Finally...bag from a pillowcase "pattern"

I had a rough weekend...working...so I didn't get around to even starting the pillowcase bag.  When I was lamenting this fact on Sunday night to Trevor, he said he thought my "tens of followers" would understand if I skipped one post.  Gee thanks, Hon.  I feel soooo much better, now.

Anyway, this is a very simple set of bags to make.  I say bags because you will be able to get two bags out of each pillowcase you cut. 

1)  Cut a standard pillow case in half the short way.

2a)  For the "bottom" half of the pillowcase:  Fold the raw edge to form a seam and sew all the way around.  (I marked 1" and folded twice...it made for a pretty small seam, but it did the job.)

2b)  For the "top" half of the pillowcase:  Sew a 1/2" or 5/8" seam across the bottom raw edge.  The top seam is already done.  YAY!

3) If desired, box the corners.  Turn the bag inside-out and make the corners into an "arrow"; mark the bottom of the equilateral triangle and sew across the line.  Make sure the same distance is used on both corners or else you will have a funny bag...

Inside of boxed corner...see the "arrow"?

How the boxed corner looks like finished.

4)  Add the straps, sewing the boxed X method--use whatever material you want for straps.  I used 24"-long pieces of 1" webbing.  Webbing can be expensive, so other possibilities would be denim from old jeans, left-over pieces of cotton or other fabric, old towels cut into strips, etc.  If you use cotton or another lighter fabric, you may want to put some heavy interfacing inside the middle.  I just stole some webbing from Trevor's industrial sewing shop...after his "tens of followers" comment, he deserved it!  Also...if you want longer or shorter straps, go for it!  It's your bag after all!

Boxed X

So...in about 30 minutes, you too could have two shopping bags!  Just FYI...the bag from the "bottom" of the pillowcase will be a couple of inches shorter than the bag from the "top" of the pillowcase. 

This same basic idea works great for beach towels, sheets, any large piece of material.  Adjust the sizes a bit, use a drawstring, and VOILA! you have gift bags...easy!

Have a super leap day, and take care of you!