Ditty Bag, Candy Bag or Purse from Damaged Textiles

A Ditty Bag can be any size or style and is used to carry or store a variety of items in. This style can also be used for an old fashion reticule for everyday or to use for reenactors. They make great gift bags that will become a cherished keepsake. If you walk to work or weather different shoes during bad weather, you might want to make one of these in a size that will work for you to hold her work or dress shoes.

Supplies:

1. Damaged textile or fabric of your choice for outside of bag.
2. Fabric for lining of bag
3. 2 yds of ½” ribbon or 2 yrds of cording
4. Coordinating thread.
5. Trim for top, either coordinating piping or vintage crochet trim or lace.

This project will take from 1 ½ to 3 hrs.

If you are new to sewing don't let the length of the instructions overwhelm you. If you take it slow and step by step you will be able to make one of these in no time. And the 2nd one always goes quicker!

Lets Get Started

For this project I’m going to be using the puppies. The machine crochet edging on this dresser scarf is hand sewn on, so I am going to remove it and use it for the trim at the top of the bag.

Next I’m going to trim off the original hem. If they were left it would make the seams of the bag too bulky!

Now I have the front of my Ditty Bag. You can do the same with a crochet edged dresser scarf, but you will have to cut the crochet trim away to leave just the design that you want to work with. Before cutting, make sure you carefully inspect the area that will be the front of the bag for any hidden damage. You don’t want to have a finished bag only to find out that you had missed a spot of damage.

The next step is to determine how long bag is going to be. If you already know what you are going to put inside then you can measure to accommodate it. If you don’t, then you can let the design and width guide you. You will need at least 1" extra at top to turn under and 1" for the drawstring channel.

Next I'm using the leftover cotton pillowcases from my “Hanger Cover” project for both the back and the lining.

Cut a back the same size as the front.

Next you want to place the 2 pieces together with the right sides on the inside. Mark both sides at 2” & 2 ¾” for ribbon strings or 2” & 3” for cord ties from the top.

Now you are ready to sew both sides and bottom. You are going to skip over the areas that you marked near the top.

Be sure and backstitch when you start and stop, at each point and at the 2 bottom corners. This will reinforce all of the stress points.

The open area on both sides will be the opening for the drawstrings to pass through. Press open the side seams and sew the seams down around the opening. This forms a buttonhole. Be sure and backstitch at the start, at the end and when you turn to go back up the other side.

Next trim off the bottom corners, but not too close. You really don't want to trim your seams too close as it may cause problems when you wash the finished bag (I learned from experience).

You can use a serger or finish the seams with a zig zag stitch if you want to trim the seams down. It really isn't necessary unless you think the bag will get a lot of use or you will be hauling heavy stuff in it!

LINING YOUR BAG

Next cut your lining. Since I’m using the top part of a cotton pillowcase, 2 of my seams are already sewn.

If you are using fabric leave 1" on both sides and the bottom. You want to make absolutely sure that your lining is NOT smaller then the bag itself. If it is, it will cause problems when creating the drawstring channel.

Sew 3 seams of the lining, both sides and the bottom. (No openings for the drawstrings).

Once the lining is sewn, leave it turned wrong side out and slip it inside of the bag. This way all of the seams are on the inside and none are exposed.

MAKING THE DRAWSTRING CHANNEL

Make sure that the lining is all the way to the bottom of the bag and smooth out any wrinkles. The next step is to sew the drawstring channel. Position the presser foot at the bottom of one of the open slits on the sides and sewing slowly so that you will stay on target, sew around the bag, hitting the opposite slit at the bottom too.

Repeat for the top of the channel

Now take the bag to your ironing board and fold down the outside top so that it is out of the way. Fold over the top of the lining so that it will be in between the 2 pieces. Then unfold the top of the outside and fold under so it too is in between the lining and the bag.

This is where you apply what ever trim you have decided on. If you are going to use cording, then you insert it and pin it in place. Then sew using a zipper foot to sew it through all layers.

For this bag I am going to reuse the machine crochet that I removed from this dresser scarf.

If you are really good at sewing you can machine stitch all 3 layers together, but I decided to hand stitch them instead. It is important that you keep the outside and lining edges aligned. For hand stitching I am using a simple over lock stitch.

Once the top edge is finished you can insert your drawstrings. Cut the 2 yds of ribbon or cording in half and insert a pin at one end of one of them. Start at one side and work the ribbon all of the way around so that it exits the same slit that it started in. Tie the 2 ends together in a knot. Repeat with the other ribbon starting in the opposite slit.

Here are some suggestions based on the ditty bags pictures above, starting at the top.

1. Lilac embroidered dresser scarf, variegate crochet trim and deep purple ribbons.


2. Mauve linen dishtowel used for front and back, white roses from a damaged doily appliquéd on the front and back. Trimmed below the drawstring channel with white crochet trim and the top edged was trimmed with white piping. White cording was used for the draw strings.


3. Next is a small white cotton damask bag with very wide filet crochet sewn to the top edge, the strings are pulled through openings in the crochet.


4. Pink carnations dresser scarf trimmed both at the top and bottom edge with pink piping and pink ribbon drawstrings were used.


5. The pansy bag was a damaged pillowcase. The crochet edge is original and not removed from the pillowcase. The backing of this bag is the back of the pillowcase and the crochet edge on the bottom was left intact. A top stitched line was sewn through the front and back directly above the crochet, to form the bottom seam. More of the same crochet trim was added to the top edge and purple ribbons were used for the dawstrings.


6. The Kitten bag was a dresser scarf and the top was edged with pink piping and purple ribbons were used for the drawstrings.


7. Last is vintage poinsettia fabric, the lining is unbleached muslin, red piping and red ribbons for decoration.

I hope you enjoy making this project as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you. If you have any questions, please feel free to post them here and I will try and answer them.