Monk Bag + FREE Sewing Pattern
Monk Bag
I love, love light cloth bags as opposed to the heavy leather variety. I tend to carry “everything but the kitchen sink” in my bag. Therefore it needs to be as light as possible from the get go. My absolute favourite bag is – this one. The FREE sewing pattern is right here on this eco fashion blog. I’ve made that bag in so many colours. The Monk Bag is similar but different. Here’s how you make it.
Monk Bag FREE Sewing Pattern
You need: –
- fabric – maybe two different colours or prints
- matching colour thread
- sewing scissors
- pins
- sewing machine
You do: –
Cut pieces for Monk Bag
Cut your pattern pieces.
Hem top of middle pieces
Hem the top of the middle pieces. Zig-zag or over-lock edges if they are inclined to fray.
Pin and sew pieces together
Pin and stitch all the pieces together right sides facing.
Sew across bottom edge
Fold flat and sew bottom edge.
Sew top and hem all around
Sew top of strap and hem all around to neaten.
Easy as that.
Head to the Galleries at the top of the page for more FREE sewing patterns and DIY fashion inspiration.
See you next week.
Greenie.
Thank you for such a great project! My sewing skills are *very* limited, but the bag came together quickly and looks good 🙂
So pleased to hear that Amy.
All the best.
Greenie.
Greenie, do we have to fold and sew the straps?
Foreecia, the straps are part of the pattern. Not a separate strap.
So yes, you do fold them in half to add them to the side of the main bag pieces.
Hope that helps.
Greenie.
I’ve been wanting to make this monk bag but I’m not familiar with centimeters. Can you tell give me the measurements in inches? I did go online to convert to inches and the conversion doesn’t feel accurate to me.
Thanks Greenie. Its’ a beautiful bag!
Hi Tom
To convert from centimetres to inches use this formulation – 1 centimetre = .39 inches.
So 22 centimetres x .39 = 8.66 inches. And yes, the proportions of the bag do look a bit odd.
The strap is folded in half so not as wide when the bag is finished.
Have a look at the pattern pieces in the blog post to get a feel of how it should look.
You can also cut the bag 1/4 size out of an old newspaper, fold and pretend to sew and follow the instructions.
That will give you a feel of how the bag comes together.
Hope that helps.
All the best,
Greenie.
Hello,
im in the teacher trainiee phase and i want to have this in class for economical behavior, like D.I.Y. Use the old clothes and upcycle it;-)
this will help me a lot!!! Thank you very much!!