Tutorial: Bag from Cargo Pants ~ Free-Tutorial.net

Recycle old Cargo Pants or spring cleaning closet?
This is a super basic but really super easy photo tutorial for all my lovely sewing people out there.

What you will need? Just an old Cargo Pants and a little bit of fabric for the inside bag (lining), or just got the idea, if you use for the inside bag another pants you will get reversible Messenger Bag…so the design and the process of doing them is so simple, that I could get a new idea before I wrote down this one. Enjoy.

Before we started.
This is just the basic concept of sewing Messenger Bag with the lining. Play with the fabric and recycle, this is the main point. Sew more pockets if you like, sew buttons, topstitch, print on it.
How to start: Cut the pants on the inside seam of both legs, so you will get your fabric for out-side bag.

You will need:
Just an old Cargo Pants and a little bit of fabric for the inside bag (lining). You could also do the same with a jeans pants...the main point is to have some old pants that you could recycle in to a new life and having fun whale you will sew them.

Inside pockets:
First on one or both lining pieces sew the pocket if you like it. You could do different one.

In this photo:
Gray fabric are for the outside (Cargo Pants), the purple fabric is for the inside (the lining). On top are straps fabric pieces. (I need to sew 3 pieces of gray fabric together.) There is also the same size front and back of the messenger bag and the fabric piece with cargo pocket (almost square piece) with the same size lining.
(For this piece I decided at the end, that I need to have bigger piece so I make more rectangular one). At the bottom is a small fabric for the inside pocket.
PS all the measurement are in cm included with 1 cm seam allowance.

Prepare the Messenger Bag Tongue:
Put the right side to right side and make a seam 1 cm from the edge. Then turn around and make a topstitch (I did make 2 topstitches).
PS. My final Messenger Bag Tongue is more rectangular then on this picture, but do what you like more). I think that for my bag it is nice if the Tongue is loner then wider.

Strap piece.
Sew the grey fabric straps in one piece and make topstitch on 2-3 mm from the seam. Then put right side to right side and make two long seams 1 cm from the edge. Turn around and make topstitch like you do this before on a Tongue.

Attaching Bag Tongue:
Place Bag Tongue on one part of the lining and make a seam 5 mm from the edge. It won't be visible.

Inside Lining Pieces:
Put other lining piece right side to right side and sew 1 cm from the edge, leave open hole long 10-15 cm (view on top edge).
You will close this hole at the end with hand stitches.

At the bottom of the bag:
Open the bag and make the edge of the Messenger like on picture
"corner seam". (At front picture you could see already cut away the corner) and at the back of the picture you could see one step before edge cutting.

Sewing Bag Straps on to the Lining:
On the inside bag lining sew also the Bag Strap. Put this piece next to the Bag Tongue.

This is how the Inside Lining Bag with the front Pocket should look like:
Inside Bag (the lining) with a sewn pocket, straps on sides and Bag Tongue. At the bottom picture you could see the hole in the seam, you need this, and it's not a mistake.

Prepare also the Cargo Bag.
Put right side to right side and make a seam 1 cm from the edge (leave open at the top of the bag). Also don't forget to make edges at the bottom of the bag.

You should get something like that. Now, close the hole with hand stitches and place the lining inside of the Messenger Bag.
PS, if you like the small tongue (purple tongue), you could place the small straps of fabric when you will sew the sides seams. It almost looks like a logo. I like it, but it is just a decorative element.

Assemble both bags in to one:
Turn the Cargo Bag with wrong side out and place inside the Lining Bag. Then make a seam 1 cm from the edge (this is the top edge of the Messenger Bag).