DIY Zippered Pouch
Y'all, Pinterest is the bomb. Whoever created it was a genius. There are so many things you can find on Pinterest, especially when it comes to crafts. I have a sewing board on there that has over 250 pins on it, and I haven't even begun to make a dent in it. I decided the other day that I needed to try something new. I've been sewing things that require zero sewing notions, but I was determined to change that.
When my aunts and uncles sold my grandparents farmhouse a while back, they had to clean everything out. My Grandma had a craft room where she kept all her supplies and creations. Y'all, she had so much stuff! I never got to go down to look through her stuff, but my mom and sister did and they brought back her sewing machine that was mounted inside a sewing table and a sewing box. The box had your usual threads in it, but it also had a bunch of hooks and eyes to attach to clothing as well as a bunch of zippers and snaps. I've never attempted to sew a zipper in something before, but when I came across one of those "More than 50 fun beginner sewing projects" pins, I figured I may as well give it a whirl.
I really needed a bag to store all of my crochet hooks that I've acquired over the years because they were being stored in a big plastic bag, and some of them were in cigar holders...hahahahahahaha. Most of the fabric I own came from Joann Fabrics, and I happened to have a really cute print that reminded me of the 1900s that I thought would be perfect for this project. I tried to find the fabric's name on the selvage, but it only said that it was made specifically for Joann Fabrics. I tried looking it up on their website, but y'all they have so much fabric I didn't even know where to begin! So a picture will have to suffice 😉
What you'll need to make this little guy:
Cutting Mat
Rotary cutter
Ruler
1/4 yard each of 2 coordinating fabrics
9" Zipper
Pins
Thread
Sewing machine
Interfacing (Optional. I didn't use it in this project)
I followed the original pencil case tutorial from Crazy Little Projects. I don't have a fancy Cricut machine like she does, so I just used the tools I already had on hand to cut the fabric.
1. Begin by cutting your fabric into rectangles that measure 9.5" x 5.5", you'll need 2 pieces of each fabric (see picture above)
**If you want your bag to be a little sturdier, you'll want to add interfacing to the wrong sides of your outside fabric. I wished I had added interfacing when I was finished, so just decide if you want your bag to be very soft and flimsy or a little bit sturdier before you go any further.
2. Place one piece of your lining fabric right side up (pretty side of the fabric) and place the zipper on top with the zipper face up. Line up the edges of the fabric with the edge of the zipper.
4. Using a zipper foot, sew along the zipper edge. When you're about 3/4 of the way done, back stitch and cut the thread so you can open up the zipper half way, then finish stitching to the end of the fabric.
**I should have lined up the outer edge of the zipper foot with the edge of the fabric so that the fabric wouldn't get caught when I zipped the zipper.
5. When you're finished stitching, take your fabric to the ironing board and press the fabric away from the zipper so that it's flat instead of curling up at the zipper.
6. Now we're going to do the same thing to the other side. Lay your second piece of lining fabric with the right side up in front of you. lay your fabric/zipper piece on top with zipper face up. Line up the edge of your second piece of lining fabric with the edge of the zipper.
7. Lay your second piece of outer fabric on top of the fabric/zipper piece with right side facing down. Line up all the edges. Pin again horizontally.
8. Sew along the edge of the zipper and fabric pieces.
9. When you're finished sewing, press the fabric away from the zipper on the side you just stitched. It should look like this now.
10. Fold your fabric in half so that the right sides of the outer fabric are together and the lining of the fabric is sandwiching it with the right sides out.
12. Fold the pouch so that the zipper is in the center and unzip the zipper halfway.
15. When you've sewn all four corners, you'll want to clip the excess fabric off the corners.
When my aunts and uncles sold my grandparents farmhouse a while back, they had to clean everything out. My Grandma had a craft room where she kept all her supplies and creations. Y'all, she had so much stuff! I never got to go down to look through her stuff, but my mom and sister did and they brought back her sewing machine that was mounted inside a sewing table and a sewing box. The box had your usual threads in it, but it also had a bunch of hooks and eyes to attach to clothing as well as a bunch of zippers and snaps. I've never attempted to sew a zipper in something before, but when I came across one of those "More than 50 fun beginner sewing projects" pins, I figured I may as well give it a whirl.
