What should you use to carry your school stuff this year? Well, if you’re all about form and structure, the venerable back pack is your friend. But if you want something comfortably soft and slouchy, then go with the book bag: the wild child of school totes. Ours uses no stabilizer, only a lining. The exterior fabric is a velvety corduroy from Valori Wells with the thinnest of wales. Wooden beads, stone buttons and waxed cording create the closures. And, tiny golden rivets attach the strap. So cute… maybe you should keep it as your everyday bag!
ORIGINAL BAG USED CONTRASTING THREAD FOR TOPSTITCHING – NEW WILL USE MATCHING THREAD. I’VE MADE SOME NOTES ABOUT PICTURES, BUT IN GENERAL, IT NEEDS A LOT MORE PHOTOS TO BEST DESCRIBE THE STEPS. THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ALSO USED DRAWINGS, WHICH WOULD BE OKAY TO RE-USE, BUT PHOTOS COULD BE ADDED AS WELL — MAYBE A CLOSE-UPS TO AUGMENT THE DRAWINGS.

Sewing Tools You Need

Sewing Machine and standard presser foot

Fabric and Other Supplies

Fabric for bag exterior: 1¼ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric
Fabric for bag lining: ½ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric
Two 1″ buttons for the top closure
Two ¾” buttons for the pocket closure
Eight double cap rivets
Hole punch and rivet setting tools to match your chosen rivets
18-19″ of 2.5 mm waxed cotton cord to match fabric: we used dark brown
Two large-hole wooden beads for the tail ends of the top closure: optional
NOTE: Hole must be large enough to thread onto waxed cord.
All purpose thread to match fabric
See-through ruler
Measuring tape
Fabric pen or pencil
Iron and ironing board
Scissors or rotary cutter and mat
Seam gauge
Seam ripper
Straight pins
Hammer to set rivets and grommets
Hand sewing needle

Getting Started

From the exterior bag fabric, cut the following:
ONE 15½” wide x 36½” high rectangle for the bag body.
ONE 15½” wide x 20½” high rectangle for the exterior bag pocket.
ONE 8″ x 8″ square for the interior bag pocket.
ONE 6″ wide x 39″ long strip for the bag strap.
From the lining fabric, cut one 15½” x 33½” rectangle.

At Your Sewing Machine

Fold the main exterior bag piece in half and press well to form a crease.
Unfold and lay this piece flat, wrong side up, on your work surface so you can see the crease.
Use your fabric pen to draw a line straight across right on top of the crease line.
Draw two parallel lines to this line, one 1¼” above and one 1¼” below.
Draw two intersecting vertical lines 1¾” in from each side.
The resulting 2½” x 12″ rectangle is what will become the bottom of the bag.
Repeat these same markings on what will be the right side of the lining.

Exterior pockets

Find the 15½” x 20½” exterior bag pocket panel. Make a simple 2″ double fold hem along each 15½” side. To do this, fold back the raw edge ½” and press, then fold back again 1½” and press again.
Thread the machine with thread to best match the fabric in the top and bobbin. Set for a standard straight stitch.
Stitch in place close to the folded edge. Repeat for the opposite edge.
PICTURE SHOWING SEWN PANEL
Fold this hemmed pocket piece in half and press well to form a horizontal center crease line.
Unfold and lay this piece flat, wrong side up, on your work surface so you can see the crease.
Use your fabric pen to draw a line straight across right along the crease line. This line is for positioning purposes.
PICTURE SHOWING WRONG SIDE WITH DRAWN HORIZONTAL GUIDE LINE
Flip the pocket so it is now right side up and draw a vertical line down the exact center (7¾” from each side).
PICTURE OF MEASURING/DRAWING
NOTE: Remember, any time you are working on the right side of your fabric, use a marking tool that will easily wipe away or will vanish with exposure to the air or the heat of an iron.
Stitch along the marked vertical line.
Lay the exterior body piece flat, right side up, on your work surface.
Lay the exterior pocket piece, also right side up, on top of the body piece. Lift up the edges of your panels and align the marked horizontal crease line and the marked main panel bottom crease line.
The raw edges of both panels should be flush along both sides. Pin the pocket piece to the body piece along the pocket panel’s top and bottom hems.
Fold the pinned together piece in half rights sides together and check to make sure the top hemmed edges of the pocket piece are even when the bottom crease lines are aligned. Un-pin and adjust if necessary to make sure the top hemmed edges are even front to back.
Un-fold, and stitch the pocket piece to the body piece, going right over the top of the pocket panel’s existing center stitch line. That’s all, just stitch together along the center line.
Sew the two ¾” buttons in place at the center line, one at the top hem line and a second one just above it. These buttons are decorative and help stabilize the pocket’s center dividing line.

