Getting Started on the Sling Bag
Okay, so I decided I needed a new bag. Not just any bag, but a sling bag. Something easy to carry, you know? Just throw it on and go. My old one was falling apart, honestly.
First thing, I had to figure out what I wanted it to look like. Spent some time sketching, nothing fancy, just getting the basic shape down. Then, the hunt for materials began. I went digging through my fabric stash. Found this really sturdy canvas material I bought ages ago and totally forgot about. Perfect. Also needed a zipper, some webbing for the strap, and one of those plastic buckle clips.
Cutting and Prepping
Next up, cutting. This is always the part where I tell myself, “measure twice, cut once,” but sometimes I still mess up. Laid the canvas out flat on my big table. Used my sketches and some rough paper patterns I made to trace the shapes onto the fabric. Got the main body pieces, a couple of pocket pieces for the inside, and the bits for the strap tabs.
- Main front and back panels
- A gusset piece for the sides and bottom (this gives it depth)
- Inner pocket lining
- Tabs to hold the strap rings
Cutting took a while. Gotta be precise, otherwise things don’t line up later when sewing. Also cut the webbing for the strap itself. Made it extra long so I could adjust it later.
Sewing It All Together
Alright, sewing machine time. Threaded it up with some strong thread. Started with the easy stuff: sewing the inner pocket pieces together and attaching them to one of the main lining panels. Then, tackled the zipper. Zippers can be tricky, but I took it slow, pinning it carefully to the top edges of the main fabric panels before stitching.
Putting the main bag together was next. Sewed the gusset piece to the front panel, right sides facing each other. This creates the main shape. Did the same for the back panel. It started looking like a bag! Before closing it all up, I remembered the little fabric tabs for the strap. Stitched those securely into the side seams where I wanted the strap to attach. Had to reinforce those stitches quite a bit – don’t want the strap ripping off.
Big step: Sewing the lining and the outer shell together. Left a gap in the lining seam, pulled the whole bag right-side-out through that hole. It’s like magic, watching it turn into a proper bag. Then, hand-stitched the opening in the lining closed.
Finishing Touches and The Strap
The bag body was done. Now for the strap. Fed the webbing through the buckle clip pieces. Attached one end of the webbing strap to one of the fabric tabs on the bag, looping it through a D-ring first. Did the same on the other side, making sure the adjustable part of the buckle was set up right. This took some fiddling to get the length comfortable.
Trimmed all the loose threads, gave it a quick press with the iron (careful around the plastic buckle!). Stood back and looked. Yeah, not bad. A proper sling bag, made by me.
Done! Ready to Use
So, that’s how I made my sling bag. Took a good afternoon. Wasn’t perfect, few wobbly stitches here and there if you look close. But it feels solid. Threw my keys, wallet, and phone in. Slung it over my shoulder. Yep, works great. Way better than that old worn-out thing I was using.
