Something I find extremely satisfying is turning items I have, but don't use, and repurposing them into something useful. I had a couple of wrap pants in my shop that weren't selling. Rather than donating them or throwing them out I decided to repurpose them into a boho bag. I may have mentioned this before in a previous blog post, but I'm definitely not a seamstress so please just use this blog as a guide to make your own or to come up with your own ideas.
The first thing I did was scour Pinterest for ideas. Who doesn't love Pinterest! I found a couple of bags I liked and went ahead creating my own pattern. I used several pieces of printer paper, taped them together and then folded it down the centre and drew my pattern. By folding the paper in half I made sure that both sides were the same size.
Here are the dimensions I used:
- Height to the bottom of the straps: 13 inches
- Width: 15.5 inches
- Length of strap to the top of the bag: 25.5 inches
Place the pattern on top of your wrap pants and then cut out the fabric. You will have two pieces of fabric but keep them together. All together you will want 4 pieces (or 2 sets if you keep them together).
For this project I used 2 different pairs of pants since I like lots of colour but you could use a single pair or other fabric. Use your imagination!
Sew around the edges of each set.
Next, decide which sides you want on the outside of your bags and put the layers you want on the inside of the bag facing together and sew one side of the bag.
Next, sew around the curves of the bag all the way up the straps as shown below but not across the end of the straps.
Clip around the curves so that when you turn the bag right sides out the fabric sits flatter.
Turn the bag right sides out.
If you would like to add a pocket to the inside now is the time. Sorry, I forgot to take a photo of this step. I used my cellphone as a template and a few credit cards and pens to get the dimensions of the pocket. I then sewed it into the middle of the bag. Just make sure you leave room at the bottom for the seam.
Once completed the pocket will be in the centre of the bag.
This is the reverse side of the bag which will be the outside.
Lay the bag out as shown below.
Fold the bag in half so that the right sides are on top of each other. In this case I folded the pink and red on top of the purple and blue layer.
Next, create a template for the bottom of the bag. This is a very rough pattern. I made mine 10 inches wide and 8 inches high and rounded the corners.
Use the template to cut a total of 4 pieces for the bottom of your bag. 2 pieces for the inside and 2 for the outside of the bag. The material from the pants isn't very thick so I doubled up on the layer to make the bag more durable. You could also use interfacing at this point. If you are using thicker fabric one layer may be enough.
If you decide to use two layers do a quick stitch around the outside of the bag to keep the fabric together.
Pin one of the pieces for the bottom of your bag to the bottom of the inside of the bag. Make sure you pin it wrong sides together. Sew around the edge leaving an opening. Leaving an opening will allow you to reverse the bag and then hand-stitch it closed.
On the other end of the bag sew the bottom of the outside of the bag but this time sew all the way around. The bag is still reversed at this point.
Now it's time to turn the bag right-side out using the opening you left from the inside of the bag. Hand stitch the opening closed.
You should now have a bag that looks something like this.
Lastly, insert one piece of the strap into the other and then sew together. You can tie a knot to adjust the length. You now have a cross-body boho bag.
Thats it!
To keep the inside clean you can use the plastic bags your skirts come in and use them to line the inside or to use as separators to keep things organized.
I hope this inspires you to create something.