your blog and leave me the link in a comment
*post about the giveaway/tutorial on your Facebook status and tell me about it

Remember, leave a separate comment for every entry. Which means you can have up to five comments! If you are already a follower or fan, I still need you to leave a comment for each.

I'll randomly pick a winner on Monday, November 1st.. so you have until then to enter!

Go get busy!