how to….make a zippered pouch.

Today’s guest blogger is Sam from Post Grad Haircut.  She’s got a lovely blog where she always seems to find the prettiest things….I don’t know where she digs them all up, but she does.  Today she’s going to help work your crafty muscles :).  Welcome Sam 

In all of my sewing endeavors, I have to say the most satisfying skill I learned was making a pouch with a zipper. Once you gain this skill you can make pouches of any size and shape (and you will, believe me). I know that to a lot of beginner seamstresses, the concept of a zipper can seem daunting, but it really is quite easy and I am here to show you how.

– Fabric Shears
– Thread Snips
– Ruler
– Pins
– Chalk
– Seam Ripper (just in case)
– Fabric, two kinds. One for outside fabric and one for lining. It is best to use a light-to-medium

– Zipper. The length will depend on how big you want your pouch to be.
– Sewing Machine (you could probably sew it by hand, but it is a lot faster with a machine)

1. After you have gathered your materials the first thing to do is to cut out your fabric.

Using your ruler measure out the size of the pouch you want using chalk right onto the outside fabric (make sure you add an extra 1cm seam allowance around the whole rectangle). When you do this make sure you have two layers, the idea here is to have four pieces in total (two of both the lining and outside fabric). Once you have your rectangle (or square), cut it out. Take the piece you cut out and place it on top of the lining fabric. Trace around it with the chalk and cut it out. Now you will have four pieces. My pouch is about 18cm x 12cm.

2. Next step is to press your fabric to make sure there are no wrinkles. Once you’ve done this you’re going to fold over 3/4cm on one side of one piece of the outside fabric. This will be the side where you put the zipper. Do the same thing on one piece of the lining.

3. You’re going to take these pieces of fabric and sandwich part of the zipper tape in between.

Place your outside fabric right side down and place the zipper, right side down, on top of the folded over edge.

Next take lining and place it right side up on top of the outside fabric and zipper. You’re now going to pin these in place. It is important that you do not sew the lining too close to the zipper itself as it might get caught when the pouch is finished.

4. Now for the sewing! You’re going to sew along the top of the sandwich, near the zipper. You could use your machine’s zipper foot for this, but I find it is easy enough to do with the regular foot. You may have to move the zipper pull out of the way as you sew. Make sure you’re catching all three layers as you sew (outside fabric, zipper tape, lining).

Okay, so now you’re going to repeat steps 2-4 with the other two pieces of fabric on the other side of the zipper.

5. Congrats! You’ve now finished the most difficult part project. Next thing to do is to sew around exterior of the pouch. Place the outside pieces of fabric together, wrong sides facing. This will mean the lining is also together, wrong sides face, with the zipper in the middle (PLEASE NOTE: At this point make sure the zipper is at least partially open. If you sew around the pouch and the zipper is closed, you will not be able to fold it right side out.)

You’re going to pin the pouch at two spots. Making sure that the zipper tape is on the side of the outside fabric, place a pin to keep the loose ends of the zipper tape together. You’re also going to pin on the opposite side of the zipper, making sure the tape is on the outside fabric.

6. Now starting about 1/4 from the side on the bottom of the lining fabric, begin sewing. Make sure you back-stitch here. From this point you’re going to sew around the entire exterior of the pouch leaving about 1cm seam allowance. Stop when you get 1/4 in from the side on the bottom of the lining. By starting 1/4 in from the side and ending 1/4 in it leaves about 1/2 of the bottom unstitched. This is essential for turning your pouch right-side out. Trim any excess fabric off from around the edges and clip the corners.

7. Stick your hand in the hole you’ve left open and pull the exterior fabric out (the rest of the pouch will follow. Once you get it all sorted out, make sure all the corners are un-tucked.

8. Now the last thing to do is to sew up the hole you left.

9. Congratulations, you’ve finished your zipper pouch! Now you have a place to put all your sewing supplies!