The Popsicle Tree: September 2012

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Trick-or-Treat Bag Tutorial & Giveaway!!

Ok, here we go! For one entire bag, outside and lining, you’ll need one yard of fabric total. The bags I made for my kids I just used one color for the whole thing. For this tutorial I used the leftovers from those bags.

First, cut 2 pieces that are 16x12 inches. You will need two for the outside, two for the inside.

Cute 2 pieces for the handles. 13x4 inches.

Next, with right sides together pin the two pieces together. You will do the same for the outside and the lining.

I stitched everything with a 1/2 inch seam. Sew three sides of the bag (outside and lining). Start at the top, go down a side, across the bottom, up the other side, leaving the top open.

This next part is probably the most tricky, but it really is easy and makes the bag look great! At each bottom corner of the bag you will pull the bag apart so that the side seam meats up with the bottom seam.

Hopefully this picture gives you a better look. If this is stressing you out, by all means, just don’t do it. You will still have a great bag! But once you learn how, it’s a simple trick that gives bags a wonderful finished look.

Once you have the seams lined up, pin it flat and measure 1 1/2 inch from the corner.

Mark a line that is perpendicular to your seam using chalk, a pencil or a pen. It won’t show when you are done anyway. Then sew across on that line.

When you finish both corners this is what it should look like.

Another look at the sewn corner.View of the corners after the bag is turned right side out.

Ok, you should have sewn both the outside and the lining of your bag. Take the OUTSIDE of your bag (if it’s different from your lining) and make sure it’s turned right side out. Your lining should be wrong side out. Put the OUTSIDE BAG inside your lining. Right sides should be together. Set that aside for a little bit.

Now for the handles. Fold your strip in half lengthwise, right sides together and stitch the long side, 1/2 seam still.

After you have sewn both pieces turn them right side out. This handy little tool is called a Fasturn. It is the neatest little tool!! My Mom bought it at JoAnn’s probably 20 years ago! Slide your tube of fabric over the metal tube, push the long pin thing with a swirly point up into the fabric so it grabs it and then just pull it out the bottom. Makes turning things like this so simple and quick!!

After you have turned both handles, iron them flat. I like my handles with the seam in the middle but you can certainly have the seam at one edge.

Back to the bag. Match up the side seams and pin.

To find the placement for the handles I measured 2 inches in from the side seam and place a pin to mark it.

Fold your handle like this…..

and then slide it in your bag BETWEEN the lining and the outside. So you should have, lining, handle, outside, outside, handle, lining. For your handles to be facing the right direction (seams inside) the seams should be facing up (touching the lining). Pin those in place and pin all around the top edge of your bag.

Now sew around the top edge of bag but leave an opening (shown between my fingers) on the end of bag by side seam. Should be between the handles on one end.

Sew around the top. Be sure to leave that opening.

See my opening between my fingers?

Now you can start turning your bag right side out. This picture just shows it halfway done.

Voila! All the way turned inside out!

Just grab the handles and push the lining inside the outside fabric.

You’ll want to pin the little opening closed and then pin all around the top edge of the bag.

Then topstitch the top edge of the bag. This helps keep the top flat and the seam at the top so it doesn’t keep curling over.

Now you have a finished bag! Can you see the topstitching? Just gives bags a wonderful finished quality.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope this was an easy tutorial to follow. You could make a bag like this any size you want with the same process. And you can make the bottom of the bag larger by increasing how far from the corner you sew across (for your squared bottom). Just remember that if you make the bottom larger (squared off) you might want to add some inches to the total length you cut out to begin with.

Please let me know if you have any question!!

Happy Sewing!

GIVEAWAY: Who doesn’t like winning stuff? So, since I already made 3 bags for my 3 boys, I’m giving this bag away! Leave me a comment and I’ll enter you in for a random drawing. I’ll draw a winner on Wednesday evening, September 27th.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

MACANONI and cheese

I love how 3 year old talk. There’s at least one thing every day that Carter says that makes me laugh. It was that way with all of my kids at this age.

Whenever I ask Carter what he would like for lunch or dinner he chimes in quickly with MACANONI and cheese!!!! Every time he says it I laugh out loud, seriously! Gives me a chuckle every time!

You can be sure I’ll do a scrapbook page about this!

Trick-or-Treat Bags

Back when Harley and Cierra were probably about 6 & 4 (give or take) I made them each a fabric trick-or-treat bag. Just a simple bag, nothing special. Those little bags have lasted us until now. In fact, they are still holding strong, except for the iron on decal on the front of the bag.

While at a recent trip to JoAnn’s I was lured by the Halloween fabric. What can I make, what can I make??? Ah yes, new trick-or-treat bags for the boys!!! Sweet!! Carter helped me pick out fabric for himself and his brothers. I managed to over rule his choice for the purple fabric with tiny orange pumpkins all over it.

The bags are about 12x15 and I lined them, which the other bags did not have. So these little babies had better last forever! Or at least until I get the desire to sew different bags. They are all the same size even though they look different. Some of the fabric was a little more stiff and just stood up well.