Side seams and boxed bottom corners

Making sure the pocket panel stays nice and flat from edge to edge, and the top pocket hems are even (as checked above), fold the bag body in half right sides together. The crease line should be at the exact bottom… right at the fold.
Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch both sides from the bottom to the top,
With the bag still wrong side out, the next step is to box the bottom corners of the bag.
Using both hands, pinch and pull apart the bottom corner.
As you keep pulling, the fabric will begin to make a little peak with the corner point at the top and the seam line running down the middle of one side.
Carefully and precisely, line up the side seam with the bottom crease line.
You should also be able to see the placement line you drew earlier (the 2½” side of the bag bottom rectangle).
Pin your folded ‘peak’ and stitch along this drawn line.
Stitch back and forth along the line two or three times to reinforce. Trim away the peak to about ½” from the seam line.
Repeat on the opposite corner.
Turn right side out and push out to form the boxed corners.
NOTE: This is a slight variation on the traditional box corner as there is not a corresponding base seam, just the two side seams. We have a full tutorial on boxing corners that you can review prior to starting.

Interior pocket

Find the 8″ x 8″ interior pocket panel. Orient it on your work surface so your fabric design is running correctly top to bottom.
Fold back ½” along both sides and across the bottom and press well.
Fold back along the top ½” and press, then fold again 1″ and press.
Stitch close to the folded edge to finish the simple double fold hem along the top of the pocket.
Find your lining piece and lay it flat, right side up, on your work surface.
Position the pocket piece approximately 4¼” up from the drawn bottom crease and centered side to side. Pin in place.
Edgestitch the pocket in place along both sides and across the bottom, pivoting at the corners.
THIS SECTION NEEDS PHOTOS TO SHOW STEPS
Fold the lining in half, right sides together, sandwiching the interior pocket to the inside.
Re-thread the machine with thread to best match the lining fabric.
Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch both sides from the bottom to the top.
Box the bottom corners of the lining following the same steps you used above for the body of the bag.
Set the lining aside.

Strap

Find the 6″ x 39″ strip.
THIS SECTION NEEDS PHOTOS TO SHOW STEPS
Fold in half, right sides together, so it is now 3″ x 39″. Press. Pin in place along one short end and all along the 39″ side.
Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch along the pinned short end and all along the 39″ side. Leave the opposite short end un-sewn.
Clip corners and turn right side out.
Press well, keeping the seam along one edge.
Press in the raw open end to match ½” the sewn seam. Thread the hand sewing needle and slip stitch closed.
Set aside.

Assembling lining and bag

Find the exterior bag; it should be right side out. Find the lining bag; it should be wrong side out. Insert the lining into the exterior so the two layers are now wrong sides together. The interior pocket should be positioned against the back of the bag.
Push the lining all the way down into the bag, matching up the bottom boxed corners and the side seams. The top raw edge of the lining should stop about 1½” from the top raw edge of the bag.
Fold back the top raw edge of the bag ½” and press. Then fold back an additional 1½” and press again. This second turn will fold the lining along with the body of the bag. Pin in place.
Edgestitch all around the top of the bag, staying close to the inner fold. If you have a free arm on your machine, now is a good time to use it.
Hand stitch one 1″ button at the center of the top hem on the front of the bag, measuring to make sure it is exactly in line with the two buttons you previously sewed at the center of the pocket panel.
Hand stitch the other 1″ button at the center of the top hem on the back of the bag.
PICTURE
Find your length of waxed cord.
Thread a bead on each end and knot to hold in place. These beads are optional. You could leave them off and simply knot the ends of the cord.
Hook the cord around the back button and tie a knot to secure.
To close the bag, holding both cord tails together, bring them up and over the top of the bag, and loop them counterclockwise around the front button, pulling straight down to secure.

Riveting the strap in place

Find your completed strap.
THE FABRIC WE HAVE FOR THE NEW BAG IS MUCH HEAVIER – MORE LIKE A CANVAS OR LIGHT UPHOLSTERY FABRIC THAN THIS SOFT CORDUROY. SO, THE FOLD UNDER IS PROBABLY NOT NECESSARY. IT WAS HERE TO PROVIDE MORE SUPPORT FOR THE RIVETS. WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Fold under each end 1½”.
Pin each end in place, centered on the side seam and with the bottom of the strap aligned with the top hem line.
Mark four corner points, ¼” in from each top/side and bottom/side.
Insert a rivet at each marked point.
Repeat to attach the opposite side of the strap.
MORE PICTURES HERE WOULD BE GOOD
If you are new to riveting, take a look at our tutorial.