When I saw this:
I knew our whole toy storing situation desperately needed to be dealt with. Our one basket just wasn't cuttin it anymore! At first I went venturing out looking for some cute storage bins, baskets or shelves. NOTHING!!! It was either too expensive for what I desired or not what I needed.
So I decided to make "Toy Themed Bags." We have a whole heap of Toy Story toys, Pirate toys, Cars toys, Animal toys, Train toys and so on. You get the picture. So I made some bags to go along with the toy specified. Example: Pirates go in the Pirate bag. Toy Story goes in the Toy story bag and so on! The boys LOVE this idea and it's SUPER easy for them to put their toys away! Works for us! Soooooo, come see how we did it and then make some yourself! It takes about an hour (or more if your a new sewer) to make. :)
Materials:
About a yard 1/2 of material (I used snuggle flannel cause it was on sale....super sturdy too)
Thread to match
Rotary Cutter
Cutting mat
Ruler
Rope for drawstring (Wal-Mart or JoAnns)
Sewing Machine
Iron and Ironing board
Step 1: Measure and Cut
First you are going to measure and cut your material. I folded my material in half wrong sides together to see how big I wanted it... think of it like folding a piece of paper in half. (I measured about 22in. or more cause I wanted them big) You decide how big you want yours to be and then add about 4 1/2 inches to the top for the flap. (see later how we put in drawstrings)
Step 2: Whip It... Whip it good!
You want to whip stitch (the zig zag stitch) all around the edges of your material to avoid fraying. It just makes it look nicer too. :)
Step 3: Fold, Iron and Sew Edges
Fold down your edges and iron down. You can pin if you want, but I just glided it on through my sewing machine. Sew along the edge carefully until all edges are done.
Step 4: Pin and Make a Flap
After edges are complete, fold fabric in half right sides together. Sorry my picture is so bad, it was late. Anywho, pin the edges of your fabric together as seen in my "great" picture! ;) (Follow the arrows)
At the top of your bag you are going to want to leave about 4 inches unpinned in order to make a flap for your drawstring to go through. YOU WILL NOT BE SEWING the 4 inches at the top yet... so hold on to your horses! ;)
After pinning together, start sewing your sides and bottom. See picture for where to start and stop. Remember you need at least 3 and 1/2 to 4 inches un-sewn at the top. Start and stop at the lightening bolts. :)
Step 5: Drawstring Time
After sewing, grab your drawstring and place it at the top of your bag like so. Measure how much you want to use. I layed it on the top and left about 3 inches hanging out of the sides to tie at the end.
Flip extra fabric or flap over your drawstring and pin. You can either keep your rope there and continue pinning of remove it and stuff it through later... it's up to you.
Then pin it down. Make sure to ONLY pin the flap part together, NOT ALL of your fabric. You want to still make it a bag remember, so it needs an opening. :) (sorry I don't have a picture of it)
Step 6: Sewing that Flappy thing
Sew your edges together to make it easier to sew the flaps. Start at arrows and then stop at the cute little lightening bolt. :) (about 2 inches)
After you sew both sides, open up your bag and slide it onto your sewing machine to sew the flap together. Sew it all the way around and viola! Your done with the sewing part.
Then take your cute little snake of a drawstring and start pushing it through. I call it the chinese finger trap...
After the trap, flip your bag right side out. Tie knots in the end to avoid fraying. (You can even burn the tips of you want to go the extra mile)
Now my littles insisted on having a "Buzz Lightyear" bag. So I decided to apply an applique to it when it was finished. I simply sewed around the edges of buzz and through his middle to ensure safe holding. :) Love it!
So there you have it! I made a few and now have a little bit of order to my mayhem! I hope you have fun making yours! Happy Sewing! Muah!
