Make a Corduroy Pants Purse
Have you got a comfy pair of corduroy pants that are in awesome shape but you just never wear them? Instead of leaving them languishing in the bottom of a closet, try turning them into a useful and funky purse. If you're feeling inclined to make your own, here we go!
Steps
- Assemble the Things You'll Need. See below.
- Decide how big you want the purse to be. Perhaps a bag big enough to toss in your usual purse items, wallet, phone, Gerber multi-tool as well as things for work, like your lunch, occasional Glad containers of coffee, etc. For this pattern, a 10" x 10" (25 x 25 cm) square has been chosen.
- Double it. Once you've decided how big a purse you want, double that size and add two inches (5 cm). So, the 10 inches (25 cm) becomes 22 inches (55 cm). The way the purse is put together, there will be 3 pieces sewn together, not including the strap. The front, bottom, and back will be one U-shaped piece, hence the doubling of the size and adding an inch to allow for the bottom of the bag and an inch for hemming.
- Mark where you'll cut. Start below the seam that connects the leg of the pants to the waistband and go down 22 inches (55 cm). The goal is to have the back pocket in the center of the purse front. This turns out to be awesome for days that you wear pants without pockets! For the width of the purse, take the 10 inches (25 cm) and add an extra inch (2.5 cm) for hemming.
- Cut the fabric. This illustration shows the cut piece, with the back of the purse facing up. Put a book inside to make the shape a little more apparent. At this point, flip about a half of an inch over on the top of the front and back and pin those in place. You'll want to sew in a hem around the top, as most fabrics will start shredding like crazy otherwise. You can sew it by hand, but it's easier to run it through the sewing machine.
- Cut the sides of the purse. Each side is a 10.5 inch (26.5 cm) tall, 3 inch (7.5 cm) wide strip of corduroy. Cut so that the lines run parallel to the rest of those on the purse. 3 inches may sound small, but it's not a deep purse, because of its fairly saggy nature. You can adapt it to whatever you put in it.
- Hem the top of each side piece by folding about 1/4 inch (6 mm) of the good side over and sewing it up. That way, the fabric won't decide to unravel on you.
- Pin the sides into place. Typically, you'll sew an item inside out, so that knots and seams are hidden inside of the finished project. Line up one side piece with the front (or back) of the main piece such that the long sides are next to each other. Make sure that the tops of the side and the main piece are lined up and pin them in place. Work your way around the side piece, so that the front, bottom, and back of the bag are pinned to the side. Then do the same on the other side. Check the picture for more direction.
- Stitch up. After all the pinning is done, run this through the sewing machine, one side at a time. It's not a bad idea to run it back through on a back stitch setting, to reinforce the stitches.
- Turn your creation inside out, and voila, you have a nearly complete purse! Next, add the zipper.
- Use a 7 inch (17.5 cm) long zipper that is typically used for pants or skirts. Before you buy one, check the zipper that is already on the pants to see if it'll be long enough to allow you reasonable access into your bag. If so, use a seam ripper to carefully remove the zipper and its permanent backing from the pants.
- Pin the zipper into place, leaving it zipped shut, with one side attached to the front and one side attached to the back of the purse. There should be about an inch gap on each end between the zipper and the side of the purse. This will enable the purse to have holes small enough to drop a pen or keys into the purse without having to unzip the whole thing.
- Run each side of the zipper through the sewing machine, or sew up each edge by hand. Be sure to reinforce with a back-stitch.
- Add the strap. Decide how long a strap you want to have on your purse by judging with your measuring tape. For this pattern, there is a 48 inch (1.25 m) strap so that the purse can hang right about hip level. Use the front of the pant leg to cut two segments for this piece that you have sewn together. Go with a 3 inch (7.5 cm) width on the piece, so that you have a nice, thick strap.
- Hem the two long edges by folding over 1/4 inch (6 mm) and sewing up each one. Then sew the two hems together for strength and a nice squishy shred resistant strap.
- Sew the strap to the inside of the sides of the purse.
Tips
- With whatever is left of the Make-a-Pant-Leg-Purse, you could make a small cellphone or change pouch.
- Make sure to double-stitch the seams and the spots where the strap attaches for reinforcement.
Things You'll Need
- Sharp scissors
- Needle and thread
- 7" (17.5 cm) zipper. You may be able to reuse the one from the pants, but if it's like most girl pants, that zipper will be too short.
- A pair of pants. Corduroy is great for beginners to work with, because it makes lining up the pieces simple and hides any unevenness in the seams really well!
- Measuring tape
- A sewing machine is incredibly helpful as well. Stitching by hand is more effort, unless it's for embroidery or cross-stitch.
