bags - How To Sew Lined Shoe Bags For Golf, Tennis, Bowling, Gym, Dance or any Other Drawstring Bag

Sewing shoe bags for the guys or gals in your life is a great gift idea. No matter what sport or hobby they enjoy or where they travel. . .far away or to the gym, shoe bags or drawstring bags come in handy. The how to sew sewing instructions are for a lined drawstring shoe bag. You are the designer. You can decide the purpose, fabric, design and size of your drawstring bag. Here are some suggestions. Fabrics Use whatever fabric suits your fancy. About 1/2 yard of fabric makes one shoe bag. Sturdier fabrics like denim, canvas, slipcover fabric, fake suede, corduroy, etc. work well for sturdier shoes. Fine fabrics like velour, velvet, cottons, flannels, etc. are good for dressier shoes. Think about satin or silk for lingerie bags or jewelry bags. Or use mesh or terry for the beach or laundry bags. Lining is optional. But, if you line the bags, choose a compatible lining fabric that won't tear easily especially for the sturdier shoes. Sometimes the same fabric is the best lining. The instructions here are for a lined drawstring bag. You may want to use washable fabrics so you can launder the bags later. Preshrink all fabrics before cutting. Drawstrings Use a pair of 36 inch long decorative shoe laces or leather laces for each bag or heavy cord or sew your own fabric or fake suede drawstrings. Ribbon also works. Sizes Sew a test bag to see if the dimensions are right for you. Cut one bag with the following suggested dimensions. Place the shoe inside and check to see if it fits well. Add or subtract from the length or width to adjust for whatever shoe or item that you have. Suggested Sizes For 2 golf shoe bags, cut 4 pieces of fabric 20 inches long and 11 inches wide. Cut 4 pieces of lining 19 inches long and 10-1/2 inches wide. Note: Cut an extra drawstring bag for a golf ball bag. Two bowling shoes will fit into one shoe bag. Cut 2 pieces of fabric 20 inches long and 11 inches wide. Cut 2 lining 19 inches long and 10-1/2 inches wide. One bag may also hold 2 tennis shoes or 2 ladies dress shoes. Gym shoes vary in size. For extra large or small shoes, measure around the shoe and adjust the size of the fabric plus seam allowances to accommodate the size of the shoe. How To Sew Sewing Technique Decorate the Shoe Bag Make the drawstring bag unique with a special design or emblem. Think about monogramming the bags or adding a sport motif applique or embroidery design prior to stitching. Place the design about 3 inches from the bottom in the center of one of the 20 x 11 pieces. After you trim the bag, place 2 bag pieces right sides together. Measure and make a mark 5 inches down from the top of the bag on both sides. Stitch 1/2 inch seam around bag starting and stopping at this 5 inch mark. Do not back stitch. For the first and last inch, use short stitches. Repeat stitching as above for the lining. Press all seams open on both bag and the lining. Press under 1/2 inch on the unstitched 5 inch bag side edges. Fuse or stitch to hold. Do the same for the lining. Turn the bag right side out. Turn the lining right side out. Machine stitch 1/2" at the bottom of the lining as if you were making a French seam. This creates a strong edge. Turn the lining wrong side out. Slip the lining down into the bag so that the top edge of the lining is 1/2 inch below the the top edge of the bag. Fold the top edge of the front of the bag down 1/2 inch over the lining. Press this fold to make a crease. Now, bring the top folded pressed edge of the bag down to meet the side edges at the bottom of the opening. Pin to hold and stitch close to this fold edge. To make the casing, stitch 1" above the previous stitching. Repeat for the back side of the bag. Insert Drawstrings Use a safety pin or bodkin to help slide the drawstrings through the casings. Slide one drawstring through the casing of the bag back and front having ends on the same side of the bag. Insert the other drawstring starting at the other side of the bag, sliding through the casing of the bag back and front having ends on that side of the bag. Tie the ends of the drawstrings together. That completes the lined drawstring shoe bag. Note: If the shoe bag is wide enough for two shoes, you may want to stitch up the center of the bag from the bottom up to (but do not include) the casing through all the layers to create separate compartments for each shoe to help keep them from scuffing. Pin before stitching and test to see if there is enough room for the shoes. If not, you may want to increase the width of your shoe bag. Sew bags any