Whether you go functional or decorative, these make an easy (and fun!) way to get organized.
Featured designs: Outside Fabric: bebe_kitten by holli_zollinger Lining Fabric: Bebe_kitten_black by holli_zollinger
Tablecloth: Gold paint blobs on cream by Jenlats
Materials
- 2 fat quarters of fabric – We recommend Celosia Velvet or Dogwood Denim
- We’re using Swallow Bird Flying on Pink by mayacoa
- Straight pins
- 1 9” zipper
- Thread
- Sewing machine
- Iron
1. Cut out two 10” x 7” rectangles from each of your fat quarters. Two will be used as the outer fabric and two for the lining.
2. To install your zipper, place one of the outer fabric pieces right side up. With the wrong side of the zipper facing up, align it with the top raw edge of the fabric.
3. Place one of your lining pieces wrong side up on top of the zipper, sandwiching the zipper in between. Stitch the zipper into place with a ¼” seam allowance.
Pro Tip: Unzip your zipper halfway before stitching into place. When you reach the zipper pull, lift your machine’s foot (with the needle down) and move the pull to a different area, so that it doesn’t interfere with your sewing.
4. Repeat the two steps above with your remaining pouch pieces to attach the other side of your zipper. Unzip the zipper halfway.
Pro Tip: Press and edgestitch on either side of the zipper for a neat, polished look.
5. On either side of the zipper, refold the pieces to match the outer fabrics together and the lining fabrics together so that the right sides of each are facing.
6. Pin all the way around your rectangle, taking care to match your outer fabrics at the open ends of the zipper, and leaving a 3” gap at the bottom of your lining fabrics for turning.
Pro Tip: Fold the zipper teeth toward the lining as you pin. This is the key to not having a pinched-looking zipper.
7. Stitch the edge of your pouch with a ½” seam allowance, beginning at the bottom of your lining fabrics and working your way around.
8. Trim excess fabric at the corners, and turn the pouch right side out through the opening in your lining. Gently push out the pouch corners for a clean finish.
9. Pin the gap in your lining fabrics closed by tucking the raw edges neatly toward the wrong side of the pouch. Edgestitch into place. Tuck your lining into your outer fabric, and press to finish.
Zip, zip hooray! Once you’re done with your pouch, zip on over to your favorite social channel to share your make with #spoonflower.
Zip, zip hooray! See our top picks for your next zipper pouch project.
I don’t get this bag. I followed your directions, but it isn’t coming out right. Am I supposed to leave a space on both sides of lining pieces to turn?
Hi Julie,
If you’re referring to the step right before flipping the whole pouch inside out, you’ll need to leave just one space at the bottom of the lining to pull everything through. Skip to minute 3:30 in the video at the very top of the post for a visual.
This is a bit of an older tutorial compared to other recent sewing tutorials we’ve published to the Spoonflower Blog. Thanks to your feedback and others, we will be soon updating this post with clearer instructions and a format that matches our more recent blog posts. Stay tuned!
Crafty regards,
Anna
Spoonflower
When you said to fold the zipper teeth towards the lining when sewing around the edges, does that mean the underside or the top of the zipper? Thank you.
Hi Rochelle,
Great question! Fold the zipper to where the teeth are facing the bottom, aka towards the lining half of the pouch. The zipper itself should look like it’s folded right sides (top sides of the zipper) together with the teeth edges matched up.
Crafty regards,
Anna
Spoonflower
I would love the ability to save a pdf version of the projects you post so I can access the instructions away from the computer. I like to send them to my Kindle to follow while sewing. Thank you for these projects.
Hi Mary,
Thanks for the suggestion! While we aren’t able to offer a PDF version at this time, we’ll certainly keep it in mind for the future.
This is a great tutorial! Don’t understand how anyone can find any fault in your instructions as they are clear a s a bell. Can’t wait to order some material and get sewing! Thank you for a great video and great products!
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I cannot find Faux Suede anymore among fabric options. Is it discontinued, or is it just temporarily unavailable?
Hi Simona,
The Faux Suede has been retired but the Celosia Velvet is a great alternative for this zipper pouch!
-Meredith from Spoonflower
What size is the finished product?
Hi Joan,
This zipper pouch is approximately 8.5 x 6.5″ tall.
What if you don’t have a zipper foot for the sewing machine, can the normal foot work too?
Hi Samina,
Great question! While we do recommend using a zipper foot when attaching a zipper it is possible to insert a zipper without one.
Thanks,
Meredith from Spoonflower
Where’s the best place to get zippers? Especially in pretty colors to match.
Hi Deidre,
Your local craft store is a great place to start. We’ve also had a lot of luck on Etsy including this shop.
Which type of fabric would you advise for this project? I would like something that would take a little abuse. I plan to line it with PUL.
Hi Peggy,
Any of our upholstery weight fabrics would be great if you’re looking for something sturdy. The Dogwood Denim, Faux Suede, Velvet or Eco Canvas would be great options. You could also try out lightweight cotton twill or linen cotton canvas. You can also take a closer look at all of our fabrics here.
Might be nice to make a smaller one with long shoulder strap to carry shopping for cash or credit card. Nice quick, informative tutorial.
Thank you for sharing. Loved the tutorial.
For future tutorials: use brighter colors for thread: that way we can see where the stitches go. And place a photograph of both sides (especially with the first picture), that helps a lot when you’re handling the pieces yourself.
Thanks so much for the suggestion!
That was the fastest tutorial ever on making a pouch!! Thank you for sharing!
plz offer a tutorial with a more polished zipper insertion,,,would love to see that!
Thanks for the suggestion, Andrea! We’ll be sure to keep this in mind for upcoming projects.
Newby here… video says 9″ zipper but written instructions say 10″ – which one should I use? Or both are ok?
Hi Nicole,
Either a 9″ or 10″ will work!
This is a great tutorial but has errors. The instructions say 10″ zipper and the tutorial says 9″ there is also a comment saying one of the fabrics placed different. Before I go spend allot of money on zippers I need to know what to use
Hi Cynthia,
We apologize for the confusion! A 9″ zipper is needed for this project but if you had a 10″ zipper, you could easily trim it down prior to sewing the zipper in place. I hope that helps, but if you have any more questions don’t hesitate to ask! – Meredith
Hi, the pattern says lining should be placed wrong side down. The video says wrong side up. I think it should be wrong side up for the lining piece on top. Very cute tutorial! I love Sprout & Spoonflower!
Hi Susan,
Good catch! The fabric should be wrong side up and we’ve updated the tutorial.