Fresh ... and Still Not Rocket Science!

jill here....When Marny and I first started blogging, our first free tutorial was this "Not a Rocket Science Bag".  It was developed by using canvas as the structural base and a sew and flip technique.  Here are the original instructions; they are as good today as when they were developed! This bags sews quickly with not a lot of hop la!

My daughter recently requested a bag that could carry the duties of motherhood.  I added just a few features to make it easier to locate the cell phone and a front pocket for keys (or whatever).  The straps were extended to distribute the load and take the weight off the top of the bag.

"Not a Rocket Science Bag" designed  using some of
the Zen collection by Bridgit Hegland for United Notions.

This bag was designed using only 4 fabrics in the strip set, sewn with 1/2" seam allowances. The cut sizes are  4 1/2" for the top, followed by 6 1/2", 3 1/2" and 9" for the last. Much of this last fabric is the bag bottom so a dark value is helpful.  If you wish to make this bag, follow the original instructions with these changes.

Sew only the first fabric as instructed in the original tutorial if you want to add the cell phone pocket.  Once this top fabric is in place, fold the canvas side out (inside) with the fabric strip at the top.  Mark the 1/2" seam allowance on the outer edges. Determine the vertical center of each half; this is where the pockets will be centered vertically.

This is the padded cell phone pocket.

 Make a padded pocket that will house your cell phone.  This one finished 5" wide by 7" deep, with an inch or so extra on the top back side to sew to the canvas.  Center the pocket over where the seam allowance will be.....an eighth inch at the top will be sewn to the canvas side when the second strip is sewn to the right side of the bag... .  Once this is sewn, fold up and pin the pocket so it is out of the way of the other stitching lines.

Once all the strips are sewn, with the canvas still flat,
hand stitch the pocket bottom to the canvas.

The extended straps obviously require more yardage.
Four yards will give you plenty to work with.
Before you sew them in place, make sure they
are positioned correctly and not twisted.
Guess how I know this?

This is the inside of the finished bag, sewn with
black stitching....cream thread would be more forgiving!
It would be nice to tack down the corner flaps.

This is the plain side of the bag.

I added a 7" square pocket to the front (once the strips were sewn and before the actual bag was constructed and the straps were top stitched).
The straps were top stitched just to the sides of the pocket, 6 1/2 " away from each other.

Enjoy the day...'till next Tuesday!