PILLOWCASE BAGS AND DUFFEL BAGS ARE SO EASY AND FUN TO MAKE!
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https://sewforfosterkids.com/index.html
LARGE SIZE FOR TEENAGERS, AND MEDIUM AND SMALL FOR CHILDREN.
WHAT YOU NEED TO GET STARTED
1. medium weight “kid friendly” fabric, 2 pieces 22” wide and 25 to 36” long depending on the size of the child. 36” for the teens and anywhere from 25” to 30” for the children. If you buy the fabric off a bolt it usually is 45” wide and so you can fold in half lengthwise. I also go to donation centers like Savers and Goodwill for fabric, sheets and pillowcases in kid friendly fabrics as long as the weight of the fabric is durable. Check out SAS Fabrics (two locations in Mesa and Phoenix). Hobby Lobby or Walmart has sale area with some good choices. If you want to make pillowcase bags with neutral colors, we will donate those to a local homeless shelter.
2. Sewing machine, thread, scissors, measuring tape, iron, pins and a piece of cord about 50-55" long. (I find 3/16th inch polycord at Walmart. The cording should be long enough so that when the bag is opened there is room to go beyond the 22" width. To seal the ends of the cord which has a tendency to fray you can burn the ends with a match or lighter. It melts and it nicely seals the ends. For the small children's bags I use ½ inch elastic 21” long (because of choking laws) instead of cord and enclose it in the casing. Feel free to add a strap, just no cords. See instructions which are shown separately below.
3. Serger if you have one or pinking shears if you don't to finish the inside seams if fabric frays. Use whatever color thread is in your serger. You can also zig-zag the raw edges or make a French seam for extra strength. (place wrong sides together, stitch 1/4" seam on sides and bottom, turn placing right sides together, press and stitch and sew a 1/2" seam).
SEVEN EASY STEPS FOR MEDIUM OR LARGE PILLOWCASE BAGS
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1. Mark 7" down the side seam on wrong side of fabric for opening. Some volunteers make this opening shorter or longer depending on the length of the bag. Use your own judgment here.
2. Placing right sides together sew sides and bottom seam using a ½” seam.
*If you are making a French seam, place wrong sides together and sew a 1/4" seam down sides and bottom, turn pillowcase bag to wrong side and sew right sides together using a 1/2" seam.
3. Sew 1/4” from edge to the bottom of the opening across and up the other side.
*If you made a French seam you'll have to handle this step differently. Use whatever way you want to stitch the raw edges closed..
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4. If your machine has a bar tack, go to the bottom of the opening and secure with the bar tack for extra strength.
5. Snip seam allowance below opening close to stitching. This allows space to serge or pink raw edges of side and bottom seam.
6. Fold over 1/4” at top edge and again 1 1/2". Press and stitch.
7. Thread the cord through the casing and tie the two ends together as this will secure the cord and prevent it from slipping through the casing. You can also stitch a short verticle seam at the half-way point on the casing itself preventing anyone from pulling the cord out.
Shown is a casing threader you can get at JoAnn for a couple of bucks to make it faster and easier to thread the cord. You can also use a cable tie for the same purpose.
YOUR FINISHED LARGE OR MEDIUM PILLOWCASE BAG!
* You can make a strap for this bag or leave it without one. For some ideas on straps for this bag check out the pictures of bags that others have made by clicking on the link in the green column to the left and top of the page. Double click to enlarge.
MAKING THE DUFFEL BAGS
To get started you will need everything you used for the pillowcase bags but use a heavier weight fabric because you will be adding straps and need the heavier weight to support the bag. Denim is perfect.
1. Cut fabric as you would for the pillowcase bag. You can fold a 45" wide piece in half but I like cutting two separate pieces 22" wide because it facilitates measurement and placement of pockets and straps and is just easier to manage at the sewing machine.
2. Cut two pieces of fabric for the straps 6” X 25” or less for small bags. Fold over 1/4” on all edges, press, fold in half, press again and stitch a 1/4” seam all around.
3. Pin the straps to the top of bag about 3 1/2” from top raw edge. Space them according to the size of the bag you are making. You will want them to be between 6” and 8” apart, wider for teens, less for children. Do this before sewing side seams.
4. Pin straps to bottom 3” to 5” apart, but no further apart than the hip width of the child leaving some slack in the straps as shown.
5. Attach and reinforce the ends as show in the picture.
6.. You can add a pocket whatever size you like to the front of the bag. I cut a square 8X10 or larger for the pocket. Fold down and press 1/4” from shortest edge and then fold again 1” and stitch. Fold remaining raw edges in 1/2” and press. Pin to bag as shown. Stitch close to edge. You can add a bar tack at the top of each side to reinforce and secure. Embellish if you want to to make the bags fun for the kids!
7. Stitch sides and bottom using a 1/2” seam. You can leave an opening like on the pillowcase bag or make the casing and add grommets before stitching the casing closed. What I have done in this photo is to thread the cord through the grommets before sewing the casing. To use the casing threader shown above would require larger grommets. I purchase the grommets at a hardware store because they are less expensive than a fabric store. Be sure that you have the little tool to bang the grommets in place. These are included with the grommets in some of the packages.
8. To square the bottom of the bag, stitch a seam across at three inches from each corner as indicated by the pins in the photo. You can trim the flap off to within an inch or so if desired.
YOUR FINISHED DUFFEL BAG!
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The picture above shows straps that are longer than 25". With the teen bags it actually is better to have the straps be around 25" because the distance from the top of the shoulders to the hips is the length you are aiming for. So, consider this when measuring for the straps. With a child's bag the length is shorter of course. Use your own judgment when making the duffel bags. If you have a child in your family that is willing to try it on that is a great way to get a sense of how long and how much slack to leave in the straps. Some volunteers have made a single strap on the side of the bag, another creative way to imagine how they can be constructed.