size for anything. Everybody needs a bag for something. Kids love treasure bags. Make big bags and little bags. Give drawstring bags to family and friends for Fathers' Day, birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, etc. Enjoy sewing bags! It just makes sense! ?2006 Marian Lewis - All Rights Reserved 1st Step To Sewing Success Marian Lewis is a sewing instructor and the creator of an amazing new fitting method for hard-to-fit sewing folks. In her ebook, "Common Sense Fitting Method For Hard-To-Fit Sewing Folks Who Want Great Fitting Skirts And Pants", find out step-by-step WHAT you really need, WHERE you really need it and HOW to apply that to a commercial sewing pattern. For more information, go to http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com/fitting.html Marian is also the author of other eBooks related to sewing including, "Sew A Tee Pee And Accessories For Your Tribe Of Kids" and "Classy Designer Straight Skirt" where she teaches basic and advanced sewing techniques. To learn more, go to http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com/sewing.html To discover sewing and fitting secrets to achieve sewing success, follow the link http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marian_Lewis bags - Lighten Your Load - Avoid the Turtle Syndrome Are you putting yourself at risk for a back or shoulder injury because you insist on carrying an overstuffed, overweight briefcase or purse everyday? Whether you're a road warrior or a basic commuter, if you have a difficult time determining which papers and items you need to have with you at any point, chances are you carry everything with you in your briefcase or purse at all times. We call this compulsion to bring your entire world with you wherever you go the Turtle Syndrome. It'll surely slow you down and could even hurt you physically. So it's well worth learning how to streamline that bag. Sarah on "The Turtle Syndrome" "I am a classic turtle! My husband always shakes his head in disbelief when he lifts my bag. I cringe whenever anybody attempts to be chivalrous and help me carry it because I worry they might just get a hernia for their kindness. But I never know what I'll need to work on at a given moment, so I end up bringing it all with me wherever I go. Just for grins, I weighed my bag yesterday while I was waiting to send a package at a local FedEx store. Now, I knew I was lugging around a lot of stuff, but I was in shock when it tipped the scales at 33 pounds! No wonder my back groans and my hip creaks as I chug through the streets with it. It weighs as much as a toddler!" Alicia on "The Advantages of Becoming a Techno Turtle" "There are many factors behind briefcase overload, but too much paper is probably the most common weight culprit. Many of us are afraid of being without an important document or file that they may need to reference. But in this age of technology, when you can store a gigabyte's worth of documents on a tiny flash drive and walk into any FedEx Kinkos to print a document 24/7, eliminating the paper from your bag should be a no risk proposition. Look for ways to bring your papers with you virtually." How to Lighten Your Load Go from being the tortoise to the hare with these three tips for streamlining your bag. #1: Set Bag Limits You've heard the saying "things will take up as much room as you have." Well, it's true. So start by choosing a briefcase or bag that's on the smaller side. That way, you'll have to be more selective about what goes in it. Stay away from multi-pocketed carry-alls that will be all too tempting to fill to the brim with random tidbits. Also, think about a backpack briefcase. It will save strain on your back and shoulders. #2: Harness Technology Rather than putting printed versions of files blindly into your briefcase, put them in virtually. If you're lucky enough to have a laptop for work, that should be the only thing you bring with you besides your wallet, keys and other basics. If you don't have one - store the files you need on a flash drive or better yet, email them to yourself so you can access them from any computer. Ditch bulky paper address books and store the information on your cell phone or PDA. #3: Purge the Junk Once a Week Turtle Syndrome is also the result of the accumulation of stuff in your bag over time. Once it's in there, it may never come out! Set aside time once a week to purge it of all of those loose papers, random receipts, and file folders that you no longer need to have with you. It will most likely take five minutes to sift through the rubble, so there is no reason to avoid doing it!