Keep all your dirty washing in one stylish place, the Winifred Wash Bag, until wash day. The strap makes it easy to hang on a hook, door knob or banister rail. Fill it with your washing, sling it over your shoulder and head off to the washing machine or launderette. I have used a retro tea towel and some stunning fabric from Sew Essential on the reverse, but as always with Sew Retro's patterns it very easy to swap the tea towel to fabric. Young children would appreciate some fun fabric and a colourful cord, teens would like it to co ordinate with their bedroom. Winifred is very versatile, and would provide great storage for toys, haberdashery or your fabric stash. This is a project for your personal use only and not to be reproduced commercially.
Materials and Equipment
50 cm of Fabric – I used John Kaldor Coast Plain Fabric from Sew Essential
I pack of Eyelets - I used The Hemline Eyelet Starter kit
3 meters of cord - I used the 5 mm diameter cord
I x retro or vintage tea towel or 50 cm of matching or contrast fabric
Matching thread or contrast thread, pins, tape measure, chalk and scissors.
Tips for beginners
Seam allowance - 1 cm - or as instructed, this is the distance between the edge of the fabric and the stitch line. You will find a series of parallel lines engraved on the needle plate of your sewing machine pick the one marked with the measurement you need and keep the edge of the fabric to this guide
RS = right side of fabric WS = wrong side of fabric.
If you are using denim machine-wash your fabric first on a hot wash.
Press - using an iron press you seams flat and open.
Cutting Instructions if you are using a Tea Towel.
I x tea towel
1 x in main fabric 47.5 cm x 6 cm
1 x in main fabric 47.5 cm x 71 cm
Cutting Instructions if you are NOT using a tea towel
2 x main fabric 47.5 cm x 71 cm
Cut out the fabric using the measurements as given above.
Neaten the raw edges using an over locker or a zig zag stitch. You will not need to neaten the edges of the tea towel as they are already neatened!
**With RS facing pin the short strip of fabric that measures 47.5 cm x 6 cm to the top of your tea towel. Pin the two pieces of fabric together as shown. Using a 0.5 cm seam allowance, stitch the short strip to the top the tea towel. Press you seam flat and open**. Omit **to ** if you are NOT using a Tea Towel
Measure down from the top of the tea towel (or the top of your fabric) for 10 cm as shown. Mark with a pin or chalk
Repeat on the opposite side, and again on the fabric that you are using for the back.
With right sides facing, pin the back to the front of the tea towel RS together (or the front of your fabric), starting 10 cm from the top and ending 10 cm from the top as shown.
Using a 1 cm seam allowance stitch the 3 seams that you have pinned, securing the stitching at the beginning and end of the sewing. When you reach the end of the first seam, leave the needle in your work, lift up the foot and pivot the work around until you are ready to sew a 1 cm seam again.
Press the side seams open and flat as shown.
Press the top of the wash bag side seam open for 1 cm as shown, repeat on the opposite side.
Repeat on the remaining side.Pin into place.
Using a 0.75 cm seam allowance, starting at the top of the wash bag stitch the seam into place for 10 cm, stitch across the bottom of the seam, then up the remaining side. Repeat on the opposite side of the wash bag, as shown.
*Fold the top of the wash bag over for 5.25 cm as shown, pin into place.
Using a 1.5 cm seam allowance machine stitch across the front top of the bag as shown.
Stitch another seam 1 cm below the row of stitching you have just made *. Repeat from * to * on the back of the bag
Turn the bag to the RS and press.
With the RS of the bag facing you make an eyelet on the left-hand side following the manufactures instructions.
Lay the bag with the RS facing you and insert a small safety pin into one end of the cord, thread the cord through the channel you made.Starting from the right hand side, across the front,
down the side of the bag and through the eyelet, and then back through the remain channel, on the back of the bag.
Knot the cord together, leaving the ends hanging. Knot each end individual as shown.
Awesome !! you’re a star, your wash bag is finished.
