Patchwork Project Knitting Bag

Have you ever been in the middle of a sewing or knitty venture only to find you've lost your thread or yarn, your fabric's gone AWOL and the pattern you were working from has decided to disappear? If so, why not keep everything together in this handy project bag? Made from a patchwork of pretty prints, it will make a great gift too.

Essentials

Fabric, cotton: assorted prints, scraps; printed, red, 30cm x 45cm; plain, coral, 50cm x 1m
Thread, matching
Bag handles

Dimensions List

43cm x 48cm

Stitch a project bag

Cut a selection of rectangles from printed cotton; they can be any height but must be 10cm wide. Arrange them into four rows measuring 75cm long. Sew the top and bottom edges together, right sides facing, with a 6mm seam allowance. Press all of the seams towards the last patch and check each row is equal.
Trim six 3.5cm x 45cm strips from red patterned fabric. Stitch them together in pairs along the short ends and press the seams open. Sew each strip to the right edges of three patchwork lengths, then join these pieces together, before adding the final patchwork strip to the end.
Cut two 8cm strips from more red fabric, which are as wide as the finished patchwork. Sew one to each short edge. Trim coral fabric to the same size as the entire patchwork for the lining.
With right sides facing, fold the patchwork in half lengthways and mark 15cm down from each top corner. Pin the side edges together as far as these marks and machine stitch with a 1.5cm seam. Press the seam allowances inwards, including along the unstitched parts of the side edges and across the top. Turn the bag out.
Make up the lining in the same way as the bag, but don’t turn it right side out. Slip it inside the bag and match up the folded edges. Pin and tack them together, then machine stitch around the side and top edges 4mm from the folds. Press back a 3cm turning along each top edge.
Cut two 4cm squares from red fabric and press under a 6mm turning along each edge. Tack these to the bag on each side edge, across the point where the seams meet. Machine stitch down around the edge then sew two diagonal lines across the centre to reinforce the sides.
Push the top edge of one side of the bag through the slot at the base of a bag handle. Fold the turning back and pin it to the bag. Hand sew through all the layers of the folded edge to the bag with small stitches. Repeat with the other handle.