Celebrate Earth Day and National Serger Month while sewing our Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve! Stitch this quick serger project and store plastic shopping bags in this convenient sleeve – that is both a bag holder and bag dispenser!
Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve Sewing Tutorial by Team NZP
Approximate Finished Size 6″ W x 20″ Long
All seam allowances are 1/4″, unless otherwise noted.
The NZP Team is designing projects and patterns to be sewn with Nancy Zieman’s innovative sewing techniques. Within each of our blog sewing tutorials and sewing patterns, we give you construction tips and specific sewing hints, along with tool tips to make sewing fun and enjoyable – even for beginners. You’ll find that in a matter of minutes, you can sew fun accessories – like our Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve!
Visit Shopnzp.com for timesaving tools and sewing supplies to complete your sewing projects!
Fabric and Supplies:
- 5/8 yd. Cotton Quilting Fabric makes three! Or, one Fat Quarter makes one.
- 1/2 yd. 1/4″ Elastic
- Clover’s Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin
- Clover’s 6-in-1 Stick ‘n Stitch Seam Guide
- Clover’s Hot Ruler
- Clover’s 45mm Rotary Cutter, Cutting Mat, & Ruler
- Clover’s I Sew For Fun Heart Shaped Straight Pins
- Clover’s 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge
- Clover’s Supersize 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge
- Clover’s 5-1/8″ Bordeaux Ultimate Shears
- Erasable Gel Pen
- Schmetz Universal Size 80 Needle
- Schmetz ELx 705 Serger Needles Size 80/12
- Iron
- June Tailor’s Starch Savvy
- 4-Thread Serger Sewing Machine, such as our bernette 64 AIRLOCK Overlocker Serger
- Coordinating Sewing Machine Thread
- 4 Spools Coordinating Serger Cone Thread
Prepare & Cut Fabric
Prepare your fabrics! Pre-treat fabric by steaming and pressing, then, stabilize fabrics for the sewing process by pressing and starching fabrics with June Tailor’s Starch Savvy. Press and starch, press and starch.
- Cut two 7″ x 22-1/2″Cotton Fabric rectangles.
Stitch Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve
- Set serger overlocker machine for a 4-thread serger overlock stitch. Insert new Schmetz ELx 705 Serger Needles Size 80/12 and thread machine with four Coordinating Serger Cone Threads.
- Serge along short ends and opposing long edges, on both fabric rectangles as shown.
- Using Clover’s Hot Ruler, press under 1″ along all four short ends.
- Unfold pressed under short ends and place fabric rectangles right sides together, aligning long serged edges. Pin.
- Using Clover’s 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge, measure and mark 1″ opening along serged seam – at 1″ inside short ends. Repeat marking 1″ opening at opposite short ends at 1″ inside ends.
The 1″ marked openings are “no-sew zones” and will later form the casings for the elastic!
- Insert a Schmetz Universal Size 80 Sewing Machine Needle in sewing machine. Stitch serged long edges together with 1/4″ seam allowance. Be sure to leave both 1″ marked openings un-stitched! Press seam open.
- Re-press under 1″ along both short ends.
- Using Clover’s 6-in-1 Stick ‘n Stitch Seam Guide on sewing machine, topstitch one short end at 3/4″ inside folded edge – this creates the casing for the elastic! Be sure the distance between the stitching line and folded edge is 3/4″. Repeat 3/4″ topstitching on opposite short end.
- Using Clover’s Supersize 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge and Erasable Gel Pen, mark a 7″ length of elastic– at one inch in from one end – and attach Clover’s Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin within the first 1″ marking. Do not cut the elastic, yet!
- Insert Clover’s Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin into one open end – of one 3/4″ elastic casing.
- Advance elastic into casing, stopping when the 7″ marking on the elastic aligns with the fabric edge – of elastic casing opening.
- At sewing machine, stitch casing opening closed–catching elastic end in stitching. Cut elastic at fabric edge.
