Wednesday, October 6, 2010

A Quick and Easy Sewing Project - Make a Drawstring Bag in an Evening or Less

Posted by Picasa
My daughter wanted to store her nightwear in a drawstring bag, so I made her the bag in the photo above. I used a remnant of pretty floral fabric which I bought for A$1 from a fabric shop. To make the drawstring, I used a length of cord recycled from an old school sun hat. I sewed the bag by hand and it only took me a few hours to make. My daughter is very pleased with her bag and her nightwear is much more organized!
Drawstring bags are quick, easy and fun to make, even if you have only basic sewing skills and do not own a sewing machine. Drawstring bags look attractive and can be easily washed. They can store a variety of items around the home, including nightwear, underwear, shoes, and small toys. Children can take their sports kit to and from school in a drawstring bag.


Using a sewing machine, a drawstring bag can be made in less than one hour. Alternatively, it will take you only a few hours to hand sew a bag. Here are step-by-step instructions for making a drawstring bag.


Materials

• A piece of fabric, approximately 40 inches (100 cm) long by 16 inches (40 cm) wide
• A length of cord, approximately 40 inches (100 cm) long
• A safety pin
• Sewing thread and sewing needle (or a sewing machine)
• Pins
• Paper, such as baking paper, for the paper template (optional)

1. Cut a rectangle of fabric approximately 40 inches (100 cm) long by 16 inches (40 cm) wide. If you wish, you can cut out a piece of paper with the same dimensions, pin it to the fabric and use it as a template for cutting out the fabric.

2. With the wrong side of the fabric facing you, fold down approximately 1.5 inches (4 cm) on each of the shorter edges (i.e. widthwise). Pin and sew each seam using back stitch. This creates a channel that will run along the top of the bag.

3. Pin each of the long sides together. Sew each side as far as the seam of the channel. Do not sew up the sides of the channel.

4. Reverse the bag so that the right side of the fabric is showing and the seams are hidden inside.

5. Tie a knot at each end of the length of cord.

6. Affix a safety pin to one of the knots at the end of the cord and guide it through the channel (at both the front and the back of the bag), ensuring that the other end of the cord remains outside the bag.

7. When the cord has been pulled all the way through the channel and both ends are outside the bag, undo the knots and tie both ends of the cord together in a knot. Pull up the cord and your drawstring bag is ready to use!

Making a drawstring bag is a good way of using remnants of material or recycling material that is past its best. If you have a curtain that you no longer use, you could cut it into rectangles and make several drawstring bags. You could also look in thrift stores for curtains, sheets and quilt covers and re-purpose the material.

Drawstring bags are so quick and easy to make that you could make a whole collection of them and use them in different ways. You could organize your nightwear and underwear in pretty drawstring bags. Your children could use them to keep their rooms tidy. They could be used to conceal gifts as an environment-friendly alternative to wrapping paper at Christmas and on other special occasions. All in all, you will find that they are a useful addition to your home.


2 comments:

Duni said...

Hi Roz!

I love drawstring bags - they are so useful! I store my lingerie, panty hose and socks in them!
The fabric you used is so pretty (looks a bit like my pyjama pants)!!!

wishing you a wonderful weekend,

Duni

Roz said...

Thanks, Duni. I like pretty floral fabrics too - I was originally going to make a pillowcase from this fabric but I thought that my daughter's idea to make the drawstring bag was a good one!!

Hope all is well with you,

Roz

 
Related Posts Widget for Blogs by LinkWithin