One of the problems with sleeping bags is that your head slides off your pillow. This cosy polar fleece (polyester fleece) sleep sack or sleeping bag liner (or outer) solves that problem by having a pocket to put your pillow into!

As well as the intended use as an insulating sleeping bag liner (or if it is the wrong shape put your sleeping bag inside it), this sleep sack could be used as an extra layer in your bed on cold nights, or on its own as a lightweight sleeping bag for camping on warmer summer nights. If you don't have a pillow you could stuff the pillow pocket with clothing to cushion your head, which has the added advantage of keeping your clothes where you can find them in the morning!

Made in licensed character fleece (Spiderman, Sponge Bob....) this is ideal for sleepovers. Another idea would be to keep one or more in the car for emergency use in cold weather.

Only one cut and 4 seams make this a fast (less than 1 hour!), fun, fleecy project!.

Step 1: Materials & Tools

1 piece of 60" wide fleece (polar fleece, polyester fleece), long enough for the person to sleep in and up to 18" extra for the pillow ( for Jonnybo111 the piece of fleece was 72" long, for a grown up I would reckon on 84" ?)
1 pillow

Sewing machine
Thread
Jersey/stretch/ball point needles to suit your sewing machine
Scissors
Pins - preferably long
Walking foot for your sewing machine (if available)

Step 2: Prepare the Fleece

Pull your fleece gently across the cut end and it will curl towards the wrong side.

Fold your piece of fleece lengthways with the right sides together, keeping your cut edges & selvages even.

Place the pillow on one end of the folded fleece, 1" down from the cut end and mark a line 1" below the pillow. Cut along this line, through one layer only, from one side (selvage) to the centre fold - i.e. cut halfway across the fleece.

Pin across the two ends and down the selvages.

Step 3: Do the Sewing

Set your stitch length quite long ( my setting was 4.0) and also set for a slight zigzag (if possible), my stitch width was 1.0, this helps prevent the thread from breaking if the fleece gets stretched.

Starting at the foot end fold (not the pillow end), using a 5/8" seam sew across the end and up the side until you reach the cut. Back stitch there to reinforce and then continue sewing up the side of the pillow pocket and around the top. I pinned and sewed in two stages, though you could do it in one (I hadn't thought my topology out fully until part way through!). Once you have done the sewing take all the pins out.

Turn your bag & pillow pocket right sides out and then pin the bottom edge of the pillow pocket to have a 9" seam on each side with a 12" gap in the middle. Sew a 5/8" seam, and then sew another line of stitching between the 5/8" stitches and the cut edge, this will help prevent the seams splitting. I backstitched at the beginning and end of each seam too. Don't forget to make sure there are no pins left in the fabric!

That is all the sewing done.

Step 4: Insert the Pillow and Find Someone to Test the Sleep Sack Out

Tuck the pillow into the pillow pocket and your sleep sack is all ready to use. Mine is being tested by Jonnybo111.

The second sleep sack I made in 45 minutes from picking up the scissors & the fleece to inserting the pillow into the completed project.

Sleep well!