- Continue advancing elastic into casing, stopping when the 1″ marking on the elastic aligns with the opposite elastic casing opening.
- At sewing machine, stitch opposite casing opening closed–catching elastic end in stitching. Cut elastic at fabric edge.
- At sewing machine, repeat steps above on opposite short end elastic casing.
- Both short ends with be gathered by the elastic.
- Align bag right sides together, and serge remaining un-sewn long seam.
- Turn Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve right side out.
- Fill with reusable shopping bags.
- Hang vertically on the inside of a closet door with one repositional sticky hook. Hang from hook with the elastic loop exposed at seam opening – remember the two “no-sew” zones? The elastic hanging loops are accessible through the seam openings – made possible by the “no-sew” zones
- Or hang horizontally on a side wall of under-sink cabinet with two repositional sticky hooks!
Celebrate National Serger Month and Celebrate Earth Day, and mindfully and conveniently reuse plastic shopping bags with our NEW! Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve! Our New! Shopping Bag Storage Sleeve is such a fast and fun sewing project, you’ll be sewing several in as little as one-hour! 5/8 yard Cotton Quilting Fabric makes three Shopping Bag Storage Sleeves!
Shopping Bag Storage Sleeves Sewing Tutorial Fabric and Supplies:
- 5/8 yd. Cotton Quilting Fabric makes three! Or, one Fat Quarter makes one.
- 1/2 yd. 1/4″ Elastic
- Clover’s Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin
- Clover’s 6-in-1 Stick ‘n Stitch Seam Guide
- Clover’s Hot Ruler
- Clover’s 45mm Rotary Cutter, Cutting Mat, & Ruler
- Clover’s I Sew For Fun Heart Shaped Straight Pins
- Clover’s 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge
- Clover’s Supersize 5-in-1 Sliding Gauge
- Clover’s 5-1/8″ Bordeaux Ultimate Shears
- Erasable Gel Pen
- Schmetz Universal Size 80 Needle
- Schmetz ELx 705 Serger Needles Size 80/12
- Iron
- June Tailor’s Starch Savvy
- 4-Thread Serger Sewing Machine, such as our bernette 64 AIRLOCK Overlocker Serger
- Coordinating Sewing Machine Thread
- Coordinating Serger Cone Thread
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Wear as a loop scarf!
Or, wear twisted!
Our Exclusive Serger Techniques Pouch –designed by Pam Mahshie– showcases various decorative serger overlock stitches and features a “no-sew’ zipper technique! Serger Techniques Pouch front features center puffing panel surrounded by piping and serger pintucks. Serger Techniques Pouch back (other front) features a plaid design stitched with three different chainstitches! Learn six different serger overlock stitches while completing our Serger Techniques Pouch: 4-Thread Overlock, 3-Thread Narrow Seam, Flat Lock, Chainstitch, Narrow Coverstitch, and Wide Coverstitch!
Shop Patterns by Team NZP at ShopNZP.com
Shop Schmetz Sewing Machine Needles at ShopNZP.com!
bernette b64 AIRLOCK Overlocker at ShopNZP.com!
Plan your visit! Make memories and create a new tradition while engaging in our annual SEW•QUILT•CREATE Weekend events plus shopping, dining, and more! View and/or print our Map with Event Locations, Restaurants, and Lodging in the Beaver Dam Downtown Fine Arts District Area Map.
For a chance to be the random winner a Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin from Clover, please leave a comment sharing where you’ll use your Shopping Bag Storage Sleeves! Kitchen, Bathroom, RV, or?
Clover will give away one Clip ‘n Glide Bodkin to one US resident in the 48 contiguous states. Winner must reply within 30 days to the official giveaway announcement email message – sent from Nancy Zieman Productions. Email Team NZP at info@ziemanproductions.com.
Happy Serging!
Team Nancy Zieman
Nancy Zieman Productions. LLC.
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