Completed: A birthday backpack

200128_backpack1My daughter turned 3 years old and I wanted to give her a backpack designed and made by me. It was ages ago since I made a proper bag and I loved (almost) every minute of making it.

200128_backpack3

I designed a simple bag with a main compartment with an O-type zipper (this was really hard to find so I am happy I found one in a somewhat matching colour) and two outside pockets. One that closes with a zipper and one that is a bit more open that closes with a flap with a snap. I really had to restrain myself from adding more pockets and fancy features. The bag is not very large since the intended recipient is still less than 1 meter tall so there is not really a lot of room to add extra stuff. A 3 year old also doesn’t need all those bells and whistles and they would have added extra weight which is not ideal when you want your child to carry her own bag.

200128_backpack7

Years ago I read a blog post in which cork fabric was used to make a bag and I have ever since wanted to try that stuff. It sounded like a strong and durable material which is great for anything made for a toddler. It is also available with silver stuff in it which is great when your toddler likes anything with glitter.

200128_backpack4

Not too shabby pattern matching on the top. I love the O-type zipper with 2 zipper pulls.

I paired it with a green Art Gallery fabric with yellow and white flowers, yellow quilting fabric for some accents, a yellow zipper, green and yellow webbing for the straps and some adjustable sliders. The print fabric was also used for the lining. On the outside the print fabric was interfaced with fusible Decovil 1 light which gives it a bit of a leathery stiffness. The front and back cork fabric were interfaced with fusible vlieseline/vilene S320, but that may not have been absolutely necessary because the fabric itself is already quite firm. Anyway, I hoped the bag would stand up by itself and it does.

200128_backpack5

back before assembly

I sewed the outer and inner pattern pieces at the same time and finished the seam allowances on the inside with bias binding. On the front and back this turned out to be much easier than I expected. On the bottom this was quite possibly the hardest thing I have ever sewn. I was super glad that I now have a Janome Horizon MC9400 because I am not sure the 3160 would have been able to handle all the bulk in the corners. In the end I managed to get it done with a lot of patience and I am happy this binding is located in a place that nobody will ever take a closer look at. If I ever make another backpack I think I’ll have to create a different type of bottom to make the assembly a bit easier.

200128_backpack6

Attaching the binding to the front piece and attaching the bottom to the main bag. I am not sure why I ever thought 10 wonder clips would be sufficient for this project…

My daughter loves her new backpack and I hope she will be able to use it for years to come.

200128_backpack2

And now I really want to make another bag for myself…

January 29, 2020

Emmely Treffers

About Emmely

I am a sewing enthusiast from the Netherlands. I live in the Leiden area with my husband and two daughters and I am currently working as a senior researcher in molecular virology. With my quilting patterns and sewing blog I want to infect as many people as possible with my love for sewing.

read more

You may also like...

Completed: Triangle Love quilt

Completed: Triangle Love quilt

If you have been following my quilting journey for a while, it will come as no surprise that I love to use triangles....

Completed: Don’t waste thread

Completed: Don’t waste thread

During the Christmas break of 2021/2022 I made a couple of small whole cloth quilts. I wanted a project that I could...

7 Comments

  1. katechiconi

    Eenig en mooi. Clever thing! I bet she loves it and it gets used until it falls apart.

    Reply
    • Emmely

      Dank je! We use it to carry her stuff to daycare and she proudly shows it to anyone who’ll have a look. I am enjoying the age that anything made by mum is still cool. 😉

      Reply
  2. marissthequilter

    This looks like a labour of love to me, with all that intricate sewing. It is lovely

    Reply
    • Emmely

      Thank you! It certainly was and it was completely worth it just to see how happy my daughter is with her bag.

      Reply
  3. silver

    Beautiful. So glad she loves it I’m lucky my 14 yr old daughter still loves anything I make her. I made her a skirt for Christmas she loves and had to turn a dress I made her into a skirt coz she didn’t want to relinquish it but bodice no longer fit and she still wears the skirt now. She wears it with a flouncy petticoat so it looks extra bouncy lol

    Reply
    • Emmely

      Thank you! At 14 they can be very opinionated so I hope I’ll be as lucky as you when my daughters become teenagers.

      Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.