Zippered Sling Purse Tutorial
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I love this little purse and have been using it for several years. 25+ years ago I came up with this system for my Christmas shopping. I found it very hard to keep the money 'even' among the kids. I'd go shopping and then come home and add up all the different items for the kids (checking several receipts) and realizing the I had spent $20 more on one child than the others. So, I'd go out to find MORE things to balance it out. And so it goes... It's kind of like trimming bangs, first you straighten the left side, then take a little more off the right side until you end up with 2" bangs! LOL So, I decided from then on, I was only paying cash for my Christmas gifts and had to find a way to keep it in check. I joined the Christmas Club (I know, not the highest paid interest account) and when I got the check in November, I would make envelopes for everyone on my list
and put the corresponding money, according to my budget, in each envelope with their name on it. When I would go shopping, I would put all the envelopes in this little purse, along with my checkbook and a credit card, just in case. When I checked out, I separated each person's items and paid for them out of 'their' envelopes. I then put the change and receipt in their envelope. When the money was gone, I was done with them! And after Christmas, I gave them 'their' envelope with any extra change left over and all the receipts for their gifts in case they had to return anything.
Well, finances are a little less strained from what they used to be, but I love this system and probably will continue to use it until I die. :) This little sling purse is PERFECT for my system and all I have to do is grab that during the Christmas shopping season. No bulky purses to manage and it goes over the shoulder, so it doesn't slip off. I've made several over the years and love them all. I used tapestry for several of mine, but it seems to be a bit more difficult to find. So, now I am quilting a Christmas fabric, batting and backing, then cutting out my purses. 1/2 yard will yield 6 purses, 7 if you are lucky and the fabric is wide enough. (PS.. please note that I have taken these pictures at different times in these tutorials--so the fabrics may be different! LOL The linings are all the same, but obviously some of the pictures had to be redone...more than once.)
Supplies needed:
1/2 yard fabric (yields 6) or for one, 6" x 17"
1/2 yard backing fabric (see above)
1/2 yard Warm and Natural batting
7" Sports Zipper
48" cord for strap
Thread to match fabric
1. Layer and quilt the fabric, batting and backing fabric (I just did an allover meander). You could do just straight lines or whatever you like. (NOTE: I recently made 24 of these purses as favors for a Christmas dinner and I sewed (4) 1/2 yard pieces of fabric together to make one large piece, and made a backing large enough to cover all of it. Then I quilted it as one unit.)
2. Trim your quilted piece 17" x WOF (width of fabric).
3. Turn your quilted piece so the selvages are on the side. You'll be cutting your purses on the LENGTHWISE grain. Trim off the left selvage, then cut (6) 6" strips (you might get 7 if your fabric is wide enough). Then cut each 6"x 17" piece into two pieces, 6" x 7" and 6" x 10".
4. Starting with the smaller piece first (the one on the bottom), lay the zipper face down along the top 6" edge (with the zipper pull on the left) and stitch with your zipper foot attached. (I unzip the zipper to make it a bit easier to stitch).
5. Fold the zipper up, then lay the larger piece on top of the top edge of the zipper, right sides together, pin. The left edges should all line up, and you will have extra zipper hanging off on the right side. Don't worry about this right now. I usually turn it over to stitch it on the zipper side. You don't want to sew too close to the zipper as the fabric will get caught in it.
6. Now fold the purse pieces down
and top stitch really close to the fold of the fabric to hold the purse flat..JPG)
7. Fold the purse in half, so the raw edges of the top and bottom meet. Pin along the sides and bottom. Before you start sewing, insert the cord at the top folded edge, extending the cord to the outside by about 1/2". See the little 'ears' at the top? You might need to tape the ends of the cord so it won't unravel. I usually let the rest of the cord hang OUTSIDE the bag (through the opening) so there is no chance I'll stitch it into the seam. It happens, ya know?
8. Stitch the sides and bottom with a 1/4" seam. When you get to the zipper, PLEASE be sure to turn the flywheel with your hand and carefully lower the needle, sometimes adjusting to allow your needle to find an opening.
It might take a little finagling to get it to go over the zipper. AFTER you have stitched over the zipper, you make cut the extra off. Again, it will take a little maneuvering to get the scissors between the zipper teeth, but take your time and it will work. At this time, trim the corners to eliminate the bulk.
9. Now, set your machine to a
wide zig zag (put your setting on a 4 or sew width and a 1 or less for the
length of stitch). Zig zag around the sewn edges, encasing all those stray
threads.
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10. Turn your purse inside out voila! You are DONE!! Now, wasn't that easy?
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