Choosing the Right Fabric for Bags

Lisa Lam's A Bag for All Reasons

Fabric selection is an important part of any sewing project, and bags are no different. Generally speaking, fabric falls into two main categories: dress-weight fabric and upholstery-weight fabric. As the names would suggest, we use dress weight for garments and upholstery weight for home décor items. To make bags, however, we can use both types. Dress-weight fabric is usually better suited to bag linings and upholstery-weight fabric is best for bag exteriors, but there are exceptions to this rule. Lisa Lam's book A Bag for All Reasons features great tips for choosing the perfect fabric for any kind of bag. We've included some below:

Cotton/quilt fabric - This fabric is used both in the lining and the exterior of bags. Cotton is available in many different weights, but for bag making try to use mid-weight cotton and up. Quilting fabric is usually made from cotton and comes in a fantastic array of colorful, beautiful and fun prints. You can use cotton for almost any type of bag.

Laminated cloth/oilcloth - Usually used for the exterior of bags, this vinyl-coated fabric comes in fantastic prints and has a tough waterproof surface, making it perfect for swim bags, travel bags and wash bags. Working and stitching with laminated cloth is a bit different from working with woven fabrics.

Canvas/denim - Usually used for the exterior of bags, canvas is available in different weights. Choose the heaviest weight your sewing machine can cope with. Canvas is strong and it has rugged good looks. Be sure to use a jeans needle when sewing with canvas and denim. I think canvas looks best on larger bags such as shoppers, messenger bags, travel bags and beach bags.

Wool/suiting fabric - Usually used for the exterior of bags, wool is fabulous for bag making. Wool is available in different weights, patterns and textures. Its incredible depth of color and its texture make wool a luxurious fabric to work with and use. Wool is hardwearing, but for bag making it usually requires interfacing of some kind. Wool has a more open weave, so a strong dressmaking needle is sufficient. Try using wool for handbags, clutches and messenger bags.

Velvet - This is a luxury fabric that has fabulous depth of color and a strokeable texture. The nicest velvet is made from cotton. Velvet is available in different weights - choose the heaviest weight your sewing machine can cope with. Velvet frays easily, so it's wise to sew with a wider seam allowance. If your velvet is quite thick or you will be sewing with a few layers, use a jeans needle. Try using velvet for handbags, clutches and special occasion bags. Corduroy is similar to velvet in its uses and material qualities.

Linen - This versatile, hardwearing and natural fabric is available in both dress and home décor weight. The linen that bag makers use is the natural biscuit-colored home décor weight fabric. The color of the undyed cloth with its attractive irregular weave makes it a great foil for embroidery and/or patterned fabrics.

Silk/satin - Used both as the exterior or lining, silks and satins are luxury fabrics that have beautiful looks, texture and movement. Silk looks gorgeous pleated or gathered. Try to stick to heavier weight silk/satin because it's more durable and easier to sew with, while fine silk and satin are very slippery. Natural dupion silk is sturdy, has a lovely soft sheen and an interesting texture from the small slubs in the fabric. Shimmery satin fabric makes a glamorous lining in an evening bag. Use a fine sewing machine needle when sewing with silk or satin. Try using silk or satin for special occasion bags and purses.

Faux/real suede - Usually used for the exterior of bags, faux suede is similar in nature to velvet. Real suede is dense and harder to sew through than woven faux suede. If you feel that suede is too fragile for your bags, it can be strengthened with interfacing. Be sure to use a leather needle for sewing suede. Try using real suede for smaller special occasion bags and small handbags. Real and faux leather are similar in their uses to suede but have a shiny surface, often requiring a non-stick sewing machine foot.

Read more about A Bag for All Reasons here!

Calypso Tote with Missy Billingsley

Check out our new DVD Calypso Tote with designer Missy Billingsley for more bag inspiration. Missy walks you through everything on this DVD -- from the supply list and cutting instructions to strip piecing and finishing!

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

Heirloom Sewing Inspiration for 2014

Sew Beautiful February/March 2014

The new year has arrived, and we know that many of you are already busy planning for 2014's biggest moments. Whether you are thinking about sewing for Easter, a new baby or another occasion, opportunity for making something special abounds in our February / March 2014 edition of Sew Beautiful magazine. Classic heirloom designs are front and center in this new issue - from elegant bonnet embellishments to button-on smocked suits to a timeless lace heirloom blouse. Preview some of our favorites below:

Luminesce (left) and Peter Cottontail

Luminesce - Try your hand at pintuck smocking and enhance an ivory sash with a floral spray of embroidery as you create this elegant blush pink silk dupioni dress designed by Ann Peebles and Nancy McEvoy.

