laptop bag

Make it Today!

Laptop bagCUTTING GUIDE:1cm seam allowance included

DenimTwo 35cm x 44.5cm pieces for thefront and backRed fabric with rosesTwo 20cm x 30cm pieces for thepocket and backOne 12cm x 82cm piece for thebottom and sidesOne 14cm x 67cm piece for the zipopeningFabric with large rosesOne 20cm x 30cm piece for amachine appliqué of your choiceLiningTwo 35cm x 44.5cm pieces for the front and backOne 12cm x 82cm piece for thebottom and sidesOne 14cm x 67cm piece for the zip openingWaddingTwo 35cm x 44.5 pieces for the front and backOne 12cm x 82cm piece for thebottom and sidesOne 14cm x 67cm piece for the zipopeningOne 20cm x 30cm piece for amachine appliqué of your choiceLightweight interfacingTwo 35cm x 44.5cm pieces for thefront and backCurve template and Middle notchestemplate from makeittoday.co.uk

PROJECT BY CHRISTA ROLF | SUITABLE FOR INTERMEDIATE | SHOULD TAKE A FUN WEEKEND

ESSENTIAL KIT COTTON FABRIC:

DENIM FABRIC, 40CMRED FABRIC

WITH ROSES, 50CMFABRIC WITH

LARGE ROSES, 20CM

WADDING ANDINTERFACING:

DOUBLE-SIDED IRON-ONWADDING, 70CM

LIGHTWEIGHT IRON-ONINTERFACING, 40CM

ADDITIONAL ITEMS:LINING, 75CM

PINK BIAS BINDING, 3MCOTTON CORD, 4MM X 3M

DIAMETER, FOR PIPINGPINK RICK-RACK BRAID, 50CM

PINK SATIN RIBBON, 1CM WIDE X 20CM

ROSE SATIN RIBBON, 4MM WIDE X 15CM

PINK ZIP, 60CMPAIR OF HANDLES, 70CM

WOODEN BEAD

PLUS:

ASSORTED BUTTONS AND LACE MOTIFS

WATER-SOLUBLE MARKER

FABRIC GLUE

MEASUREMENTS:30CM X 42CM

The perfect professionalaccessory, a homemade laptop

bag will make you the envy of your colleagues. Admire

your lovely laptop bag'sembellishments and let it inspire you to keep oncreating beautiful and

unique bags to carry more ofyour precious items.

Laptop bag1 For the front and back, spread out the denim fabric, wrong side up. Place the interfacing (fusible side down)on top of it, then the wadding and lastly the lining fabric, right side up.Cover the layers with a damp cloth andiron together. Repeat the sameprocedure for the bottom and sidepieces, without interfacing.

2 With a water-soluble marker, drawtwo intersecting lines at 45° to the edgeon the right side of the two pieces ofdenim. Stitch along both lines with astraight stitch (stitch length 3). With theaid of a quilting ruler, stitch parallel lines

4cm apart to cover the whole surface.Repeat the process with the fabricpieces for the bottom and sides of thebag and the zip opening.

3 Draw the Curve template on thewrong side of the front and back pieces, transferring the markings for themid-points, and cut out, adding a 1cmseam allowance.

4 Sew the rick-rack braid to the front ofthe bag, about 9cm from the upperedge. For the machine appliqué, fuse thewadding to the back of the fabric withthe large roses, covering the otherfusible side with greaseproof paper. Cut out the rose motif, position it andiron in place. Attach smaller flowermotifs to the bag with fabric glue. Stitch around the flowers and leaveswith freehand machine embroideryusing matching thread. Sew accuratelyaround the outlines of the individualmotifs. If desired, topstitch the lines

within the rose motif. Sew on buttonsand lace motifs.

5 For the outside pocket, place the two pieces of red fabric with roses rightsides together and sew all around,leaving an opening at the bottom forturning. Cut away the seam allowance at the corners and turn right side out.Topstitch the upper edge with twoparallel rows of stitching. Pin the pocketto the back of the bag. Sew along thebottom and side edges with two parallelrows of stitching.

6 Cut the fabric for the zip opening inhalf lengthways and insert the zip. Trimto 10cm x 61cm. Trim the bottom andside piece to 10cm x 79cm. Neaten allthe short sides with zigzag stitch. Cutthe pink satin ribbon in half and maketwo bows. Join the fabric with the zip tothe side piece to form a ring, sewing inribbon bows on the right and left at thesame time. Divide the ring into four

LAPTOP BAG

book shelfThis charming project istaken from PrettyPatchwork Gifts by ChristaRolf (£14.99, David &Charles).

equal sections, marking them on theinside.

7 For the piping, iron the pink biasbinding open and trim the whole lengthto a width of 3cm. Prepare the pipingwith cotton cord. Sew the piping to thefront and back bag pieces, taking care tostitch just inside the seam allowance.

8 Open the zip, pin the sides to the frontand back, matching the markings for themid-point from the sketch and sewtogether. Trim the seam allowance toabout 0.5cm. Topstitch through the sideand the front/back pieces together about6mm from the edge. This will stabilise thebag and cover the seam allowance.

To make up1 Stitch the handles to the bag. Threadthe rose satin ribbon through the zippull, thread both ends together throughthe wooden bead and knot the ends.

IF YOUR SEWING MACHINE DO ES NOT HAVE A QUILTING

RULER, DRAW THE LINES ON THE FABRIC WITH A

SOLUBLE MARKER