Activity Corner: Make your bag from old clothes

Old clothes 

Sewing machine 

Scissors 

Thread, to match colour of fabric. 

Elastic to gather the edge. 

One large safety pin. 

A big sheet of paper for the pattern. 

Make a paper pattern for the bag you want to make. Draw it out on paper, then cut it out and hold it together to see if it’s going to look like you want it to. Don’t forget to make a pattern for the straps, as well. For this little purse,  cut two 9 inch squares. 

Place the two pieces together. Ensure you know which side will be right (outside) and wrong side (that goes inside) of the would-be bag. Pin and then sew the three  sides for the bag, leaving the last side open. 

Flip the top edge over so that a one-and-ahalf-inch fold of the ‘right’ side can be seen in at the top. You will want to sew this fold down about an inch from the top of the bag, all the way around, creating a channel. Instead of sewing the full circle around the bag, leave a small section unsewn. 

Take a 10 inch piece of elastic. Pierce one end with the safety pin and use the pin as a kind of needle to draw the elastic through the channel. 

Before you sew one end of the elastic to the other and sew the little hole shut, make sure you know the amount of gather you want at the mouth of your bag. If you want the opening to be smaller, now is the time to cut off more elastic and make that adjustment. You can attach any kind of strap you want.