Peter Cottontail - With spring and the Easter season comes the arrival of a classic image, a little tan bunny wearing an adorable blue coat. Designed by Gwen Milner, this design was first introduced as a smocking plate in 1985. It's back to make Easter a special day for your little someone this year.

The Story of Mela Wilson Heirloom Clothing

The Story of Mela Wilson Heirloom Clothing - Many of you have been asking for more traditional, lace-trimmed heirlooms that inspired the very first issues of Sew Beautiful. Designer Mela Wilson has turned that style of sewing into a successful enterprise. We were delighted to visit her in Mobile, Ala. where we captured her beautiful heirloom clothing for this issue's designer profile.

Sweet Sophie (left) and Timeless Lace Heirloom Blouse

Sweet Sophie - This dear little blue heirloom designed by Claudia Newton has everything we love about French sewing - lace shaping, pintucks, delicate details like the overlapping flutter sleeve and just the perfect touch of hand embroidery. The pattern, sizes 2 to 4, is included on the pullout centerfold.

Timeless Lace Heirloom Blouse - Use scraps of lace and fabric from your stash and a Vogue pattern to sew up this heirloom women's blouse designed by Andrea Birkan. This is a very savvy and stylish way to use up those small yardages you've been accumulating. The pattern used here is designed with panels, so you can create as many lace panels as you'd like. Andrea created lace panels for each side of the center front placket and one down the center back. She also created lace blocks for the yokes.

Visit our online store to learn more about this new issue!

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

How to Sew a Perfect Placket

A new year is almost here, and many of us are busy thinking about what goals we'd like to accomplish in 2014. For sewists, these resolutions often include trying our hand at learning new sewing techniques or perhaps mastering those we haven't quite perfected yet. The placket is one area of a garment that seems to cause trouble for novice and advanced sewists alike. In the following how-to, designer Debbie Glenn shares step-by-step instructions for her unique folded placket that eliminates all visible raw edges. This tutorial originally appeared in our January/February 2007 issue of Sew Beautiful.

NOTE: This placket may only be used on fabrics with no apparent wrong side. And, you'll need to add 2-1/2 inches to the back skirt width for a 1/2-inch-wide finished placket.

1. Pull a thread and cut along center back the desired depth of the finished placket (9 to 13 inches at neck, 4 to 6 inches for a skirt). At lower end of center back, cut clip perpendicularly 1/2 inch to the right and 1/2 inch to the left (Photo 1).

2. Press right cut edge under 1/2 inch (to wrong side), turn left edge up 1/2 inch (to right side), leaving a 1-inch opening at bottom of placket (Photo 2).

3. Fold left side up 1/2 inch again (encasing left raw edge), leaving a 1/2-inch opening at bottom of placket (Photo 3).

4. Pinch up fabric at base of placket so right single fold touches left double fold, leaving no opening at bottom of placket. Secure this little tuck with a pin (Photo 4). TIP: Make sure fold of this little tuck doesn't extend beyond far left edge of placket or it will be visible.       

5. Finally, fold right side under 1/2 inch again (encasing right raw edge), lapping right side over left. There will be a double pleat with a tiny tuck inside at end of opening, pressed to left (Photos 5 and 6).

6. Secure placket edges by hand or machine using a straight or pin stitch. To stitch by machine: Un-pin tiny tuck and flatten out this area, temporarily un-lapping right and left sides of placket; refer to Photo 7. TIP: For easier pin stitching, cut scant 1/2-inch strips of Sol-u-Web and use "water-soluble fusible mesh" to secure right and left folds. Stitch from right side from top edge down securing right fold, adjusting width of pin stitch so left swing of fingers catch fold underneath (L=2.0-2,5; W=1.5) (Photo 7).

7. At bottom, stop with needle down 1/8 inch below clip at end of straight stitch series, re-lap placket, pivot 45 degrees, stitch finger stitch in and out into same hole, pivot 45 degrees then stitch across bottom, stopping just beyond fold; refer to Photo 8. 

8. Pivot and continue stitching up left side being careful not to catch right placket edge in stitches (Photo 8).

9. There will be raw ends exposed between the layers at bottom of placket (Photo 9). To enclose these raw ends, press placket flat, then stitch just above raw ends to form a small rectangle (Photo 10).

Be sure to check out our Sew Beautiful collection CDs to learn more great techniques! Each CD includes digital versions of six complete issues of Sew Beautiful.

