Craft yourself some cute storage by sewing this zippered pouch

Getting organized: it can be way more easily said than done. I often find that I need to motivate myself to straighten up by getting organizational tools that are interesting in some way—bins that have flowers on them, or little racks where I can arrange my spools of thread in a pretty pattern. Or, like this week’s craft, zippered pouches made out of fun fabric!

This pouch serves as cute storage for paper crafting supplies, embroidery floss or any small items you have around. With some slight adjustments to the size and a little padding, you could even tweak this template to make a case for a laptop or tablet.

Materials:

• Colorful, patterned fabric
• Lining fabric in a matching color
• Thread in a matching color
• 14-inch zipper in a matching color
• Basic sewing needle
• Scissors
• Measuring tape
• Straight pins
• Ballpoint pen
• Iron and ironing board
• Optional: sewing machine

Craft away:

• Measure one rectangle onto each fabric, 21-inches long by 15-inches wide. Cut both rectangles out.
• Fold both rectangles in half, short end to short end, with right sides facing. Pin the two sides perpendicular to the fold, leaving the top open.

• Stitch the pinned sides of each rectangle together using the needle and thread or a sewing machine. Keep your stitches 1/2-inch from the edge of the fabric.
• Iron the folds open on both pieces.
• Flip the outer piece right side out. Slide the lining piece inside the outer piece, and align the seams. Pin the seams in place.
• Using the needle and thread, stitch the two pieces together. Keep your stitches in the seams you’ve already sewn to hide your work.

• Fold the unstitched edge of the outer fabric in 1/2-inch, and iron the fold to set it in place.
• Fold the unstitched edge of the lining fabric out 1/2-inch, and iron the fold to set it in place. You should now have folds facing each other running along the top of the pouch.
• Pin the zipper between these two folds, with the teeth facing up. Make sure the fabric does not cover the teeth.

• Use the needle and thread or a sewing machine to stitch the zipper in place (you’ll need to unzip the zipper to attach it).
• You’re finished! Fill your cute new pouch with whatever you want, and zip it shut.