Bag Tag Tutorial

Yesterday I wrote a tutorial about the face washer that I made for Mr Happy to take to school. The other thing I made for him recently was a new bag tag. His bag is quite a common design and colour so a big tag helps him spot it easily among the other bags. It was also another chance to use my pinking shears.

What you’ll need:

• fabric scraps – including a narrow piece for the strap
• scrap of interfacing
• metal ring, like those used for keyrings
• usual sewing supplies

Easy steps:

1. Cut a narrow piece for the strap and fold in half, right sides out. It needs to be about 20cm long once folded. Stitch along the two long edges.
2. Put two pieces of scrap fabric together, right sides out. Cut them into a simple shape with your pinking shears.
3. Cut a piece of interfacing slightly smaller than your shape and put it between the two fabric pieces. If it is iron-on interfacing, iron it on at this point.
4. Slide the metal ring onto the strap piece, fold it in half, and tuck the two ends in between the two fabric shapes. Pin it in place while you sew.
5. Sew around your shape a couple of times about 5mm in from the edge, making sure you catch the ends of the strap in the stitching so it is held in place.
6. All done! I wrote my son’s name on the back with a Sharpie pen.

More Ideas:

• I made one for my Little Miss at the start of the year in a flower shape. I didn’t use the pinking shears but you can see it has stood up pretty well.
• I added a button for the flower centre on hers. You could add buttons for wheels or eyes, or just for fun.
• You could add extra details with puffy paint.
• You could use up scraps of ric-rac or ribbon as well.
• I didn’t use the pinking shears on the strap section, but you could. You could also add a strip of interfacing within the strap to make it sturdier.
• You could use a fancy stitch in a contrasting colour to add interest.

Any more ideas to add to these?