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

How to Fashion Topstitched Pleats

Elizabeth's Red Dress

“Elizabeth’s Red Dress” – one of the patterns in Sewing for a Royal Baby – was inspired by a charming dress we purchased in an antiques store. After carefully picking out the seams on the hand-constructed vintage garment, I (Amelia) worked up the pattern. I used Martha Pullen's silk/cotton Elegance to recapture the soft drape of the original garment’s silk fabric. The real beauty of this design, however, is in fashioning the pleats!

I didn't stitch down the fold from the backside to secure reverse box pleats on the slippery fabric; I wanted to avoid tying off and backstitching the thread (which can pucker, especially on silky fabrics). Instead I secured the folds with glue and worked a narrow line of topstitching down my desired length, over and back up. I chose a matching red thread, but if you’re confident in your topstitching, you could choose to do this in a contrast thread color for added design interest and add a touch of color behind.

Topstitched Pleats

NOTE: The complete pattern, supply list and instructions for making “Elizabeth’s Red Dress” are in Sewing for a Royal Baby.

What you’ll need:
• “Elizabeth’s Red Dress” (available in girls sizes 3 and 4 with the book) 
• Silky fabric (red silk/cotton Elegance shown from Martha Pullen Company) 
• Aleene’s Original Tacky Glue glue stick
• Sewing thread to match or contrast fabric
• Edge/joining foot for sewing machine
• Pilot Fixion iron-away pen or air-soluble marker
• Optional: 1/4-inch-wide silk satin ribbon in contrast color

How to fashion the pleats:
Using an iron-away marking pen, mark all tuck lines on front and back skirt pieces. Seam allowances are 5/8 inch for this pattern. NOTE: Marking lines will disappear when ironed; use air-erase marker if you want marks to linger while working the remaining steps.

Figure 1

1. Starting from one side of front skirt piece, fold in pleats as indicated on pattern and press (fig. 1). Fold back pleats, and lightly glue-baste just under area where pleats come together for about 4 inches. Fold pleats back to meet and press to set glue. NOTE: Always test the heat of your iron on specialty fabric before pressing the actual project.

Figure 2

2. Using an edge/joining foot and a right needle position of 1.8 (approximately 1/16 inch from pleat fold, stitch down right pleat for 4 inches, pivot, stitch across two stitches and stitch back up the left pleat while guide blade rides in between pleats (fig. 2).

3. Repeat for all pleats on front skirt and back skirt. Stay-stitch across tops of skirt to secure pleats. 

It’s as simple as that. When the glue washes out, the pleats will slightly open along the edge, but this adds a design element.

Sewing for a Royal Baby is available to purchase from the Martha Pullen Store. The book features 22 elegant, royal-inspired designs and includes patterns, smocking plates, step-by-step instructions, technique tutorials and much more! Read more about the book below and from all of us here at Sew Beautiful, Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

Mastering the Bullion Stitch

We love dressing up our designs with creative stitching. So often, it's those final decorative accents that really transform a garment into something special! We've shared tutorials for several hand stitches in past newsletters. We'd like to continue this week with a how-to for the bullion stitch, which is the basis for all bullion flowers and leaves. This tiny stitch can make a big impact on a design when stitched into beautiful bullion roses and other shapes. Get your needle and floss ready and follow the steps below:

NOTE: The distance from point A to point B and the number of wraps determine the length of the bullion stitch. Use a #8 or #9 straw or milliner needle and one strand of floss.

1. Bring needle to front at point A, re-enter at point B, and bring tip of needle to front again very close to point A; DO NOT pull needle through (fig. 1).

Figure 1

2. Place a finger over eye of needle and press it to fabric making tip rise up, away from fabric.

Figure 2

3. Wrap floss around needle several times (fig. 2). Slide wraps toward fabric keeping wraps smooth and close together (fig. 3).

Figure 3

4. Pinch coils between the thumb and finger of your left hand, and carefully pull needle through fabric (fig. 4).

Figure 4

5. With coil between one finger and thumb, tug on needle end of floss until bullion is the right shape and all slack is pulled out of floss core thread (fig. 5).

Figure 5

6. Take floss to back at end where it leaves coil; tie off (fig. 6).

Figure 6

To Knot or Not to Knot?
Most of the time it is best not to knot the thread behind your embroidery. Tying on with a running stitch behind your embroidery or a split backstitch eliminates the added "bump" that a knot would create. 

