Valentine Goody Bag

If you are looking for the giveaway click here.

Have you joined any swaps this year? I joined a few and one of them is a bag swap. Since I am in heart mode I decided to make my swapee a heart themed bag.

One of the Valentine fabric lines that The Fat Quarter Shop has is Smitten by Barb Tourtillotte. I just love the way she mixed red, pink and aqua with a fun theme.

When I saw this line I immediately knew what I wanted to make with it.

This bag is so easy to make, you don't even need a zipper foot.

You will need to make an 11" x 12" front and the same size back. Be creative anything works, as long as it measures 11" x 12"

You will also need
1 - 14" zipper
2 pieces of batting cut 12" x 13"
2 pieces of fabric for the inside of the bag cut 12" x 13"
1 - 1 1/2" x 8" piece of fabric that matches the zipper

Make a quilt sandwich with the inside fabric wrong side up, the batting and the front of the bag facing wrong side down (just like for a regular quilt). Repeat with the back. Pin around the edges and quilt.

Trim the front to 10" x 11". Then place the front on top of the back and trim the same size. If you have side seams make sure they are trimmed the same distance from the top and bottom so when you sew the bag together they match.

Preparing the zipper

Take the 1 ½” x 8” piece that matches the color of the zipper and press it in half width wise. Then open it up and press the sides to the center. This will be a double folded piece of bias tape. Cut into 2 – 4” pieces.

Sew across the zipper to keep the 2 pieces in place and then trim close to the seam you just sewed.

Then nestle the cut zipper piece inside the bias tape you just made and sew very close to the left side of the fold. No need for a zipper foot here. Trim the bias tape even with the edges of the zipper.

Cut the zipper 1" less than the top edge of the front panel. Make sure the zipper pull is inside before you cut.

Repeat to finish the other side of the zipper. Here's a pic of a zipper from another project (sorry I forgot this pic)

Adding the zipper:
Note – you do not need a zipper foot for this but I do recommend you use your all purpose foot and not your ¼” foot. You will be doing a zig zag stitch and the ¼” foot might not be able to do a zig zag stitch.

Lay the front of the bag outside piece up on your surface. Put the zipper with the pull side down along the top edge of the front of your bag. Make sure the zipper is centered along the top (about ½” in from the sides).

Sew along the top edge halfway between the zipper teeth and the edge. Backstitch a few stitches at the beginning and end of the seam.

Now it’s time to finish that raw edge. Set your machine to the zig-zag stitch and sew. The left side of the stitch will be on the fabric and the right side will be right past the fabric so the entire raw edge will be covered. When done select the straight stitch again.

 

Flip the zipper up so it is above the front of the bag and with a straight stitch sew a line right below the zipper, making sure to catch the finished edge of the zipper underneath.

Repeat with the other side of the bag, being sure to attach the zipper to the outside part.

You will then have a piece that looks like this:

Finishing the bag:

 

Before you go any further make sure the zipper is at least ½” opened.

With the insides of the bag facing out (or right sides together) pin along the sides and bottom of the bag. Make sure to match up any side seams. Sew along the sides and bottom. Backstitch a few stitches at the start and finish. Finish these raw edges with a zig zag stitch just like before.

 

 

Making the gusset: 

Fold the bottom right seam up to the right side seam and pin. Make sure the seams are lined up so they match. 

Measure 2" from the point and draw a line from side to side. Repeat on the other side of the bag. Sew along the lines, trim 1/4" away and finish the seam with a zig zag stitch.

Turn the bag right side out and there you go!

Here's the bottom and side views.

The great thing about this pattern is that it can be used to make any size zipper bag from a IPod or cell phone case to an IPad case to large accessory bags. The skies the limit.

Come back tomorrow for another V-Week project.