What's so magical about ribbon bags? I can think of a few things. First, they're easy breezy to stitch up! Cut two squares, right sides together, and sew. Second, they stitch up fast! Third, totes are just so handy for anything from gift-giving to a trip to the pool to lunch. These ribbon bags can take care of your knitting project, spools of thread, a project's worth of DMC floss, little notebooks, and a trip to the farmer's market. You can't have enough! (so this time I cleaned out my scraps and made plenty)
Here's the best thing about ribbon bags, the handles are ribbon! Ta da! It's a no-brainer. I use fabric scraps, old show shirts, vintage fabric, you name it, and then I pick a ribbon to set the whole thing off as a unique little tote. Make it whatever size you want (I often cut out a 14x10-inch square with a piece of 22-inch ribbon). After stitching the two squares of fabric, right sides together, fold the top down for a little hem, and sew in the ribbon handle on each side as you're sewing around the top. Put a few extra stitches into the handle to make it nice and sturdy. Turn it right side out and you're done!
While sewing one of my bags, I accidentally snipped the fabric with my sharp new fabric scissors while snipping off the extra threads. Oops! But no problem, I added ribbon to trim the top and cover the little snip, and it turned out pretty cute. In fact, you could do this on all your ribbon bags. It's just a little extra stitching for a lot more cute.
(tip: Buy ribbon on sale, and keep it hanging over your sewing area.)
I love the bag made from an old Nutcracker sweatshirt--what a great Christmas gift bag!
Keep ribbon bags hanging around--you might need one on the way to the bookstore or the fruit stand.
Eat, write, dream and stitch up something magical today!
Adorable! I, too, keep stacks of bags around for stuff. Very handy when you need them.
ReplyDeleteOh yes! It's worth it to take a little time and have them ready to go. Thanks Kim!
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