A waist knot is another method for tying on embroidery. To use the waist knot method, tie a knot in the end of your floss and enter the fabric from front to back about 3 to 4 inches away from your template line. Enter from the wrong side to the right side to begin stitching. If using floss, take a couple of tiny backstitches where they will be hidden to secure the thread. 

When the stitching is complete, cut the waist knot and pull the floss to the back of the fabric. Thread the cut end into the needle and weave the thread tail beneath the stitches of the embroidery. Use one of these methods for tying on and tying off on your bullion stitch.

Now that you have the basic bullion stitch down pat, discover how to create bullion art with our new DVD with Kari Mecca, Secrets to Stitching Bullion Whimsies. You will learn everything you need to know about stitching bullions as Kari shows you how to stitch bullions of any size or novelty shape. Included with the DVD is a bonus PDF file that features 50 step-by-step bullion designs - butterflies, hearts, rosebuds, bows, doves, cupcakes, balloons, cherries and more! 

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

Vintage Inspiration: A Capitol Silk Coat

Winter Rose Smocked Coat

Many of the designs we feature in Sew Beautiful are inspired by beautiful heirlooms from generations past, and the Winter Rose Smocked Coat from designer Laurie Anderson is no exception. This design, which serves as the free pattern in our December / January issue, was adapted from a piece straight out of Martha Pullen's antique collection.

The authentic vintage lines really stand out on this children's garment, and Laurie worked a geometric smocking design in ecru with pink cast-on roses below the round yoke and embroidered a chevron blanket stitch around the collar and cuffs to recreate the jacket for today's little one. 

Below, peek inside Martha's Attic and read what she has to say about the original coat as we take a closer look at this timeless design:

Babette: A Capitol Silk Coat

This Babette Coat was custom made or sold presumably by Capitol sometime, I believe, around 1920. How do I know this? It still retains the labels inside, "Babette A Capitol Silk Coat, size 2." It's always such a rewarding experience to find an antique garment that comes with its own information. I found this piece in Lebanon, Ohio on one of my teaching trips to Columbus. Although I have been unable to verify that "Capitol" refers to Columbus, that city is the Capitol of Ohio, so it is a relatively safe bet that the coat originated or was sold there. The hand embroidery, smocking and crochet elements suggest it was custom made to sell in a clothing shop.

The little jewel is not in the best condition; the silk is stained in several areas, and the smocking is starting to come out. However, hand smocked pieces are very hard to come by, so I overlooked its flaws. The style is a round yoke; the yoke is self-piped. Just under the corded yoke are three rows of cables smocked completely around the coat very loosely, as the coat is not particularly full. Every 2-3/4 inches, between the first and third rows of smocking, is a three-step wave, leaving a little space into which a small lazy daisy flower has been stitched. This creates a little "puffiness" in the smocked section, which is very pretty.

Martha discovered this coat during a teaching trip in Lebanon, Ohio.

The collar fronts are embellished with touches of embroidery - lazy daisies, French knots and stem stitches - worked in the same peachy/pink shade as the coat. The collar edge is trimmed in slightly gathered hand crochet lace, which is also found on the 2-inch sleeve cuffs. Snaps, sewn on by hand, secure the coat in front and are topped with five decorative buttons. The lining appears to be a silk broadcloth; combined with a flannel interlining, it turns a very delicate-looking coat into a much warmer option.

Click here to read more about the designs featured in our December / January issue!

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia

How to Tie a Perfect Sash Bow

The holiday season is in full swing, and many of us will soon dress our little girls up in pretty stitched party dresses as we celebrate Christmas. Nothing finishes a party dress better than an expertly tied sash bow, of course, but tying a sash bow is harder than it looks. When not tied correctly, a bow may droop and hang vertically rather than stand up horizontally. Follow these steps from Perfect Party Dresses to ensure the bow sits perfectly against the back of the dress with beautifully formed loops and a bow knot.

1. Holding a sash in each hand, cross the left sash over the right.

2. Bring the left sash under the right at the center. Pull the left sash through and leave aside.

3. Make a loop with the right sash.

4. Turn the loop to the right.

5. Pick up the unlooped sash and place it over the looped sash.

6. Bring the left sash under the looped sash and through the gap underneath.

7. Pull on the looped ends to form the bow.

8. Adjust the size of the loops and arrange the sashes as required.

For more party dress inspiration, check out Perfect Party Dresses. With 12 smocked dresses and three petticoats, this book has everything you need to make your little girl's party dress dreams come true this year.

Sew On, Sew Well, Sew Beautiful,
Cyndi and Amelia