clutch bag

 Bag i used to make a clutch

I  love recycling things this was a bag i have had for a while. I  really love the colour so decided to make it into a clutch.It’s great making things that cost next to nothing.

Clutches like this are ideal for so many different uses and can be made from any type of fabric.

The fabric I used is made out PU or faux leather. When sewing this type of fabric use a leather needle.(see post on sewing machine needles) Use a Teflon coated foot which is ideal for sewing leather as it glides along the surface of the fabric.A tip if you do not have a Teflon foot, is to place a piece of sellotape on the base of the universal foot, this should help the foot glide over the surface of the fabric

Measure the length of the zip this will determine the width of the purse.add 3 cm seam allowance  cut 2 equal pieces of  fabric

Fold the seam allowance where the zip is to be positioned. tack the seam allowance. You could press the seam allowance down using an iron but as i am using faux leather not advisable

Place the zip centrally and mark both the stop positions. Pin and tack the zip centrally into position, by tacking diagonally the zip is positioned

tack zip into position 

Using the zipper foot machine the zip using a straight stitch.

Remove the tacking.  Open the zip then with the right sides together mark the seam allowance. Machine stitch all the way round.By having the zip open it will be easier to turn the bag the right way round 

sew all the way round with the zip open