This style of bag is even quicker to whip up if you decide not to line it. I like to have a few vinyl lined bags in my personal for frozen items. It keeps the wet contained.
Ready to get started?
How to sew a shirred pocket
What you need
A piece of scrap fabric, size depends on your desired pocket size
Elastic thread
Getting Started
Cut your rectangle. I cut a 5″ x 10″ rectangle. You need 2.
Since you’re going to be shirring your pocket you want the pocket to be 2-3 times as wide as the finished goal. I’m using an upholstery fabric so it’s thicker and won’t shirr as aggressively. If you use quilting cotton it’s going to shirr much more.
Put your rectangles right sides together. Sew along both long sides at 1/4″ seam.
Turn your pocket. It’s going to look like a tube. Press it flat.
Prep your sewing machine. You want to wind your bobbin with elastic thread. DO THIS BY HAND. You want to wind the elastic thread tightly enough that you don’t have loops, but do not stretch the thread taught.
Put your regular machine thread in the needle. Lengthen your stitch. I sew at the longest stitch length.
Do a tester run if you haven’t used elastic thread before. Machine settings can differ so yours may need to be adjusted differently than mine.
I sewed 5 lines across the bottom and 5 lines across the top tightly spaced.
My fabric is thick so it doesn’t spring right together. If you are shirring a lighter fabric yours may look really tight already.
Now it’s time to tighten it all up. Get your iron nice and hot. You want to hold the iron over the top of your pocket, without touching it, and steam it. And steam it some more, and keep steaming it.
You’ll see it start pulling together.
Now secure the ends of your elastic and finish the edges. You can do this a number of ways. I serged my edges. You can hand knot your elastic ends, and zig zag over the edge to finish also.
Turn your side edges to the back.
Flip your pocket over and sew down the short sides and across the bottom. I backstitched several times at the corners to really secure it.
Grocery Bag Tutorial
What you will need
2 rectangles for the outside bag. Adjusting these will change the size of your bag. I made mine 16″ x 18″
2 matching rectangles out of your lining fabric. I chose a very light vinyl that I picked up at my local Jo-Ann. Remember this material melts so don’t apply heat to it.
72″ of strapping for your handles alternativelyy you could create tubes with your fabric)
Optional- add your pocket to one of your rectangles before you begin.
I sewed all of my seams at 1/4″.
Create two separate bags. One with your outer fabric, one with your vinyl (lining). Your going to use the envelope bottom tutorial to create your bag structure.
Find the step by step tutorial on the envelope bottom here. Your two bags will look like this.
Now we’re going to join the two bags. Put the bags right sides together.
Worth noting at this point if you are using a transparent vinyl this seam will be visible. So you may want to finish the edge of your outer bag.
Sew around the top of the bag leaving a 2-3″ opening for turning.
Turn the bag. Your going to just work them slowly out, it will look like this when your finished.
Push your lining back inside of the bag and push the shape back in to them. Important note if your using a vinyl fabric DON’T IRON IT. It will melt.
Once you have your lining pushed inside you want to turn in the unfinished edges of your opening. Now stitch around the top of your bag. This will both close your opening and keep your lining from rolling to the front.
Time to attach your handles! You want to cut two straps aproximatly 36″ inches a piece.
I attached my straps about 3 inches from the side seam. Put your strap about 1 1/2″ down on the lining of your bag. You want to make this connection super strong. First I sew a box and then an X through it. Backstitch liberally.
You’re ready to fill up your bag!
Happy Sewing
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