Make Up and Move On - The Make Up Bag Tutorial

I don't know about you but I find it really difficult when I am in the Chemist at this time of the year to resist those little holiday pots of shampoo, bath oils and other unguents ready for you to take off to your little piece of Paradise in the sun. I want them all... but you need to have a new bag to put them in .  So this week, we have an over-sized cosmetic bag to accommodate them all.

Let's get making, you will need the following:

Two pieces of fabric ( one piece 10" wide by 18" long and the lining 9" wide by 17" long)
A piece of wadding just a smidge wider than 10" x 18"
Pins, cotton
8" zip
Measuring tape
Scissors
Iron and Ironing board

Press your fabric and cut out two pieces 10" wide x 17" long.  Pin the top (outer) piece to the wadding, use a quilting stitch from your machine to join together the top fabric to the wadding.  I used a multi-coloured thread for added interest with a Serpentine stitich.  Trim away the excess so that the quilted square is now 9" wide by 17" long.

You are now going to make a sandwich with the zip, put the right sides of the top and lining fabric, slip the zip in between the two so that the back to the zip is on top of the lining, keep the edges together and sew all four layers together, make a roll and repeat this for the other side. Turn the roll right sides out.  Pin the top fabric down and top stitch it closely next to the zip.  Leave the zip open.

Measure up 2" from the zip on either side of the top fabric, this is going to create the top of your makeup bag, repeat this on the lining fabric.  Pin down the quilted fabric but having pinned down the lining, cut the lining along the base.  Sew down the quilted fabric using a 1/2" seam allowance, from the top to the zip, then repeat up from the base to the zip, repeat on other side. 

Cut along the base of the lining.   Sew down the sides of the lining using a half inch seam allowance bottom of the base but leave a 3" gap in the base and sew with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Now to give you a boxy base we are going to use a new technique which I have seen on a number of blogs and thought I would give a go. From the sides measure in an inch and a half and from the bottom measure up an inch.  Cut out an oblong on both lining and quilted fabric on both sides.

Press open the seams  and fold the fabric so the base of the sits in concert with the seam... sew it over twice to give it strength.  Repeat this on each corner.


Now using the gap which you left in the base of the lining turn the bag inside out.

Sew together the base of your lining... you can slip stitch this or machine the lining together.

Push each corner of lining home, it will create a bag like a cake slice you would get from a birthday party ready to take all you lovely little pots...

Now book your holiday... you are ready to go!


Some of you may know that I got shoulder surfed at the Cashpoint on Monday evening, however my bank were superb.  By Tuesday morning, they had refunded my money and my new card arrived on Wednesday, that is amazing service.  Thank you so much Royal Bank of Scotland!


And now it is off to Handmade Monday to see what everyone has created during this rather lovely warm week in the UK