Monday, November 13, 2017

Bag It - Mesh Travel Bag Tutorial


Isn't this a fun little bag?  I made mine to coordinate with my other travel bags


And this bag has so many uses beyond travel - use it to corral those quilting hexies!

Supplies



(Note - I purchased my mesh from byAnnie,  the magnetic snaps from Bagmaker Supply, and the zippers from ZipIt.)

(note - this post was updated to include a corrected table of pieces required and measurements.  Sorry about the confusion the old table caused!)


Fabric Preparation

Following manufacturer's directions, iron two sheets of fusible fleece to wrong side of main fabric front.  Lay this unit on top of the wrong side of main unit back to create a quilt sandwich.

Mark the half way point and sew a straight line across unit.

Quilt lightly.  My bag was straight line quilted with the walking foot 1 ½ '' apart.   Sew a line of stitches around all four sides to secure edges.  Trim off any rough edges if necessary.  

Once trimmed, measure from top edge to line sewn at halfway point and make note of measurement. This will be the measurement we will use for the mesh pocket.

Magnetic Snap Installation

Following manufacturer's directions, iron fusible fleece onto wrong side of tab fabric.   Iron a 2'' fusible fleece square in the center of unit.  Following tutorial for magnetic snap installation, place one snap in the center of tab unit.  Repeat for steps for second fabric tab.

Note: Magnetic snap can be installed after tab unit are mesh units are attached to zipper.



Mesh Preparation

Finger press binding fabric for mesh in half, wrong sides together.  Lay mesh edge on top, aligned with raw edges of binding.  Sew.

Wrap binding around raw edges and top stitch.

Repeat for second mesh piece.









Zipper Installation

Sandwich zipper between lining and tab unit along top edge of zipper tape.  Zipper pull tab should be off the left and zipper should over hang each side of tab unit by at least an inch.

Sew across.  Lay flat and top stitch.

Lay zipper right side up and place mesh on top of zipper tape along the binding.  Sew across to secure.



Assembly

Measuring from top of tab to mesh and cut unit so that it matches the mesh pocket measurement calculated in earlier step.

Lay pocket unit on top of main unit, aligning top edges.  Mesh and zipper ends will hang off of each side.   Secure top edge with binding clips.



Move zipper tab to center of zipper.

Sew across top of pocket at a seam less than ¼''.  Sew down right side of pocket starting at top edge. Repeat on left edge.    Trim off excess zipper.

Turn unit and repeat for second pocket.

Fold under edges of accent tab to center on wrong side and press.   Lay accent tab across the center line stitched earlier.  It will cover bottom edges of both pockets.  Top stitch across on each edge.




Finish

Adhere binding around mesh bag as you would a quilt.  Once sewn, fold towards back and secure by hand or machine.   The finished bag is 9 x 6 1/2 '' when folded.

Fill with whatever you need to carry!
















I'll be linking up my tutorial with  Freemotion by the River,   WIP Wednesday's,  Let's Bee SocialMidweek Makers.  Needle and Thread Thursdays, Finish it Up Friday and Finished or Not Friday.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

9 comments:

  1. I quite like this, and I already have all of the "ingredients" in stash :) I think it would be cute in kiddy prints, with things like crayons, mini notepads, fun pencils/erasers/rulers, cards, dice, stickers etc. inside.

    I was at the $ store today - can you tell? :)

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  2. This is very cool! I especially like the mesh - can see through but not as stiff as vinyl. Thank you for sharing!

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  3. I love this little bag and will definitely make one as soon as I get some of the mesh. Thanks so much for the tutorial.

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  4. This bag is not only perfectly useful for travel and sewing projects, but it's so pretty, too! Thank you so very much for taking the time to make a tutorial - I've pinned it so I can make one in January.

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  5. What a professional looking and useful bag! Saving this one for the future!

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  6. Great tutorial, thanks so much for sharing!

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  7. This is really useful. Thank you for the tutorial!

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  8. Neat bag! Thank you for sharing ;)

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