Sewing Tool Bag

I’m not claiming any credit for this idea. I made one for a project in high school, so forgive the fabric of my original one. It’s still “cute” but not necessarily “trendy”

Original closed:

Original open:

So you see it has all sorts of places to hold your tools that you use all the time (here’s my list of tools I love….). I think it’s really nice and convenient to have them all together, especially since I tend to end up sewing at the kitchen table sometimes… Do you want to make one? K, let’s get started:

You’ll need:

2 pieces of the same, or coordinating fabric that’s 18”x22” (that’s a fat quarter size, if you have one you love) (also, if it’s flimsy fabric, you may need interfacing between the layers to thicken it up)

21” piece of 1/2” wide elastic

Matching thread

30” Matching ribbon (for tying it closed)

21” ribbon (for contrast, if you want on the fabric)

Scissors

Marking tool for fabric

Iron & Ironing board

Clear ruler

Tape measure

Rotary cutter & mat (if you need to cut your fabric down to 18”x22”)

First, cut your fabric to the right size, if needed.

Then, iron your fabric so it’s nice and flat.

Next, if you want to do yours like mine, I sewed ribbon onto the outside to make the white look better. Pick where you want it to go, knowing there’s a 1/2” seam allowance. Mark it. I did the top edge at 2 1/2” and 3 1/2”

Then sew it, using matching thread. I sewed down one side of the ribbon, as close as I dared to the edge, then sewed back around the other side. Basically make a big rectangle.

Now, we’re going to sew the front and back together. There’s 2 ways to do this. If you have a serger, you can just sew them together and serge around the edges. That’s what I did on mine in high school. Or, if you want to have a finished edge, you can do it this way. Pin the elastic to the sides at 5” from the bottom, and the ribbon at 9” from the bottom on one of the pieces of fabric. Skip down to where we make the pocket if you choose to serge around the edges.

To make sure you don’t accidently sew the ribbon somewhere, pin it in the middle of the fabric between your layers of fabrics.

Pin the fabrics right sides together.

Then sew with a 1/2” seam allowance, leaving an opening about 4” wide.

Clip corners, and then turn your fabric right side out. Don’t you love my ironing board cover? I really want to re-do it soon….

Once it’s turned, poke out the corners with something pointy, and then press the fabric, pulling the seam out as best as you can.

Now, sew along the bottom edge. This will be the top of your pocket. Press up 4” on the bottom, and pin. Sew around all the edges, starting at bottom corner and sewing as close to the edge as you can.

You should have a pocket with elastic above it, and your ribbon ties should be on. Now, you’re going to mark all the places you need to sew to make the divisions. I marked mine, starting at the left edge, 3 1/4”, 5 1/2”, 6 1/4”, 7”, 8”, 9”, 10”, 11”, 13 1/4”, 14 3/4”, and 17 3/4”. If you want any bigger or smaller, go ahead and change them how you want them

Don’t you love that fabric? When I finished this bag, I was really tempted to keep it instead of give it to my friend for her birthday. Anyway… Go ahead and sew all the lines you just marked from the bottom of the fabric up to the elastic top.

Sorry that picture was kind of bad. Trim off all your threads, wipe off your marker however the package tells you to, and you should be ready to put your tools in, and roll it up!

Let me know if something doesn’t make sense or needs better clarification!

~Ash