Who couldn't use a bag of cash right now? I can't give you a bag of money but can show you how to make these cute little money sacks. Use them to stuff a stocking or to horde your rainy day change collection.
Finished size: 3" tall x 2.5" wide.
They are itty bitty and very cute, but magically not all that difficult to sew! If you are new to sewing you will learn how to make a lined drawstring bag, sew small items, gather fabric, sew circles and more.
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YOU NEED
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- Fabric pieces or scraps
- Iron-on interfacing scraps
- Embroidery floss & needle
- Small embroidery hoop
- 15-20" ribbon or twine
- Thread
- Sewing Machine
- Fabric marking pen or chalk
- Ruler
- Small safety pin
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YOU NEED TO KNOW
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- Seam allowance: edge of presser foot
- RST/RS: Right Sides Together/Right Sides
- WS: Wrong Side(s)
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HERE'S HOW
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1) Cut
- Two pieces of fabric 4.5" high x 9.5 wide. One is for the outside and one is for the lining so plan accordingly. From here on out I'll refer to the outside fabric as the "focus fabric".
- Two circles about 2" in diameter. Again, one will be for the outside and one for the lining. I used the cap of a vitamin bottle as my template. A spice jar, empty cardboard toilet paper roll, can of cooking spray or a tea light candle will probably work too.
- Two 2" circles from the scrap interfacing.
2) Embroider the $ Sign
- Lay the focus fabric piece right side up on a flat surface and along the bottom measure in 2.5" and and then measure upward 1.25". Mark with pen or chalk. This will be the bottom of your $ sign. Draw a $ sign onto your fabric so that the bottom of the sign ends somewhere around your mark.
- Embroider your $ sign.
3) Sew Side Seams on Bag Bodies
- Fold the focus fabric piece so the 4.5" ends meet RST. Pin and stitch.
- Finger press the seam open and turn this piece RS out. Optional: Top stitch the seam along both sides. This is a bit awkward but totally doable (be careful of your fingers!. Taking the extra five seconds to top stitch will help when it is time to insert the drawstring.
- Repeat for lining piece.
4) Gather
- Increase stitch length to 4-5 (or the longest straight stitch on your machine) and starting at the side seam stitch around the bottom edge of your focus fabric bag body. Do NOT back stitch at the beginning or end. Because of the size you will not be able to get the fabric around your sewing arm and will need to stitch with the presser foot inside the bag body (see photo below). Leave 2-3" of thread at each end tails.
- Repeat this step on the lining bag body.
- Pull one of the threads while pushing the fabric gently away gathering the bottom of the focus fabric bag body. Even out the gathers a bit but they don't need to be perfect.
- Repeat gathering on lining bag body.
5) Attach Bottoms
- Apply iron-on interfacing to the WS of your fabric circles.
- Turn the focus fabric bag body WS out with the gathered end facing up. Take the focus fabric circle and place it so the gathered end and the circle are RST.
- Pin in place. You will probably need to adjust the gathering some as you pin.
- Hand baste the circle in place close to the edge of the fabric. Remove the pins as you hand baste it in place.
- Machine stitch bottom to bag body. When sewing a circle to a tube you will get neater results if you stitch with the circle on the bottom. Then you can periodically lift the presser foot and adjust the fabric if it starts to get really bunched up.
- Repeat attaching bottom to lining bag body. Reinforce the bottom seam of the lining bag body by stitching around the bottom again just outside the first row of stitches.
6) Attach Lining
- Turn focus fabric bag body RS out.
- Turn lining bag body WS out.
- Insert focus fabric bag body INSIDE the lining bag body. The fabrics are now RST.
- Pin in place around top.
- Stitch in place around top leaving a 1.5" opening to turn.
- Snip threads and turn RS out through the opening.
- Slip stitch the opening closed.
7) Sew Drawstring Casing
- Place the presser foot inside the bag at the side seam and sew around the the bag using the 5/8" mark as your guide.
- Sew a second row of stitches below the first row using the presser foot as your seam allowance guide. This will give you a casing just slightly larger than 0.25". If your ribbon is wider than 0.25" you will need to make adjustments to make sure the ribbon will fit through the casing.
8) Insert Drawstring
- Fold over one end of your ribbon about 0.75" and insert the safety pin through the end.
- Remove the 2-3 stitches on the side seam of the focus fabric side of your bag between the rows of stitching for the casing.
- Insert the safety pin into the side seam and push the ribbon into the casing. Pull the fabric towards you while pushing and/or pulling the head of the safety pin through the casing until you reach the side seam again.
- Pull the ribbon so the ends are approximately the same size.
- Trim any stray threads
You're done!
