Halloween Tote
Over the past year I’ve really gotten into making bags. I find making them pretty relaxing, and as a bonus the process doesn’t take up much space and once you’ve finished one you’ll have so many of the materials left over to use again! I KNOOOOOOW I keep mentioning one of my fave Moschino collections - Spring/Summer 2020, but it was one of the most inspiring collections I have seen in many years! I’d happily snap up so many of the bags from the collection to feature in my own! They are fun, colourful and feature so many things that I love; Monsters, Pumpkins and other Halloween goodies! The whole collection had a more ‘homemade’ feel about it, which I would usually DESPISE, but this time it all added to the show! The accessories looked as though a kid had been collecting random things and decided to throw them onto a keyring. Sadly many of the items were either not available to buy or I just didn’t see any website stock them. Either way, I would have spent way more if they were available!
So I decided to make my own! The first thing I did was decide on the shape and size of my creation. I went for a tote style bag that needed to be big enough to fit a carved pumpkin style face that I wanted to put on the front. I wanted the bag to fold in like a paper gift bag, so I googled how to make one of those. I found a video on YouTube which showed you how to make an origami bag. The only issue I had with using this method for a pattern was the size of paper I had. I was limited to either an A4 or A3 sized sheet. I decided to go with the A3 size and obviously, the bag ended up being TINY……….. but I had a way around this! Once the origami bag was finished I made sure the pieces wouldn’t move by sticking the edges down with Sellotape. Once all the edges were secure I cut the bag down the fold lines in order to get the individual pattern pieces. I cut down each fold line and ended up with 6 pattern pieces. I measured each edge of each pattern piece and wrote on the pattern what the measurement was. For the size I wanted the tote bag to be I enlarged each of the pattern pieces by a factor of 3. It was as easy as multiplying each edge measurement by 3 on a calculator and making a note of them. Using a pattern master I then re-drew each piece ensuring the corners were PERFECT right angles. This was the best time to notch the pattern pieces, to make sure they matched up when I came to put everything together. Once all the pattern pieces were drawn I added a 1cm seam allowance around each edge.
I wanted to make the bag out of an orange leatherette; A) because I had some leftover and B) it helps to hold the shape of the bag and saves you from using a stabiliser. The only thing I had to buy was an A4 sized piece of a black leatherette from eBay for only 99p. I had mulled over a few different Pumpkin faces for the front of the bag. The one I chose was more fun than scary. I mean how bone-chilling can a Pumpkin face in leatherette be? Once I had the pattern pieces cut out I traced the Pumpkin face onto the back of the front panel piece. Using a sharp scalpel I carefully cut out the face making sure to not leave any small stray bits of fabric. I then cut the A4 black sheet of leatherette to a size that would cover the whole of the face behind. I then got quilting tape and placed it around the cut out of the face on the back of the orange fabric. This tape is like a double-sided sticky tape that will stop the two pieces of fabric from moving around when you come to stitch them together. It really does save you a whooooole lot of time! When I do any topstitching, like around the pumpkin face, I always use a sewing machine but turn the wheel with my hand and I find it gives me way more control than using the foot peddle. *Top Tip* use a polyester thread as it works a treat with the leatherette.
When I had finished sewing the face using the two different colour fabrics I was FINALLY ready to start constructing the rest of the bag. I found the easiest way to start was by attaching the front and back to the bottom panel. When the front and back panels were attached to the bottom piece I did a stay stitch along the bottom to help the bag keep its shape. To do a stay stitch I pushed the seam allowance towards the bottom pattern piece and then topstitched close to the edge through both lots of the seam allowance. I did the same to the back piece then stitched the side pieces to the front, back and bottom. Once I was at this point it was pretty much plain sailing. I wanted to add a D-ring on both the front and the back so I was able to add a crossbody strap and also as a way to add a bit more tatt by hanging some bag accessories from them.
Then came time to attach the D-rings. To make the straps, I measured the inside of the D-ring and doubled the measurement, then I cut out a square in those measurements. The best way to make these straps, I found, was to fold the square of fabric in half, mark the centre point along the top and bottom and then draw a line from one to the other with a biro. I then cut and placed a strip of quilting tape on either side of the line and folded in each end to the biro line in the centre and pressed down. After pressing down for a few seconds I passed the folded fabric through the D-ring then stitched, on the machine, along the bottom just so it stayed put!
Before I attached the D-ring strap I stitched together the top facing pieces and started to pin them to the constructed bag matching up the seams. I then slid the D-rings straps where I wanted them and pinned them in place. I ran the bag through the sewing machine and stitched the facing and bag together along the top edge. When that was done I folded the bag the right way and topstitched 5mm along the top edge in order to keep the facing from popping up when I was using the bag. Then I attached the lining to the bag to the edge of the facing.
For the handles, I wanted something sturdy and something that also looked nice. I searched on Amazon for ‘black bag straps’ and found these beauts for only £14.09. They were called ‘2pcs Bag Strap 1pcs Roll of Thread First Layer Cowhide Bag with Handle for Bag Handle Replacement (Black)’ (a mouthful I know LOL) and they come in a few different colours. They came with a thick thread and holes already in the base of the straps to fix them to your bag. They were really simple to sew on using a sewing needle……………….. the most difficult part was getting them in the right place haha.
That was it, the bag was finally finished!
Sunglasses - eBay
Scarf - Lush
PU Bomber Jacket, Ring and Jeans- ASOS
T-Shirt - Criminal Damage
Belt - Urban Outfitters
Boots - Moschino - YOOX