Saturday, January 28, 2012
Preschooler Backpack
When Logan started preschool, I made him a backpack. He chose all the fabric and notions and he still loves that backpack. Although Myra hasn't started preschool yet, she insists on taking a bag whenever we take Logan to school. So, even she won't start until next school year, I made her backpack already.
I let her raid the stash for fabrics, and she chose these two pink and brown cotton prints. We hit the store for notions, but the pinks that were available didn't match, so we went with brown. And I love it. I also added a front pocket - coloring book sized - with her name appliqued in brown. I used the same pattern pieces as I had for Logan's, which I had enlarged to accommodate a folder or binder for school.
Here is the back, with straps and hanging loop. I love how professionally this pattern comes together. And I am so pleased that we were able to find nylon strapping that was a perfect match to both the piping and the accent fabric. So awesome!
For structure, I interfaced the bag out fabric with craft fuse, which is also what I used on Logan's backpack and it has really held up well. It is kind of stiff and papery at first, but softens nicely with wear. The bottom of the bag is quilted, and the accent fabric is a densely woven poplin, so it should be nice and sturdy.
In the years since I made Logan's, Rae has added instructions for lining the bag, which I did. It looks so nice on the inside, and I imagine it will wear even better than Logan's (which is holding up really well). She can take it to college. :)
I finished it in the morning before Myra got up, so of course, she had to try it out as soon as she got out of bed. Pardon the morning hair and PJs. She loves it.
And so does Duncan. Looks like I need to make a little one for my little guy. How cute is that kid??
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13 comments:
It's so pretty in brown and pink! I think Duncan definitely needs one now...:)
I love the combination of pink and brown---although I haven't been able to coax my kids into it very often (even back when they still wore pink...).
You know, I really wish I'd been up to something like this when Tyo started preschool. I really, really hate the quality of the little kids' backpacks they make---I swear we went through two a year for YEARS. Tyo finally has a denim one she likes that seems pretty sturdy (and came from the thrift store!), but Syo's is one of the near-disposable kind, and I'm just waiting for the zipper to give out. :P
Good job! :)
That looks really great! I just bought a bag pattern and hope to try soon. Myra has good colour sense too! And that little one.. what a doll.
Oh, adorable on the tiny guy! The Oliver + S "Little Things to Sew" book has a nice little backpack pattern in it, looks like it might work out to be a decent size for your small guy. -- Sarvi
It looks fantastic. You make it look so easy, but I know if I were to attempt it, there would be a lot of noise coming from my sewing room.
Would it be possible to explain how you did the applique? My daughter LOVES her name but I have never get such a professional look as you have here. Thanks, Jodie.
Holy cr*p that's amazing!!!
I am also a big fan of pink and brown...
That is a super backpack. One of a kind, and exactly what the little girl wanted.
For applique on woven fabrics I start by sketching or tracing my design on Heat & Bond Lite. You have to trace it in reverse for it to appear in the correct orientation on your project. Without cutting out the image, I fuse the Heat & Bond to my applique fabric. I like to have the paper there to trim off. I trim the applique to the correct shape, fuse it to my project, then using the closest zigzag stitch my machine will make, slowly stitch around the outside edge of the applique. For my Janome, the stitch length is almost 0 and the width is 3-4 depending on the look I am going for. I usually do a practice run or two with some scraps of my project and a few of the pieces of Heat & Bonded fabric I trimmed off to be sure I like the way the stitch looks. HTH!
Very cute - esp. on Duncan!
Oh so cute! The kids too!
Thanks! Do you worry about putting a stablizer on the back? Cheers, Jodie.
I do stabilize appliques when they are on knit fabrics, but I don't find it necessary for stable wovens. If the back side of the applique is itchy to your child though, a little fusible tricot ironed over the stitching will make it soft and non-itchy.
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