We are more than halfway to Halloween and I for one, cannot be more excited. Halloween has to be our family's favorite holiday and celebrate it all month long; going to trunk-or-treats, painting pumpkins, and decorating our home inside and out. So much so, we attended Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party in Walt Disney World and this event has put our love for Halloween over the top. We've attended 2 parties in the past and actually have one planned later this year to attend again.
With our trip coming up, I thought my first tutorial on the blog should be the Halloween Totes that I made our kids when we went to MNSSP a few years ago, especially since I have to make a new one for our new addition. This is going to be his first Halloween party at Disney and I am so excited for him to experience the magic.
Now, if you are planning on going to MNSSP a Halloween tote is not needed, but Disney allows you to bring your own trick-or-treat bag during the MNSSP when stopping at the candy stations throughout the night - no tricks here, only treats! The totes are a great size for collecting candy and when I tell you our kiddos filled them to the brim, my husband and I were struggling to carry them the rest of the night, hehe!
The Halloween tote is very beginner friendly and no pattern pieces needed, just measurements! I came up with the measurements because of the print I was using, but the dimensions can be easily altered to accommodate your prints and needs!
Let's get started :)
Supplies:
- Scissors/Rotary Cutter
- Fabric - enough for front panel, back panel, and straps (cotton fabric preferred, but can use knit fabric)
- Waterproof Canvas (Optional for lining, cotton fabric can be used alternatively)
- Webbing (optional if you don't want to make your own straps)
- Iron
- SF101 Interfacing - enough to cover the wrong side of fabric
- Fabric Clips/Pins - used to secure fabric while sewing
- Coordinating thread
- Ruler
- Sewing Machine
Tote Pieces (Dimensions):
- 18"x15" - 4 (front panel, back panel, and lining pieces)
- 4"x18" - 2 (straps; if using webbing use a 1" width at 18")
- These dimensions are intended for a child to be holding the bag, if you are making one for an adult you may want to make the straps longer to allow a bigger arm hole to comfortably hold the bag on your shoulder.
Sewing Directions:
- Firstly, cut out all of your pieces and adhere the interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric.
- Use your iron to help create sewing guidelines on your strap pieces. To do this you will first iron the straps in half and then open the strap and fold each side to the center line you just created and iron. Do this for your second strap as well. Ironing the folds will allow your strap easily into a 1" width to sew.
- Sew the straps starting where the open is and continue on 3 sides (sides and top) using a 1/4" seam allowance. Do this for both straps and set aside. *Remember to always backstitch when you start sewing!*
- Now take your front panel and back panel and have them facing right sides together. Pin/clip the sides and bottom and sew along those three sides with a 1/4" seam allowance.
- Repeat step 4 with your lining pieces, placing them right sides together and sewing the sides and bottom with a 3/8" seam allowance. *In my video I later open up the bottom a few inches to birth the bag. You can certainly leave a 3" open while sewing the lining pieces to avoid doing this later. This is all on preference.*
- To create a boxed bottom we'll create boxed corners on both the outside and inside panels before putting them together. Grab one set of the panels first and your ruler. Take the ruler and place it on your sewing seams and measure out a square that is 1.5"x1.5". Do this to both corners and repeat on your second set of panels.
- Cut out your square that you just made on your panels. Open the area you cut and pull the fabric to create a straight seam and clip in place. You may need to put your two index fingers in the opening and pull outwards to help the seam to be straight. Don't be afraid to maneuver the fabric to get it how you need before clipping.
- Once clipped, bring your outside panels back to the sewing machine and sew each corner with a 1/4" seam allowance, and make sure you backstitch when you start and end.
- Place the lining aside and work with the outside panel and the straps. Take one strap at a time and clip/pin it to the right side of the fabric. To do this, I first found the center of my pieces and from there found the center within those halves. This came out to be roughly 4.5" from the sewing line inward, if you would prefer an actual measurement.
- Pin/clip the straps where you have marked previously. Ensure that your strap is straight and place the ends along the top edge of the panel. Repeat on second strap.
- Sew the straps in place using a 1/8" seam allowance. I knew my kids would be using these bags and may be a little rough with them, so I sewed/backstitched over the area multiple times to ensure they were durable for them to use.
- If you did not leave an opening in your inside/lining panels when you sewed them together in step 5, you can now use your seam ripper to open a 3" opening. You can skip this step if you previously left an opening.
- Place the outside panels inside the inside panels right sides together. Make sure your straps are inside and match up your side seams and clip/pin all along the top of the bag.
- Homestretch! Place the bag on your sewing machine and sew all along the top of the bag using a 1/4" seam allowance.
- At the bottom opening, pull your bag right side out. Take the lining piece out and clip the opening closed and sew with a 1/8" seam allowance. You will need to use your fingers like you did previously when sewing the box corners to help the seam lie flat.
- Push the lining back inside the bag and push put all the corners to ensure the lining is filling out the bag. At the top of the bag use clips to help hold the fabric down to do one final sew. You are going to sew all along the outside of the bag and ensure the handles are pulled up and out of the way. Go along the bag using a 1/8" seam allowance. Clean up any lose or long threads and enjoy your new Halloween Tote Bag!
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