Yesterday I gave you a little peek at the tote bags I made for the kids' teachers. This is the first time I've ever made back-to-school gifts a priority. It's usually all I can muster to send a gift on the last day of school. And Christmas gifts for the teachers are hit and miss around here too. But last weekend I set aside some time to make them a little something to say thank you for all the prepping they've done to be ready for the school year.
We picked out the fabric at Hobby Lobby, on one of our many school supply runs last week. (I am so glad that's over!!!) Emma picked the green chevron, and Ethan chose the orange print. For your bag, you'll need 1/2 yard of solid natural canvas, and 1/2 yard printed canvas. (This fabric is also called duck.)
Cut the solid fabric into three pieces:
Cut 1 - 21x27 inches (body)
Cut 2 - 4x38 inches (straps)
Cut the print into two pieces:
Cut 2 - 12x21 inches (contrasting trim)
The width of the bag is 21 inches, so be sure to turn your trim fabric the right way so the design isn't sideways.
First, take the two long strips and make the straps.
For the Straps:
Press the strip flat with the iron. Then fold lengthwise and press, making a crease. Open the strip again and carefully fold the top and bottom edges toward the middle crease, 1/2 inch, pressing as you go. Fold the strip back together lengthwise, making sure the edges are now caught inside. Pin and sew 1/4 inch down both sides of the strap. Repeat for the second strap. Set aside.
Sew the bag:
For the body of the bag, bring the two 21-inch sides together, so that the fold forms the bottom of the bag. Sew along the sides. Since the bag isn't lined, finish the edges with a zigzag stitch or serger to prevent fraying.
Next, take both of the contrast (trim) fabric pieces, place right sides together, and sew along the both of the short sides to form a tube.
Turn both the body of the bag and the contrasting trim right-side-out.
Put it all together:
1. With both fabrics right side out, slide the trim fabric inside the body of the bag until the top edges of both pieces are even.
2. Sew around the whole bag, lining up seams, using a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Pull the un-sewn edge of the contrasting fabric out of the bag and smooth everything flat. The bag should be right side out at this point, and the trim should be wrong side out.
3. At the top edge of the trim, turn out 1/2 inch all the way around and press. Then bring this pressed edge down to cover the line of stitching on the outside of the bag. Press the folded trim fabric in place.
4. Measure in from the sides 4 1/2 inches, and insert each end of one strap. Make sure it's not twisted, and pin into place. Turn the bag over and repeat with the other strap. Once both straps are pinned, sew them in place with top stitching 1/4 inch from the bottom edge of the trim.
5. Fold the straps up into their final position and pin. With the straps pinned in place, top stitch the entire upper edge of the bag, 1/4 inch from the edge.
6. Reinforce the straps by sewing them down to the trim fabric in a rectangle or crisscross shape.
If you want, you can call your bag finished at this point! But if you would like to square off the bottom for a 3-dimensional bag, go on to the next step.
Square off the bottom:
Turn the bag inside out, and fold the corner in half, so that the seam goes straight up the middle. (See below.) Make sure that the fabric on the top and underneath this triangle is all smooth and flat.
Measure up the center seam 3 inches. Draw a line that is exactly perpendicular to the corner seam. A clear ruler is helpful for this stage, because you can line up the grid with the seam.
Pin the fabric together so it stays in place, and sew along the line. I sewed over the line three times to reinforce it. Leave the flaps inside the bag to keep it sturdy.
Flip the bag right side out again and admire your sharp corners! Clip any threads that are hanging around, and you are finished!!
Tote bags make great gifts because they are useful, cute, and can even be re-gifted without too much guilt. They make great library bags, shopping bags, or even a light day-at-the-beach bag. We filled our totes up with school supplies, which we were taking to school anyway, and told the teachers that the canvas bags were theirs to keep. I think it was nice to know that someone had thought of them on such a crazy, hectic day.
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If there is any part of this tutorial that doesn't seem clear, leave me a note in the comments and I'll try to clear it up.
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If you use this tutorial to make your own teacher tote, please let me know! I love to see how others interpret my designs!
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Want to pin this tutorial for later? Hover over any of the photos in this post, and a "pin it" button will appear. How easy is that!
