{Upcycled Drawstring Bag & Tutorial}

I was recently inspired by this cute Pant Leg Bag over at Then She Made... . She's got such a creative blog! I saw it and put it on my to-do list, although I knew the original was not quite what I could use. So I tweaked it a bit for my needs and here's what I came up with this past rainy Sunday afternoon:

I haven't done many tutorials, so please let me know if there's any confusion or something I've just blatantly left out! I'm happy with how it turned out and best of all (again), it was FREE (!) using materials on hand and a pair of outgrown size 6X jeans. I hope you enjoy making it as much as I did! 

We are using this to keep Barbies under control when they're not in use. :)

You need:

1 pair of jeans (these were 6x)

thread, machine, pins, scissors, etc....your basic sewing stuff

1 length of grosgrain ribbon, a shoe string, or any other tie of your choice

1. Cut off the old jeans, just below the crotch.

 You can use the top part to make a little girl's Denim Purse on another day! :)

2. Cut alongside one of the fat denim seams on each leg, making each leg lay flat.

3. Pin right sides together and sew on three sides. It's up to you whether you put the thick hem at the top or bottom of your bag. I chose the bottom, but I made this on a whim. If I make another one, I'll put the hem at the TOP, so I can sew it down and not have to worry about raveling. Live and learn! :) Don't sew all the way up on each side. Leave about 2" open.

4. Box the corners. I'm not too great at explaining this, but you can google it and find great explanations all day. I'll give it a go...Measure 2" from the side and bottom of each corner, making a 2" box. Then cut these box corners out and throw them away. This will give your bag about a 2" base.

 5. Stitch the boxed corners closed. Pull the corner apart and flatten it, then sew it down. I snipped some of my thick denim hem off to make it easier.

(Don't you love the ab-roller in the background?)

6. Clear as mud? Okay, if so, you should now have the beginnings of a bag!

6. I edged the top of my bag with shears. If you go with the thick denim hem at the top, you can skip this step. Still living and learning here.

7. Turn your bag wrong side out again and fold the top down about 1"-1.5". This will be the casing for your ribbon drawstring.

8. Sew a small hem all the way around EXCEPT for the casing side where the thick denim hem is. This is the opening where you will loop the ribbon through.

9. When your casing is finished (this is the slip for the drawstring), attach a large safety pin to your length of ribbon to help feed it through the opening. Just keep pulling.

10. When it's all the way through, I took a needle and thread and put in a few stitches to secure the ends of the thick denim opening for the ribbon. They were running free and flappy right at the end.

 11. Now you have a finished bag!

 Yep...mine even has a little knee-worn hole that's already starting. I couldn't stop there of course, so I die cut a few felt embellishments and hand sewed them on. I strategically placed one over the start of my knee-worn hole. Aren't I nifty?

And voila! A little home for Barbies that aren't in use, or to take Barbie and friends to Grandma's for a sleepover.

Again...if something doesn't make sense, PLEASE email or leave a comment so I can clarify for you.

Thanks for stopping by!