13 October 2010

Towel Bag (So Easy!)

This was suppose to be for "Sew Saturday" but I had a busy day of traveling so I didn't get to it. This bag is sooo easy. I do not sew and I made this with ease and in about 30 minutes. I will do my best to explain the tutorial.

Supplies: Dish towel (this isn't the typical cotton one you get at WalMart. This is the bigger, linen-like, thinner ones. I want to guess the dimension are 18x24inches), 3 yards of rug rope or thicker ribbon. Sewing machine, embellishments if wanted like a button, rosette etc.

This is where I stink in the craft-bloggin, so I will do my best to explain. I don't have a picture for every step...sorry.
Lay your towel out flat and lay out the rub rope/ribbon where you would like it to be placed, leaving loops for the arm straps. Make sure the end of the ribbon is in the crease line where you would fold the towel in half so it is hidden. Pin it down and sew it on, making boxes with "x's" in the them at the top where the towel ends and the loops begin (for added support, you see this on most totes-know what I'm talking about?)

After you have sewn on your ribbon, fold the towel so the patterned sides are facing eachother (inside out) and sew up the edges leaving the opening at the top. 
Then is make it so the bottom of the bag is square (this is hard to explain) pull out the bottom so it lays flat and the corner of the bag comes to a point like in the pictures above and below this. Then follow down 2 inches from the point, lay a ruler across and draw a line. Sew over this line.

Turn the bag right side out and push the corners out so it looks like the picture below. You can completely skip this step if you want but it is nice to give your bag a more level bottom. There is a specific name for this--and I can't remember what it is, if you know it please comment it. Remember? Not a sewer here. :)

Here's the finished product!!! It super cute and I use it for my Sunday bag---its the perfect size! I haven't added my bow and button yet. You could even add an outside pocket in a fun, contrasting color or patter in you wanted to. This really is super simple, and I got it done in no time.


Happy Sewing!

3 comments:

  1. That's one great looking tote. Now, I just wish the dish towels were cheap...they cost a bunch around here.

    I would like to invite you to the Fantastic Frugal Fridays . It is the place to link up your frugal posts of all kinds.

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  2. This tote cost me about $5...that's deal to me.

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  3. Laura,
    That bag is super cute, I think I'm gonna try it. I want to be more crafty and use my sewing machine more, instead of just working on J's quilt. Anyway. This blog is awesome and I enjoy all the great ideas. Thanks

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