Kraft Paper Bag Tutorial ~ Free-Tutorial.net

Fabric that looks like paper + paper that acts like fabric – how could I resist?

I used Kraft paper fabric on the body – its a material that traditionally has been used for cement and other industrial packaging, but now it is being sold and packaged for the craft market.

I started off by seeing how well it would sew – and yes it is quite heavy and unyielding – it is stiff and therefore cannot be easily manipulated underneath the machine. I haven’t tried washing it yet as I am enjoying the crispness of my new bag – but it is supposed to be able to be washed and then leaves a crinkly texture finish.

To make a simple day bag:

Materials:
Kraft paper fabric – 2 pieces cut into 13x9inch / 25x22cm piece
Kraft paper fabric – 4 pieces cut into 2.5×4 inches / 7x11cm rectangles
Strip of fabric (newspaper print) 5inch / 13cm wide x 60 inches / 158cm long
zip – 13inches /25cm long (if its a bit longer don’t fret you can cut it)

Step 1. Using a zig zag stitch sew your zip to the top edges of your two large pieces of Kraft paper fabric. Use a zipper foot if you have one handy. Because I am not turning this right side out and the stitching and raw seams will be seen at all time, you should try to sew in a straight line (unlike me – mine went a bit wonky as sewing the paper can be a little slippery – the feed dogs don’t grab it from underneath and it can slip to one side if you are not paying attention).

Step 2. Next sew the bags sides and bottom together. Then to create a bit of shape in your bag, fold the bottom corners and stitch across the seam, an inch in from the corner will do. This gives the bag a bit of body so it is not a flat envelope.

Step 3. Make your shoulder straps from the strip of newspaper print fabric, simply by folding in each raw edge and over stitching down the entire length, then stitch along the other length. Cut the strip into 2 even lengths. Trim the corners from your 4 small rectangles of Kraft paper fabric to create slightly rounded corners and fold them in half. Place the raw ends of your shoulder straps inside the folded rectangle and place it where you would like it on the bag (about a third in from the side and a couple of inches down from the top.
Place the bag in your sewing machine and sew these straps to your bag, sew back and forth through the layers a few times to strengthen the strap. You won’t be able to turn it around as the Kraft paper fabric has no give in it – so here I chose a messy scribble back and forth stitch.