Our friends at Fat Quarter Shop are experts when it comes to all things quilting, but that is certainly not where their creativity ends! You may have seen our recent article about their full selection of Cross Stitch products and projects, and of course they have an excellent array of options in substrates other than quilting cotton, such as: linen, denim, flannel, luxury plush, and double gauze. They surprised us once again recently by putting together a fun tutorial in one of our own favorite categories: bags and cases. The FQS WIP (work in progress) Project Bag is fast, easy, and fun. Check out the video tutorial below.
At any given time, we all seem to have a lot more WIP projects than finished projects! Use this handy bag to keep a project’s pieces safe and sound until it’s their turn to be finished. It’s so fast and easy to make, you’ll want to have several on hand to corral your various quilting, sewing, crafting, and cross stitch projects. The front vinyl window allows you to quickly spot what’s inside, plus, because the bag is flat, it’s very easy to store in your sewing space.
The video below, featuring Fat Quarter Shop’s Kimberly Jolly, takes you through the complete steps for creating the 16” x 18” zippered flat case. Make your own WIP Project Bag in about three hours, from the simple starting cuts to the final binding.
You can watch the embedded video below, but if you go to the Fat Quarter Shop YouTube channel itself, you will also find a list for all the products used: fabric, stabilizers, zipper, vinyl, and all the notions, such as Kimberly’s rotary cutter, the Wonder Clips (a must when working with vinyl), even the pen, scissors, rulers, and more.
If you’ve ever watched a FQS video, you know what a great teacher Kimberly is: clear, concise, friendly, and full of great little tips along the way.
Yes, there is a zipper. But don’t let your zipper phobia get you down. This type of “flat zipper” is very simple to set in place. Kimberly uses a ByAnnie Plastic Zipper, which makes it extra easy to cut the zipper to the exact size needed for the vinyl window.
As mentioned, the front of this bag is vinyl, and Kimberly does a wonderful job of showing how to navigate the special concerns for cutting, clipping, and sewing on this unique substrate. If you’d like to learn more, take a look at our Sew4Home tutorial: Successful Sewing With Laminated Cottons, Oilcloth, and other Sticky Stuff.
The back of the bag is quilted with ByAnnie Soft and Stable sandwiched between two layers of quilting cotton. This quilt sandwich gives the bag structure as well as the needed softness to gently expand to hold all your project elements.
To finish, the quilted back and the window front are simply layered and bound. Kimberly offers a link to her own narrow binding tutorial, and you can also review the Sew4Home Binding Tutorial for additional details about figuring yardage, cutting, making, and attaching.
If you are enjoying the idea of a see-through bag, we invite you to take a look at our Clear View Vinyl Tote for Events and More. Many venues no longer allow closed totes and bags to be brought in. If you want to carry in a larger bag, they require it to be see-through. This fully finished bag, which can be semi or completely transparent, is a great solution.
And now, heeeerrrrre’s Kimberly – with her easy steps for the Fat Quarter Shop WIP Project Bag:
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