In this post you’ll learn how to make your own Quilted Makeup Bag.
After searching through several stores for a nice makeup bag that didn’t cost a ton of money I finally set out to make my own. I used a combination of different techniques I found online to make my own customized bag that fit everything I wanted it to.
These Quilted Makeup Bags are so cute and I was surprised at how easy and satisfying it was to make these. I have so many of these little makeup bags now, they are perfect for storing face creams, giving away as gifts or for organization around the house.
They are easy to make if you’ve done a little sewing before. You’ll just need a sewing machine, some fabric, quilting, batting and a zipper!
Materials Needed
-Canvas Fabric: You can use a regular cotton or linen blend as well but I find canvas holds up better and gives more structure to the bag.
-Regular Fabric: This is for the inside of the bag, I would recommend using a cotton blend. For the bag in this blog post I cut up an old sheet I thrifted for $2
–Quilting Batting: I like to use 100% wool that’s not too thick for best results.
-A Sewing Machine: I have the Brother i6000 which I love and would highly recommend, if you don’t have a sewing machine call your local library, they often loan out different ones and its a good way to dabble into sewing without breaking your budget.
-A Zipper: You can use a 10” or whatever you have on hand, I used a 14” zipper because that’s what I had and then I just shortened it to work with the size.
-An Iron: you want to make sure your fabric is nice and smooth
-A Ruler and Colored Pencil: This is for marking your quilting pattern.
The Process
- Cutting it Out: Cut out a both fabrics and the quilt batting to measure 12” wide and 18” long. Cut out six strips of fabric for binding that measure approximately 3” x 10”
2. Laying out the fabric: lay down the canvas print first -print side down. Then lay down the quilt batting, then lay down the cotton print. You want all three fabrics to line up. I pin these together so they don’t shift through the next step.
3. Making your Quilt Marks: Using the ruler and colored pencil make lines down the Cotton side of your fabric. You can do whatever pattern you want. I like to make them 2” apart and then I go diagonally 2” apart to create a triangular diamond shape.
4. Quilt the Pieces together: Using the straight stitch setting of your sewing machine. I use a 2.5 stitch beginning on the end of the straight line marks sew the three pieces together.
Continue until you’ve quilted all the lines made.
5. Cut off any uneven ends or batting that may have shifted slightly. I like to lay down the quilted fabric piece at this point and remeasure the whole thing to make sure I have a fabric stack that’s exactly 12″x18″.
Attach Binding to Both Ends: Sew the batting to the end. The easiest way I’ve found to do this is to sew the ends of the binding to the end of the quilted fabric. Then flip over and turn binding in till the rough end lines up with the rough end of the quilted fabric. Fold over again so you have a nice hemmed batting edge. Pin in place and sew to the quilted fabric.
Repeat on the other side.
6. Attach Zipper: Put in the zipper facing up on the canvas side on both sides of binding. Make sure to match up the zipper.
Sew Together Sides: Lay bag down with zipper right in the middle. Measure to make sure you have the same amount of fabric on both sides of the zipper. Pin in place and sew together.
Repeat on the other side.
I like to attach a binding to this after sewing. I think it looks nicer on the inside of the bag but you can skip this if you don’t mind the unfinished seam on the inside of your bag.
If using binding, use the same technique to attach as before.
7. Cut out Corners: Cut out all four corners, I like to cut them at 2” x 2”
8. Sew Together Corners: Pinch together one of the corners and sew together, you will start to see the bag taking shape at this point.
Again I like to attach a binding after sewing this seam so the bag has no unfinished seams but you can skip it if you don’t mind rough edges.
Repeat on all four corners.
8. Turn the bag inside out and iron the bottoms and top to add structure to the bag.
That’s it! A super easy Quilted Makeup Bag sewing project that comes together in an hour or two and is perfect to give away as a gift or keep for yourself!
If you try this let me know how it turned out for you!
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