Lined Zipper Pouch - Tool pouch for the Domestic Diva

A short time ago my beautiful niece left for her first year of college.

Wait. Wasn't it just yesterday I was in my first year in college? But if I'm still 18, how can she be....??? Dang. Reality bites my friend.

Anywho, as her goodbye party drew near, I wondered what I could give her that was both practical and thoughtful?

I pondered on what things I found I needed once I had flown the nest.

And of all things that came to mind? Tools. After all, a girl's gotta be prepared to deal with whatever comes her way.

Tools for our college student:
Small hammer, retractable tape measure, flashlight, tacky putty & nails to hang pictures, pliers, and screwdrivers (flathead and phillips). I didn't have one, but an Allen wrench may also come in handy for cheap college furniture assembly.

Assembling the Zipper Pouch with Lining and Slip Pockets

Now for the tool bag. The last thing I wanted was to give my niece a big bulky tool pouch to stuff in her over-stuffed car, so I measured the biggest item I had and created an economy sized pattern.

For this lined zipper pouch I cut a piece for slip pockets, two lining pieces, and made the outside two-toned using heavy weight cream and black cotton fabric.

The slip pockets easily fit the tacky putty and flashlight for quick access. I'll be sharing a quick tip on adding slip pockets to your lining, in a future post.

To create the two-toned zipper pouch front, I sewed the two-colored pieces right sides together,

ironed the seams down and top stitched with corresponding thread.

I referred to the fabulous How to make a lined zippered pouch tutorial from Skip to my Lou. She has a great tutorial showing the sandwich technique for putting linings, zipper and outer layer together.

I also decided to add a stenciled design for the front and back, to give it a feminine touch, and added a skinny black ribbon for the zipper head. I'll be posting how I did the freezer paper stencil designs in the next few posts.

Here's the finished lined zipper tool pouch - front and back

Lined Zipper Tool Pouch Front

Lined Zipper Tool Pouch Back

The zipper pouch lining turned out nicely - the slip pockets help with separation and storage.

Lined Zipper Tool Pouch Inside slip pockets

A relief to see that it all still fit after assembly! hahaha

Okay, so I'm a little fanatical, but I added a little cover for the claw of the hammer. I didn't want my niece to stick her hand in the tool bag and scratch herself. That's what good Aunt's do.

My nephew was pretty impressed I fit all those tools inside such a small bag. My point exactly.

All zipped up, full of tools and ready to head off to college with her. If only there was room for one more thing in there...ME! We're all going to miss her but are so excited for her new adventure!♥

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Ruffled Crossbody Tote - with recessed zipper, zipper pocket & slip pockets

I finally got the guts up to sew my own purse. I've been craving a Ruffled Bag with a nice long cross body strap for forever, but have been too scared I'd botch it up (having never sewn a purse before).

As luck would have it, (& lots of helpful tutorials) I was pleasantly surprised at how it turned out!

Goodbye to the grody green purse I've been toting around for 12 months too long. My older sister has a particular distaste for it and tells me what it looks like. I'll give you a hint. It starts with a b and rhymes with scarf. I know. I never said it would be pretty. 

Anywho, back to my new ruffled bag... 

I hate purses that fall off my shoulders, so I made this bag with 1 wide/tapered strap that fits comfortably on my shoulder and across my body. I used a heavier weight natural cotton material and did not use interfacing because I like the slouchier look.

I created the ruffles by hand, much like I do with my shabby ruffled pillow cases, and secured the raw edges with fray check. The edge of the ruffles will still fray a bit, but I like the shabby look it creates.

I created square corners b/c I like the look and it gives it a tad more room.

If I was doing this purse making thing at all, I was doing it right. So even though I feared the inside zipper pocket, I put one in. And thanks to some fantastic tutorials, it was so much easier than I thought it would be! (see end of post for links). I also added some slip pockets for my phone, pens, etc. Love them.

Since I'm a bit fanatical about keeping my contents secure, I couldn't go with an open bag or magnetic snap. Although I dreaded it, I put in a zipper enclosure. It was a little tricky, but again, with the help of some tutorials I got it put in.

I just kept the back simple.

Now that I know I can sew my own purse, I'm craving making a few more! Like this cute Reversible Shoulder Bag from Lula Louise or maybe a lined zipper pouch like this from Skip to my Lou... We'll see.

Last step? Filling it with all my crap necessities. Now it looks more like my purse. hahaha

It takes a village to raise a child to help Shannon sew a purse! 
So as promised, here are some great resources I used to help me along the way.

*Putting in an inner zipper pocket and slip pockets 

Tutorial ~ Zippered and Slip Pocket Tutorial from Sew, Mama, Sew!

Sewing Zippers in Bags Tutorial 1. (aka Zippered inner bag pocket) from U-handbag

*Adding a recessed zipper to an existing purse or tote

Adding a recessed zipper closure to an existing purse or tote from Nancy Zieman

Adding recessed top zipper to purse/bag -Tutorial from Arm Candy for You

*Adding strap/sewing a tote bag together. *This also shows how to square your corners.
How to make a simple (reversible) tote bag: from Skip to my Lou

Other helpful tutorials:

If you have a tote but need to add a zipper to it:
How to add a zipper to an existing tote or bag: from Maiden Jane

If you're making a bag with a recessed zipper and straps on either side, this is a great tutorial:
Recessed Zipper How-to: from My Spare Time

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