Friday, September 26, 2008

Tutorial for placemat purses



I took this picture to show a variety of handles & the clearance stickers on the placemats. The blue one has a $2.00 tag on it and the orange plaid ones (there's 4) were marked down to $2.99. All of the handles except one came from old purses I purchased from Goodwill. I try to never pay more than $2.99. Then, I just take the handles off to use for new creations.

Step 1. Put your trim on first. You can decide how high or low you want it.
Step 2. Cut ribbon for handles and sew together to make a loop.
Step 3. Pin the handles for placement and sew in place.
Step 4. I always use pinking shears on the ribbon to keep it from fraying. You could also use Fray Check.
Step 5. Mark your side seams (depending on how skinny or wide you want it). For the corners, this time I'm using a 3" triangle.

Step 6. Again, I use pinking shears on the seam allowance.
Step. 7 I always cut a notch out of the corner to get rid of some of the bulk before I turn it right side out.
Following all of the steps above for this cute plaid one.
Only this time I am marking 2" side seams and using a 2" triangle for corners. I want this one to be a bit smaller. I will be cutting off quite a bit from the seam allowance before turning right side out. One more option on these bags is to make a "boxed bottom". That just means you will sew it exactly like the bottom of a brown paper bag. What happens is that the bag will be shorter, and will be free standing when set down. If you have any questions, just ask me in your comments and I will get back to you.
This one, I added denim to the top, a real pocket off an old pair of jeans, and some trim. The handle loops are actually belt loops.

If you look on the inside of a tote bag that you already own, you will see how they sew it to give it the boxed bottom, which allows the bag to stand on its own.
Have fun and good luck!! : )
M.L.

***If you'd like to see more tutorials, you can click on [Projects (of the crafty sort)] on my sidebar under 'Labels'.

37 comments:

Half Gaelic, Half Garlic! said...

These are adorable....very clever....and very talented....I like crafty things, but I draw the line when a sewing machine is needed....I can barely sew a button:)

Enjoy your weekend!

Lisa

Anonymous said...

So cute - you are very talented!!!

ElizabethClare said...

Wow! How cute. I'm a limited sewer, but I think even I can do that!

Robin Beck said...

So stinkin' cute! And what a wonderful tutorial...I could actually do this one! Thanks for sharing.
Have a great weekend,
Robin~♥

Anonymous said...

ooh..nice Thanks for the tutorial. My target has placemats 75%off right now. I might have to go back ;)

ROXY said...

Love it!! What a great idea:) thanks for sharing!

Tami said...

Oh my, they are way too cute!

Ms. Tee said...

Those are so cute & you make it look so easy! :)
I don't sew a whole lot, but this looks so simple that I might try! Hope you have a great weekend, too. :)

Shell in your Pocket said...

Very very cute! I can barely sew on a button...if my husband loses a button...I can only hot glue it!
Talented you are!
-Sandy Toes

The Berry's Patch said...

Those purses are darling! You are such a talented lady.

Your mom looks so happy in her new shirt. It's such a beautiful color. :-)

Buzzings of a Queen Bee! said...

You make it look so easy but I still don't think I can manage it. So cute though!
Carrie

Georgia Girl said...

Hey thanks for stopping by and hope you join me again...I am new to this blogging site and found so many talented friends...I gotta add you to my long list. Love the idea of the placemats.

Chris said...

OH. MY. You have no idea how many people I'm going to tell about this "easy" project! What a great tutorial. It's waaaay over my head as far as sewing is concerned, but I have so many friends who would do wonders with this. Yours turned out beautifully!

Angie said...

These are so cute! You should try to sell them!

Mimi Sue said...

How fun and it looks kind of easy. Thank you so much for the tutorial. I might have to make a couple of these for Christmas. Mimi

Weeksie50 said...

How fun is that?
You are very talented..
I sewed something once..
on sleeve was big enough for my leg and the other was closed off..lol.

dana said...

Great tutorial. So detailed. And adorable old pictures of your mom. Real sweet.

The Quintessential Magpie said...

Oh, boy, these are adorable purses. I made some pillows with placemats and a tablecloth when I wanted to freshen up the porch furniture, but these... these are precious!

Thanks for sharing,

Sheila

Ribbonwood Cottage said...

Hi, thanks so much for coming by, I loved coming by your blog, it is wonderful!!! I enjoyed the placemat tutorial!! How cute, I love placemats.
I also like your tree, that turned out great, and the little bench by your front door with the pumpkins on it, too cute! Have a great weekend!
Blessings,
Debbie

Unknown said...

I would never claim to be a seamstress and I probably only have 3 - 5 hours max on a sewing machine in all my life. But this project my dear makes me want to run right out and "Do It".

Those bags are so beautiful and it was so nice of you to share this tutorial.

Blessings - Debbie

Scooterblu's Whimsy~Rhonda said...

Neat bags...Very creative, clever, and cute idea! :)

I love your Wednesday with your mom posts! Of course, I don't know her, but the vintage pictures are just great and she is such a sweet looking, still very pretty lady! ...and we do have one thing in common, I love Cold Water Creek too! That is the first place I hit for after Christmas shopping sales! :) ~Rhonda

Nicole said...

You placemat purses are darling. Thanks so much for letting me know about them. I think I'm definitely going to have to give it a try. I love how your halloween tree turned out too. I have all the stuff for mine, now I just need to get my act together and do it. I also love your elegant pumpkins, where did you find such cute fabric. On Rachel B's blog she said she got it at Walmart, but I haven't had any luck finding any there.

Joy said...

Those are such cute purses! Thanks for the tutorial.
Your Halloween tree looks great! I have a hard time going to the dump and resisting the urge to haul things home too!
Your new kitchen hardware looks great and I like all the fun fall decorations throughout your house.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Hi! Thanks for stopping by my blog for a visit. I have really enjoyed going through your previous posts. I love your toile couch! I love the coordinating fabric you did. Did you recover it yourself? I have been look around our area for someone to make slipcovers for me. I want to have my chair and ottoman slipcovered in that fabric and my couch clip covered in just the red/wine color....
Penny

Anonymous said...

Aren't you somebody special!
Beautiful job, Karen

Julie said...

Thanks for coming over to visit me and the sweet comments. I made the wood block with the door knob I know! who knew i had it in me:0
I love the purse so cute and your door knob looks great I have lots more I may have to make another one. have a great day
Julie

Joanna said...

Thank you for stopping by my blog! I love that purse! Placemats, who woulda thought?!

Thanks for the how to!

Missy Wertz said...

Great tutorial. Great blog! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I have added you to my blogroll.

Shannon said...

Cute cute cute!! And I loved those pictures of your parents!!

Marie said...

What a great tutorial! I'm saving this to try myself! Thank you!

Kimba said...

What a great tutorial! The purses are beautiful. I'm not much of a sewer but you're giving me a bit of inspiration here.

Holly said...

Holy cow, I love these! And I can sew! They would make great gifts. How do you do the boxed bottom?

Holly said...

Thanks for replying, Mary Lou! I think I get it. Now I just need to find some cute placemats.

Tamara Jansen said...

THis is fantastic!

Renae said...

What a great idea! I'm could really use a new purse. I'm bookmarking this to try.

Peace to you,
Renae
Life Nurturing Education

Denese said...

Ooh, how cute! This would make a great sewing project for girls. Thanks for sharing this. :)

woof nanny said...

Great tutorial! I'll add it to the sidebar of my purse blog. Thanks so much for posting it.