***Giveaway Closed***

We were thrilled to find out that our third child was a girl. All of us, our two sons included, were hoping for a little sister to dote on– and, of course, we haven’t been disappointed.

Our little girl is equal parts sweet and loving, and feisty and stubborn. She keeps me on my toes and is introducing me to all kinds of new waters in motherhood. Like, a child who pulls out all her hair??!! What is that about?

 

Thankfully, the hair pulling has stopped. Now we wait for the hair to come back in, eagerly hoping her curls return.

We gave my daughter her first baby doll last Christmas, along with a thrifted and painted cradle and a doll quilt to match her own (handmade gifts for the win!) Since that day, she has hardly spent a moment without her baby tucked under her arm.

Seeing the differences between my daughter and my sons is a lot a fun. Yes, she enjoys LEGOs and tackling her brothers and general mayhem just like her brothers. But there’s no mistaking that she is also a little lady, interested in babies, clothing, and purses to keep up with her goodies.

 

 

I made her this simple purse when she was about 15 months old. I made it to keep its shape so it would be easy for her to put items in and take them out again. I also left off any kind of button/zipper/closure for even more ease of use. 

This toddler purse is a quick project and is a great project for beginning sewers. Inexpensive and easy to make, it makes a great gift for any little girls on your gift list!

And to add to the Christmas cheer, (I know it’s early still, but my excitement can no longer be contained), I am giving away at least one toddler purse AND a quilted doll blanket!

Keep reading to see the easy tutorial and be sure to enter the giveaway at the bottom of the post!

Toddler Purse Tutorial

Materials Needed

• Mid-weight fabric scraps (for the exterior and strap)
• Light-weigh fabric scraps (for the lining and piping)
• Mid-weight interfacing
• Cording
• Coordinating thread
• Wonder-Under

Method

1.Cut the pieces.

• (2) 8″x 7″ pieces from the exterior fabric — main body pieces
• (2) 8″x 7″ pieces from the lining fabric — lining body pieces
• (2) 7″ x 6″ pieces from the interfacing — for the main body pieces
• (1) 13″ x 3″ piece from the exterior fabric — strap piece
• (1) 11″ x 1″ piece from the interfacing — for the strap piece
• (1) 16″ x 2″ piece from the lining — to make the piping
• (1) 14″ piece of cording — to make the piping
• fabric and Wonder-Under for the appliqué

 

2. Make the appliqué.

Cut out the appliqué and iron a piece of Wonder-Under to the wrong side of the fabric. Remove the backing from the Wonder-Under and place the appliqué on one of the main body pieces. Iron the appliqué to adhere it to the main body piece.

Blanket-stitch or satin stitch around the edge of the appliqué.

 

3. Attach interfacing to body pieces.

Iron the body interfacing pieces onto the wrong sides of both the exterior main body pieces, leaving a one-inch border around the perimeter.

 

4. Sew the body of the bag.

Place the exterior main body pieces wrong sides together. Sew around three sides with a half-inch seam, leaving one 7″ inch side open for the top of the purse.

Box the bottom corners of the bag: Bring the side-seam and the bottom seam together on one side. Sew across making a triangle, one inch from the corner. (See pictures below).

Repeat the two steps above to make the lining of the purse, sewing around the lining with a 5/8″ seam instead of a 1/2″ seam.

Turn the exterior body of the purse right side out.

5. Finish the main body pieces. 

Fold the top edge of the exterior body of the purse down 3/8″ and press. Fold the top edge of the lining of the purse down 3/8″ and press.

Tuck the lining down into the exterior body of the purse, pressing the lining down so that the top edges line up.

 

6. Make the piping. 

Take the 16″ x 2″ piece of lining material and fold in half lengthwise. Press.

Place the cording along the pressed crease on the lining piece. Fold the piece so that the cording is tight against the pressed edge. Sew along the length of the lining piece, tightly securing the cording in place.

 

7. Make the strap.

Iron the 11″ strip of interfacing to the strap piece.

Fold one long edge of the strip in 1/2″ towards the center and press. Fold the opposite long edge in 1/4″ towards the center and press.

Fold the second edge in again one more time, overlapping the unfinished edge. Press and pin in place.

Sew along the length of the strap, securing the pressed edges in place. Use a decorative stitch if desired.

 

8. Pin the piping in place.

Tuck the piping in between the top edges of the exterior and lining. Pin one end in place and wrap the piping around the perimeter of the bag, pinning in place as you go. When you reach the end you started with, trim any extra cording, but leave the extra fabric (you may need to take out some stitches).

Fold the extra fabric edge towards the wrong side and press. Overlap the folded edge over the end of the piping you first pinned. (See photos below).

 

9. Attach the strap. 

Tuck the unfinished ends of the strap into the sides of the purse, tucking in about 1″ of strap on each side. Pin in place.

 

10. Finish the purse. 

Topstitch around the top edge of the purse, attaching the exterior fabric, piping, straps, and interior fabric together.

 

Toddler Purse & Quilted Doll Blanket GIVEAWAY!

I’m excited to be able to give away a toddler purse AND a quilted doll blanket. Both are beloved by my daughter and would make a fun gift for a little girl in your life too!

To make things more fun and festive, I will choose additional winners according to how many entries are submitted. For 100 entries — 1 winner. For 200 entries — 2 winners. For 300 entries — 3 winners.

One way to enter is to comment and tell me what the toddler in your life would fill her purse with. Here are my little girl’s purse contents. (This is her purse which explains why it’s a bit more dirty!)

The giveaway will be open for a week, so share for more chances to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

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