I have had several people ask me about how I construct the Sew Together Bags I make, particularly the binding method I use. I'll post a bit about how to hand bind around the zipper, and a few pics of the bags I have made to date.
My preference for interfacing bags is Pellon SF101 Shape-Flex. It fuses nicely and keeps the fabric soft and pliable. I have added interfacing to the back of the main panel twice, once to help stabilize hand pieced hexagons, and once to quick piece tiny patchwork squares. On those panels I used Pellon 906F fusible sheerweight interfacing to keep them from getting too bulky.
Each bag I have made to date has been quilted. I used fusible fleece behind the floral kitty bag, and I was not happy with how the shape warped when it was quilted. In the future I will stick to using quilt batting unless I leave the exterior unquilted.
I like to hand bind the bags with a ladder stitch for a cleaner look. It does take a bit longer, but it is so worth it. The only tricky piece to bind is the free zipper portion if you are using a thread color that does not match the zipper tape, because the stitches can be visible on the top of the zipper tape. To remedy this, I fold the binding to the underside, just over the stitching line, and rather than sewing through the folded edge of the binding, I grab some fabric just to the underside of the fold. When I take the stitch into the zipper tape, I make sure to sew behind the stitching line where the zipper tape is covered by the top side of the binding. It is a bit confusing to explain, but hopefully this pic will help:
And now on to the retrospective pics.
My first bag I made for myself using 1" HSTs.
My bag gets heavy use and has been covered in coffee and tea (I am glad I opted to use a dark background fabric!)
Not all of my bags have been used for sewing; my daughter uses her Bonnie and Camille QAYG bag for makeup.
One of my all time favorite creations was a rainbow hexie bag I made for my friend Gwen. I love everything about this bag, including the interior.
I made a glorious yellow bag for my friend Inder of Inder Loves Folk Art. We share a love of gold, mustard, and groovy things in general. I drafted a panel in EQ7 to paper piece sunbeams and I am in love with the result. It is so very Inder. A very big thanks to my friend Gwen who sent me yellow scraps so I could have a large variety.
The most basic bag I have made is the floral kitties bag for a dear friend. She picked the fabric and the layout. These kitties are so cute!
Cotton + Steel Sew Together bag with August gazelles exterior
I can see that this is going to be an awesome blog already, M! And OH MY GOSH PEOPLE MY BAG IS THE BEST. I filled it with hand-sewing supplies and it cheers me everytime I look at it or pull it out for a little sewing. It's like glorious yellow sunshine every time. <3
ReplyDeleteThanks Inder! :)
DeleteOk, I am going to tackle this bag for sure. One question about the hexie bag - did you fuse the hexies to the interfacing, then quilt using batting?
ReplyDeleteYes. I pieced, pressed, removed the basting papers, pressed a bit again, fused interfacing on the back, then quilted as usual. I thought it would help secure the hand stitching a bit.
DeleteThanks for explaining your method. I have already sewn three of them, and every time I want to hand sewing the binding but I had no time. I'll try it the next time. The hexie bag is gorgeous!!!
ReplyDeleteIt does add some time, but worth a try when you have it.
DeleteI loved seeing some of your bags in person at The Quilt Asylum today. fun fabric choices!
ReplyDeleteWow! I just adore these!! I have the pattern and have been too intimidated to start. But now, seeing all if this loveliness, I am inspired to jump right in. And thanks for the binding tips! Xx! Lori
ReplyDeleteWhen you quilt your bag do you use a traditional muslin on the bottom of your quilting sandwich and then line your bag? I was wondering if that would be too bulky. LOVE the hexie bag. I have lots of Liberty of London hexies I was thinking of using for a bag.
ReplyDeleteUsually when I make quilted bags I do not make a full quilt sandwich; instead I just leave the batting open on the back. However, adding a layer of muslin behind does not make the bag too bulky. I do like these bags with shape flex interfacing (Pellon SF 101) fused to the back of the exterior for extra stability and then batting behind that.
DeleteThanks so much. That helps tremendously. Cutting my pieces today.
DeleteHave you made this bag with any of the foam interfacing before quilting?
ReplyDeleteI have not, but it probably works fine if your machine can handles layers well.
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