Amberley Romo.

Make: "Fat Quarter" Tote Bag

Cover image for this post: Two finished fat quarter totes sitting on my craft table in front of my sewing machine. The left is clearly better made, and the right was clearly made first.

After finishing my first quilt, I wanted to find a project that was both pretty straightforward and fairly quick to make. Something to keep practicing basic skills, but also get the dopamine hit of a finished object quicker than the time it took to finish the quilt.

I decided to look up beginner-targeted projects that are made using fat quarters -- which are pre-cut pieces of fabrics, typically around 18" by 22". I found this "Mini Tote Bag" project on YouTube (the "five-minutes" part was thoroughly optimistic, at least at my skill level).

Skills practiced:

  • Sewing straight
  • Top-stitching
  • Pressing fabric and seams
  • Sewing a gusset
The in-progress tote bag sits on my project table on top of my cutting mat. Right now it's just a rectangle of fabric with the handles pinned in place. Also visible is the corner of my computer, part of my sewing machine, and various bits and bobs like pins, a rotary cutter, and stork scissors.

Pinning the handles to the fabric to secure in place before sewing down.

The in-progress tote bag sits on my project table on top of my cutting mat. The lining and the outside are sewn together, and the handles are attached.

Sewn together, ready to fold the lining inside the bag.

The accessory box is removed from the machine so that I can wrap the bag around the free arm, and sew continuously around the top edge.

Adding top-stitching to the top of the bag.

Two finished bags sit on my project table in front of the sewing machine. One is dark blue with a lavender lining, and the other is kind of a barney purple with a teal lining. The dark blue bag is visibly better-made than the purple one.

Two finished bags.

You can quite clearly see the difference between the two. The purple was my first attempt, and the blue was my second. I learned a lot from the first one, and I was able to apply that to the second. I'm proud of the clear improvement between the two. The biggest lesson: Pressing is important, actually.

Cover image: By Amberley Romo