Thursday, September 15, 2016

Doodle bags for my boys

Now that I finished my first quilt it is time to get back to my 1, 2, 3 sew projects.  The last project I finished was the minion tote bag and now I want to make the Doodle tote bag.  These bags feature a divided interior and an outside divide pocket to hold markers or pencils for coloring.  I think that these bags would make good project bags for car trips or just for a coloring kit that the boys can access on their own.  (Once I can trust the boys alone with markers, that is!)


I often order fabric from Fabric.com.  It is fast and easy and the have a huge selection.  The downfall is that there is a minimum order of a yard for any fabrics (you can order a half yard but you pay a lot more for that so it isn't worth it.)  When I ordered the ticking stripe and lining fabric for these bags because of the yard minimum and the width of the fabrics I had plenty of fabric for two bags.  I decided that rather than just making one bag for practice I could make one bag for each of my boys.


I messed up and cut one of the dividers 24"x12". Whoops!  I don't have enough fabric to recut so it will have to do. It will be a little short, but I think that it will only make a difference if you compare the two bags



I also miscut the pocket flaps. Ahhhhhhhh!  I want the ticking stripe to be horizontal on the pocket flap! This is what I get for not paying close enough attention.  Thankfully there is enough fabric that I was able to recut the fabric the way I wanted.  


Finally I have all of the pieces cut correctly. At least this project isn't adding as much extra fabric to my stash! 


Rather than having someone doodle on the canvas with a fabric marker, I want to applique on the buys names using fabric that I was originally planning to use as binding for Rowdy's quilt.  I decided to freehand the letters over a 3" strip. Each letter will be shy of 3" long.



Free handing the letters was much easier than I thought.  They look pretty regular on the canvas.  The ironing was a piece of cake and now I'm ready to stat the appliqueing process.  


The seam allowance for the project was a half inch but I plan to do quarter inch seams since that is what I'm used to from quilting. Plus it will fit my letters better.  Unfortunately this won't work out because the lining was cut assuming the 1/2" allowance and it would require some recalculations.  There is enough space for half an inch on either side so maybe it will all work.  


For the applique stitch I tested it on some spare canvas. I haven't done anything with satin stitch before so this is my first try.


I used the following settings on my machine: Stitch 8 (zig zag), Height 2.0, Length 0.3


Even on the fastest stitch speed it went pretty slow. Cool. Easier than I expected.


The curves were a little hard and it uses a lot of thread but it looks great!


I was supposed to make market pockets every .75 inches but that didn't work out giving me evenly sized pockets.  I stitched the pocket in place every inch and that was close to perfect.


I love how quickly my air soluble markers rub off.  By the time I was done stitching you almost couldn't see the markings I had created anymore.

I just need to add the lining!
I cut the straps a bit longer than 18". I had two 1 yard+ pieces and I did the length that would be the longest I would get. They will be the same for both bags.  I wish I got a "natural" color instead of white but I think I will forget once it is done.


The seams are really thick. Maybe I should have used thinner cloth versus canvas. Even with half inch seams I didn't feel like I could trim them...I'll have to see how I feel after I press the bags.


The divider is bunching a bit, but the bags comfortably fit coloring books. I think these will be great for road trips to have a little project bag with paper and markers for each boy.  I like the shorter divider (the mistake one) better than the full length divider because of the way the bunching is happening.  A little pressing made the bags look great, but I think next time I really need to take the time to trim the seams.  


The bags are so cute!  When the back to school sales started I purchased some thin Crayola washable markers to put in the pockets.  They fit perfectly in the 1" pockets!


It is taking all of my self control to not give these bags to the boys now.  Rowdy wouldn't know the difference but I know that Lucky is going to LOVE having a bag with his name on it.  I am going to try to save them for Christmas.  Hopefully I'll be able to find a fun gift to make them every year.