Hello everyone, I'm Dorian, from RidgeTopQuilts. So happy to be here today and share this bag with you!! Thank you Melissa, for inviting me :)
With Christmas arriving soon, I though a cute gift bag would be in order. You can fill it with some small things like Legos or mini dolls, and give it to a child. Or fill it with some yummy chocolates for a favorite coworker or friend. Maybe even some cute sewing things for your sewing buddy.
You will need:
1 piece of 18"x 27" batting or interfacing of your choice (depending on how stiff/soft you want your bag.
1 piece of 18"x27" lining fabric.
Lay fabric A strip wrong side up in front of you, going lengthwise. Measure up from the bottom 1" and from the side 2" and mark a 1 1/2"x1/2" rectangle. Do this on both ends. Draw a line down the center and from each corner to the center.
Cut on the drawn lines inside the rectangle. And press to the inside.
And sew the pieces down.
Making prairie points.
You will need nine prairie points (PP's for short) Cut out nine 4" squares. I used fabric C, but you can use whatever color you want, or even make them all different.
Fold from one corner to the other, and press. And then fold one bottom corner to the other, and press again. So the two sides of the triangle, are folds, and the bottom is raw edge.
Open up the corner where the last fold was made, just a little bit to slip in the next triangle. I like to put it in about an inch. Then sew, using a scant 1/4" seam (some people use 1/8"). Stopping about halfway thru the triangle, to put the next one in.
I leave my small ruler right there next to my needle, so I can easily measure as I make my chain.
Sew all 9 PP's together.
Put fabric B face up on your table,. lay the PP's down along it, matching the bottom of the PPs to the top of fabric B. Lay fabric A face down on top (make sure the slits lay along the PPs).
Pin and sew 1/4" seam.
Press the seam up, towards fabric A. This will make sure your PPs' are pointing down.
Sew fabric C to the bottom of fabric B. Right sides together, 1/4" seam.
I laid my interfacing down on the back of my project, and marked about an 1 1/2" of space that covers the slits, then cut the strip out. You don't want to cover up the slits. This area has to be open (not ironed to the lining).
Iron on my interfacing to the back of your pieced project. Then place the lining on it, WRONG sides together. If using interfacing that irons on both sides, go ahead and iron your lining down. If not, or if you use batting. Pin it and quilt it anyway you want to.
Then fold the top down about 1/2" and sew a seam.
French seam
Fold your project so that the right side meets the left side, with the WRONG sides together. Pin and sew a scant 1/4". Down the side and along the bottom.
Turn your bag inside out. Smooth it all flat and sew a 3/8" seam down the side and along the bottom.
Turn right side out, and TA-DA...your seam is now encased in another seam :)
Making the tie.
Using a 4"x wof strip. Fold strip in half lengthwise and press. Open up, fold one long side to the middle fold line, press. Fold other long side in, press. Then fold the whole thing in half lengthwise.
Press and sew. I like to sew all around mine, but you can just sew the one seam to hold it all together, if you want.
Put a safety pin in the end of your strip and thread it thru the slits you made in the bag. This tie might be too long for you, if so, cut it to the length you want and sew the end up.
I hope you've enjoyed my tutorial. Thanks again Melissa, for having me here.
Merry Christmas everyone.
Dorian
And Thank You Dorian for taking the time to put together such a fabulous tutorial and then being willing to share it with all of us. I am sure quite a few of us will be adding it to our list of New Things to Try!!!
So what did I do new this week??? I tried out my new mat and practiced squaring up on a rotating mat, and my oh my, I love it!!!
