JoAnn Connolly - The 3-In-1 Emma Messenger Bag: Featuring Kraft-Tex

The 3-in-1 Emma Messenger Bag, Wristlet, and Key Fob Finished bag: 13 wide 10 high 2 deep Finished wristlet: 7 wide 5 high Finished key fob: 1 wide 6 long This groovy messenger bag offers an updated nod to the leather-link bags of the 70s. Pick two kraft-tex colors and get your groove on! The links on the bag and wristlet, as well as the strap accent on the wristlet and key fob, are made using kraft-texC&T Publishings washable paper fabric that looks and behaves like leather. All you need are regular sewing supplies to work with this innovative product. I used a heavyweight cotton denim for the body of the bag, but you could certainly use lighter fabricssuch as home decweight prints or even cotton quilting fabricsprovided you interface them adequately to keep their shape. For those using a computerized embroidery machine, a stitching file is available to download. For digital cutters, an SVG file (a special file for that cutter) is also available to download.

For those without these computerized devices, patterns for the link shapes are included in this booklet, so you can cut them yourself. MATERIALS The materials below make one bag, wristlet, and key fob. Adjust amounts if youre using fabrics of varying widths. kraft-tex Designer Roll Prewashed & Hand-Dyed (by C&T Publishing): 1 roll (18 28) each of Turquoise (Color 1) and Greenery (Color 2) for links, inside pocket detail, wristlet strap, and key fob Main fabric: 1 yard of 5860-wide white cotton denim for bag body, wristlet, and key fob Lining fabric: 1 yard of 40-wide coordinating quilting-weight cotton print for bag and wristlet Interfacing:
1 yard of 20-wide heavyweight fusible interfacing for body of bag (I used Pellon 808 Craft Fuse.) Optional: 1 yards of 20-wide lightweight fusible interfacing for lining and wristlet (I used Pellon 911FF Fusible Featherweight.) Omit if you are satisfied with the weight of your lining fabric. HARDWARE AND NOTIONS White machine embroidery thread Bag hardware: 2 rectangle rings 1 wide1 slide buckle 1 wide Key fob hardware: 1 set of 1 clamp base with split key ring Zipper: 9 for wristlet (It will be trimmed to size.) TOOLS Sharp scissors Craft knife Rotary cutter and mat Clear ruler Disappearing-ink fabric marker Card stock or quilting template plastic (if cutting links by hand) tips I found that by having my 4 4 squares of kraft-tex and tear-away stabilizer cut, stacked, and ready to go, I could embroider a couple squares here and there until I had enough. Then I kept the embroidered links by my favorite chair and trimmed them as I had time. Before I knew it, my links were ready to stitch and the bag itself came together quickly. If you have embroidery editing software and hoops larger than 4 4, you can merge the files in the software to be able to stitch more links per hooping.

Etsy.com is a great resource for purse and key fob hardware. CUTTING Main fabricMessenger Bag Cut 1 piece 14 11 for front. Cut 1 piece 14 11 for back. Cut 1 piece 14 13 for flap. Cut 1 piece 3 33 for gusset. Cut 1 piece 14 3 for upper link cover band.

Cut 1 piece 14 2 for lower link cover band. Cut 2 pieces 2 33 for strap top side. Cut 2 pieces 2 32 for strap bottom side. Cut 2 pieces 2 5 for hardware tabs. Cut 1 piece 10 6 for inner pocket. Wristlet Cut 1 piece 8 6 for front.

Cut 1 piece 8 6 for back. Cut 2 pieces 1 6 for side link cover bands. Cut 1 piece 1 13 for strap. Key Fob Cut 1 piece 2 13 for strap. Lining fabric Messenger Bag Cut 1 piece 14 11 for front. Cut 1 piece 14 11 for back.

Cut 1 piece 14 13 for flap. Cut 1 piece 3 33 for gusset. Wristlet Cut 1 piece 8 6 for front. Cut 1 piece 8 6 for back. Cut 1 piece 8 6 for front contrast panel, under links. Cut 1 piece 1 3 for zipper tabs.

Heavyweight fusible interfacing Messenger Bag Cut 1 piece 14 11 for front. Cut 1 piece 14 11 for back. Cut 1 piece 14 13 for flap. Cut 1 piece 3 33 for gusset. Lightweight fusible interfacing Optional. Omit if you are satisfied with the weight of your lining fabric.Messenger Bag Cut 1 piece 14 11 for front lining piece.

Cut 1 piece 14 11 for back lining piece. Cut 1 piece 14 13 for flap lining piece. Cut 1 piece 3 33 for gusset lining piece. kraft-tex Color 1 (Turquoise) If using a computerized embroidery machine, cut 11 squares 4 4 to embroider/cut links (10 squares for Messenger Bag, 1 square for Wristlet). Color 2 (Greenery) Cut 1 piece 13 1 for Key Fob strap. Cut 1 piece 13 for Wristlet strap.

Cut 1 piece 8 for inner pocket detail. If using a computerized embroidery machine, cut 9 squares 4 4 to embroider/cut links (7 squares for Messenger Bag, 2 squares for Wristlet). Creating the Links Embroidering the Links NOTE The links that are cut using a digital cutter or cut by hand (see Cutting the Links) will not have stitching around the edges. USING MACHINE EMBROIDERY MACHINE EMBROIDERY FILES For machine embroidery, there are two files (3links and 2linksandoval) available at: tinyurl.com/80089-pattern-download3links This file stitches 3 links in the 4 4 hoop. Stitch this file on 10 Turquoise squares and 9 Greenery squares. 2linksandoval This file stitches the oval center link for the wristlet plus 2 links.

Stitch this file on 1 Turquoise square. For the Messenger Bag, you will need: 28 Turquoise links 21 Greenery links For the Wristlet, you will need: 2 Turquoise links 1 Turquoise oval 4 Greenery links Download the embroidery files. Send the 3links file (see Machine Embroidery Files) to your machine. Hoop a piece of tear-away stabilizer. Place the hoop in the machine. Center a 4 Turquoise kraft-tex square on the hooped stabilizer.

Carefully hold the piece in place while the machine takes the first few stitches. Stitch the design. Remove the hoop from the machine, and remove the work from the hoop. Carefully tear the stabilizer away from the back of the embroidered kraft-tex piece. Using the sharp scissors, cut around the outside stitching of the links at from the stitching. To cut out the inner ovals of the links, use the craft knife to cut a small slice in the center of each oval.

Hold the link in your hand and have the scissors come up through the hole from the bottom of the link.