How to Sew a Grocery Bag for a Halloween Loot Bag

Halloween loot bags require minimal sewing skills.

Fabric grocery bags are becoming commonplace as consumers get hip to using them as a way to cut down on wasteful, environmentally hazardous plastic products. Created with appropriate fabric, these grocery bags can double as Halloween loot bags for trick-or-treaters. Sewn grocery bags require little in the way of skills and materials, making them a viable project for beginning sewers. You need only know how to sew a straight line in order to make them. Decorate them in the Halloween motif.

Things You'll Need

• Washer
• Dryer
• Cotton fabric
• Measuring tape
• Scissors
• Tailor's chalk
• Iron
• Sewing machine
• Appliques
• Embellishments
• Fabric Paint

Instructions

1. Wash and dry your fabric according to the manufacturer's instructions. This evens out the weave of the fabric and preshrinks it.

2. Fold your fabric in half. Measure out an 18-by-20 inch rectangle on the fabric. Mark the boundaries of the rectangle using tailor's chalk. Mark an 18-by-4 inch rectangle on the fabric.

3. Cut along the marked boundaries of the 18-by-20 inch rectangle. Cut through both layers of fabric to produce two squares. These are the sides of the grocery bag. Cut through both layers of fabric along the 18-by4-inch rectangle. This creates two handles for the grocery bag.

4. Position one 18-by-4 inch rectangle on your work surface with the unprinted side facing upward.

5. Fold one of the longer edges of the rectangle 1 inch from the side towards the center. Fold the opposite side of the rectangle in to the center 2 inches from the side. Press along the folds with an iron.

6. Fold the side of the rectangle with the 1 inch fold over, so it overlaps the raw edge of the opposite fold.

7. Stitch the folds in place. Repeat the folding, pressing and sewing procedure for the second 18-by-4 inch rectangle. Sew over the seam a second time for added strength.

8. Lay one of the 18-by-20 inch rectangles of fabric on your work surface with the wrong side facing upward. Create a 1 inch fold along one of the 18 inch sides of the fabric, so that 1 inch of the right side of the fabric is showing. Press in place with an iron.

9. Position one of the handles on the fold, with the right, or unseamed, side of the handle facing upward. Position the straps 4 inches from either of the 20 inch sides of the rectangle.

10. Create a 2 inch fold on the larger rectangle, sandwiching the handles in place. Press and sew. Do the same for the other rectangle and handle.

11. Fold the handles up over the hemmed edge of the larger rectangles. Sew the handles in place using a box and cross configuration -- this lends added strength to the stress point created by the handles. Reinforce the area by stitching a duplicate box and cross pattern over the initial attachment.

12. Place the two sides of the bag together with the right sides facing outward. Make sure the handles are at the top of the grocery bag.

13. Sew along both 20 inch sides of the grocery bag and the 18 inch side that does not have a handle attached (the bottom of the bag). Sew approximately 1/4 inch from all sides.

14. Fold the loot bag inside out. Create another seam 1/4 inch from all sides along the same three sides of the bag that were previously sewn.

15. Turn the Halloween loot bag right-side out. Cut all loose threads. Embellish using Halloween-appropriate charms or appliques. Use glow-in-the-dark fabric paint to write your child's name on the bag or draw Halloween motifs -- such as ghosts, pumpkins or witches.

References

• "Sewing for Dummies"; Jan Saunders Maresh; 2010
• "New Complete Guide to Sewing"; Reader's Digest; 2002
• The Environmental Literacy Council: Paper or Plastic
• "Sew What! Bags"; Lexi Barnes; 2009