Tutorial: Upgrade a tote bag with a photo transfer technique

Sara from Radiant Home Studio shows a cool photo transfer technique you can use to decorate the front of a plain tote. She creates a weathered geometric pattern using images from magazine pages. This same technique would also be pretty awesome on the front of a throw pillow cover. The transferred design is not machine washable, so keep this on projects that won’t require washing. She also shows how you can replace a plain canvas handle with one made from a sturdier (and more attractive) webbing.

Click below to go to her tutorial:

Photo Transfer {Tote Bag Upgrade}, by Radiant Home Studio

[photo from Radiant Home Studio]

Looking for more DIY sewing patterns to make your own bags, totes and clutches? Check these Sewing patterns out on Etsy.

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It doesn’t matter whether you sew by hand or by machine, you need a pincushion. You need a spot to parks pins and needles and keep them within easy reach for when you need them again. There are a lot of styles of pincushion to choose from. Some magnetic, some fabric. Some cute, some purely functional. This “little bit extra” pincushion has a spot to store all the different types of pins and needles you might need while sewing. Polka Dot Chair has a free sewing pattern you can use to make one for yourself.

This handy little pincushion has a circular shape and is divided into sections to store different types of pins. The bottom section is for your regular straight pins. Just poke them in and they’re ready for when you need them. The top has one section with a felt flap perfect for holding your sewing needles. I don’t know about you but I don’t like mixing my hand sewing needles in with my pins on a pincushion. It makes it hard to find the needle when I want it. So having a separate section for the needles is a great idea.

This “little bit extra” pincushion also has a spot to hold a few fabric clips. Fabric clips have become popular alternatives to a traditional straight pin. They hold fabric pieces together without piercing the fabric, which is important when sewing leather, vinyl, or other materials that will show permanent holes from pins.

You can sew the “little bit extra” pincushion from large fabric scraps or small fabric cuts (fat eighth). You probably already have all the supplies you need to sew one in your sewing supplies already.

Get the free pattern for this “little bit extra” pincushion over at Polka Dot Chair.

[photo credit: Polka Dot Chair]

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