I really needed a bag to store all of my crochet hooks that I've acquired over the years because they were being stored in a big plastic bag, and some of them were in cigar holders...hahahahahahaha. Most of the fabric I own came from Joann Fabrics, and I happened to have a really cute print that reminded me of the 1900s that I thought would be perfect for this project. I tried to find the fabric's name on the selvage, but it only said that it was made specifically for Joann Fabrics. I tried looking it up on their website, but y'all they have so much fabric I didn't even know where to begin! So a picture will have to suffice 😉
What you'll need to make this little guy:
Cutting Mat
Rotary cutter
Ruler
1/4 yard each of 2 coordinating fabrics
9" Zipper
Pins
Thread
Sewing machine
Interfacing (Optional. I didn't use it in this project)
 |
My youngest really wanted the fish to take a picture too. |
1. Begin by cutting your fabric into rectangles that measure 9.5" x 5.5", you'll need 2 pieces of each fabric (see picture above)
**If you want your bag to be a little sturdier, you'll want to add interfacing to the wrong sides of your outside fabric. I wished I had added interfacing when I was finished, so just decide if you want your bag to be very soft and flimsy or a little bit sturdier before you go any further.
2. Place one piece of your lining fabric right side up (pretty side of the fabric) and place the zipper on top with the zipper face up. Line up the edges of the fabric with the edge of the zipper.
3. Next, place one piece of your outer fabric on top of the zipper with right side facing down. Line up the edge of the fabric with the edge of the zipper as well as the lining fabric. Pin along the zipper--I recommend pinning the pins horizontally instead of vertically!
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| Adjustable Zipper Foot |
**I should have lined up the outer edge of the zipper foot with the edge of the fabric so that the fabric wouldn't get caught when I zipped the zipper.
5. When you're finished stitching, take your fabric to the ironing board and press the fabric away from the zipper so that it's flat instead of curling up at the zipper.
6. Now we're going to do the same thing to the other side. Lay your second piece of lining fabric with the right side up in front of you. lay your fabric/zipper piece on top with zipper face up. Line up the edge of your second piece of lining fabric with the edge of the zipper.
 |
| This is just to show how all the pieces are sandwiched together |
8. Sew along the edge of the zipper and fabric pieces.
9. When you're finished sewing, press the fabric away from the zipper on the side you just stitched. It should look like this now.
10. Fold your fabric in half so that the right sides of the outer fabric are together and the lining of the fabric is sandwiching it with the right sides out.
11. Pin the edges of the long side and stitch along the edge with a regular presser foot.
13. Pin the short ends and sew along the edges. You'll sew over the zipper, so make sure the end that's unzipped is pulled together as you sew across it.
14. Now for the boxed corners--I wasn't really sure what I was doing at this point so I just winged it because the writer of the original tutorial wasn't entirely clear on this step. Take one of the four corners of your pouch and place your hand inside the corner. Create a triangle by pinching the fabric together, with the seam going down the center of the triangle. I made a mark about half an inch (I didn't measure, I just eyeballed it) from the corner of the triangle and then sewed straight across. Make sure you do this to all four corners, and make sure whatever you do is even or else your bag will look wonky.
16. Flip your back right side out, and that's it! You're done!
These little bags are the perfect size for your kids pencils, among many other things! As I said before, these are my crochet hooks (and other hooks) new home. The only thing I wasn't a huge fan about with this bag is that you can see the raw edges of the fabric on the inside of the bag. While it may not be a terrible thing, it's just not as aesthetically pleasing to look at...hahaha. Also, I think I would have sewn a top stitch along either side of the zipper just for detail. I know what to do the next time I make this little fellow.
Until next time!
-Jor
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