Lazies, I recently made this fun and festive tote for my friend Kim in celebration of her youngest son becoming an Eagle Scout. I used Kim’s den mother uniform, put my thinking cap on and went about crafting this bag. I didn’t have a plan, but when I saw the fabulous pockets on those sturdy uniform pants, I had a solid starting point. Imagine the possibilities in recycling one of your sentimental articles of clothing into a treasured keepsake.
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Kim’s Scout bag. Size: 12? wide by 11? tall by 4? deep.
Here’s what I started with: Kim’s den mother uniform.
The pants were a bounty of good things, waiting to go to work as a purse. I used the front and back pockets to make the front and back of the bag. I cut the pants just below the crotch, then trimmed near the side and middle seams to make the largest, flat pieces possible.
I added some green fabric to fill in around the pocket openings to square-up the front pocket pieces and make them large enough for this project.
The back pockets were just too cute! I added some green fabric above the pockets to make the piece the size I needed.
I added the badges from Kim’s shirt to the front and back of the bag, including her troop and den numbers. I must say, sewing badges on by hand is no picnic. I hope someone has come up with a quick way to add these beauties. Sewing by hand is not Lazy!
Now, let me tell you, the inside of the bag was an adventure. I turned the pant’s fly front zip sideways, or horizontal, and built a pocket around it for the lining. I added a shirt breast pocket on top of that.
I used extra fabric from a pant’s leg to make a band of pockets for the other side of the lining. I used the shirt back for the lining. Zipper pulls were made using some leather strips and charms given to Kim for each scouting event in which she participated.
The bag ended up larger than I expected and fits our size C Bag-E-Bottom. I used leftover Boy Scout fabric to make a sleeve to hold the bottom.
Finally, Kim’s height provided lots of pant leg length to make long shoulder straps for her bag. Just a couple more views.
Kim loves her bag. When I gave Kim this bag, she investigated every nook and cranny, tried to discern where each part of the bag came from, then immediately moved into the purse. What special garment do you have tucked away, waiting to be transformed into a new favorite?
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Enjoy!
Joan
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