Ruffled Zipper Pouch Tutorial

So, I know there are a TON of tutorials online for making pouches, purses, cases, etc.  I'm just adding one to the list :o)

Isn't this fabric yummy??  Aunt Edna by Denyse Schmidt...love her!!  By the way, what is up with how much the price has gone up for her fabrics at Joann's??  Used to be $9.99 a yard and not always on sale so you could use a 40% off coupon and get it at a pretty decent price...now it's $12.99 a yard and always 30% off, making it $9 a yard and you can't use a coupon, very shifty, I tell ya!!  Anyway, hopping off my soap box!!

Materials you'll need:

1 ~ 7" zipper (I have recently started buying my zippers at Zipit on etsy.  The quality, price, shipping are unbeatable)

2 ~ 8"x6" outside fabric

2 ~ 8"x6" lining fabric

1 ~ 3" x 18" strip for the ruffle

2 ~ 8"x6" pieces of batting (could also use interfacing but I used what I had on hand)

1.  Fold over and press 1/4" of the ruffle fabric along the long side of the strip.  I hate frayed edges...it just annoys the crap out of me.  I hate how it ends up looking so ratty...so this is my solution :o)

2.  Once you have both sides pressed, start folding your pleats/ruffles.  I pin both sides because I don't like my ruffle looking all shifted when it gets sewn down...picky, aren't I??

3.  Layer ruffle, outside fabric, and batting.  Sew down ruffle, along the top and bottom of ruffle.  I pin the crap out of the ruffle and then don't pin it down, not sure why.  Pin it if you want to :o)

Sometimes you have to let out the last ruffle just to lessen the bulk on the side seams.

4.  Lay your zipper, face down, against the outside fabric.  Check your zipper placement to make sure you like how the pouch will open.  I like my pouches to have the zipper open to the right, close to the left.

Lay the lining fabric, print side down on top of the zipper.  Pin in place.  

5.  Using your zipper foot, stitch along the pinned portion of the zipper, removing pins as you go.  Go slowly, making sure the fabrics don't pucker and shift.

6.  Once you're done with the first side, repeat with the second side.  The outside fabrics will be right sides together and the lining fabrics right sides together.  Your layer will look like this ~ lining fabric, zipper, outside fabric, batting.  It was a little tricky to get a picture of the layers.

Here is the layer again top to bottom ~ lining, zipper, outside fabric, and batting.  Pin in place.

7.  Stitch down.  Careful of shifting fabrics!  If they every make a zipper/walking foot hybrid, that would be awesome!!

8.  Trim excess batting above the sewn line.  This will help eliminate the bulk around the top of the bag.  

9.  Just for an added touch, you can top stitch along the zipper. Use the zipper foot and pull sides apart as you stitch.  I pull pretty tightly since fabrics like to shift under the zipper foot.

9.  Here we are!  Ready to put the pouch together!  Unzip the zipper about halfway.  You will hate your life if you forget to do this!!

10.  When you start to line everything up, you will need to make sure your zipper sides push downward into the lining fabric. Do this to both sides, and pin all the way around.

Push the zipper down into the lining of the pouch.  It gets all funky if you don't.

Everything is pinned and ready to sew together!

11.  You're going to leave a 2" hole in the bottom of the lining fabric.  Start stitching about 3 inches from the corner.  I back stitch when I start and at every corner since I seem to be pretty hard on these pouches!

CAREFULLY sew over the zipper ends...I have snapped many a needle at this exact point.  Not safe, my friends, not safe!

12.  Once you sew all the way around, trim up the batting edges, clip the corners, and get your bag ready to turn inside out.

13.  Turn your bag, pushing out the corners.  You can either slip stitch, or machine stitch your lining opening.  I just machine stitch...again, hard on pouches!!

All done!!  Here it is, all ready to be filled with goodies!!

I'm crushing big time on the color grey at the moment....you'll have to forgive me if all of my sewing project have grey in them these days!