I’ve been looking for a little tote to make, but didn’t want something that would turn into a major ordeal. I found this simple little tutorial that claimed this bag could be made in 20 minutes. Well…I didn’t actually time myself, but even dividing my attention between working on the project while attempting to decrease my full Hulu queue, I was able to crank this out from start to finish in one Revenge episode!
You can find the awesome tutorial HERE from the Purl bee blog.
This is seriously an easy sewing project even for those who don’t sew. It’s straight line sewing, or you can just bag the sewing (get it…”bag”..God, I’m hilare), and use that no-sew stuff we’ve talked about before (just go into Jo-Ann’s or Michael’s and ask for a no-sew liquid product).
I used outdoor canvas fabric ($6/yd at Hancock), and wired ribbon ($1 at Michaels) for the handles. Below is the condensed version, but for step-by-step instructions, refer to the above tutorial. It’s easy to follow and she has great illustrations.
- Cut two pieces of fabric 16″ tall by 14″ wide.
- Cut two 22-1/2″ pieces of 1″ wire ribbon or 1″ cotton webbing (or whatever you’d like to use for handles).
- On right side of fabric, pin handles 3″ in from either side. Zig-zag along edge catching in handles.
- With wrong side facing, turn the top edges down 1-1/2″ and pin handles so that they’re straight up and down.
- Sew 1/4″ from top edge and again 1/4″ from bottom edge.
- With right sides together, sew along sides and bottom 1/2″ from edge.
- Zig-zag along the raw edges of bag all the way around.
- Turn that baby inside out and voila! Done and done.
This was simple, quick and fun. I was so pumped that I hadn’t screwed this up, I wanted to start embellishing but decided not to push my luck. For my next tote, I think I’ll add a pocket on the front, or sew some cute little buttons underneath the handles. You could make it bigger. Make it smaller. You get it, right? Just use this as your basic pattern and then run yourself amok with creativity!
Loved this project. Yay – Success! We’d love to see your version…
