Introduction: Upcycled Pouch Using Mixed Discarded Material

By Biji Biji Initiative
About: A social enterprise whose design core is open sourced and inclusive.

An easy and fast project using discarded banners and felt to make pretty pouches. It can be used for your everyday needs, or even a perfect gift for a special someone!

At Biji-biji, we aim to help ourselves by taking care of our environment. You can use upcycled materials or any used old cloth / fabric to make this pouch. By doing this, you can support and sustain a healthy environment for us and the next generations of millennials.
If you like this piece, do check out more of our sustainable fashion products!

What you need for this project:

Measuring tape

Marking chalk

Ink marker

Scissors

Cutter

Nylon thread

Ruler

Discarded banner

Felt

Zipper

Sewing machine

Step 1: Making Patterns

You need to make 2 patterns for this pouch

Firstly for the banner, you need to :

  • Draw a rectangular with width of 8 inch and length of inch

As for Felt, you need to :

  • Draw a rectangular with width of 8 inch and length of 2 inch

You need to place a 1 cm seam allowance around both patterns and make sure you leave a mark for each seam allowance (refer to image)

Step 2: Cutting the Pieces

Trace the small panel on felt and cut 2 pieces.

Trace the big panel on banner and cut 2 pieces.

Make sure to trace back all the markings and make tiny cuts on them to indicate the position on fabric once you cut the panels.

Step 3: Sewing the Zipper

Take the banner panel and fold down the 1cm seam allowance on the width of it.

prepare your zipper before placing the folded edge right next to the zipper teeth and secure it with pins.

sew on the banner and try to keep you stitching as close as possible to the edge of the panel. ( refer to image )

Do the same for the other banner panel.

Step 4: Sewing the Felt Panel

Take the felt panels and sew it on to the banner pieces.

Fold the seam towards the banner.

Place the pouch facing you and stitch on top of the seam with width of 0.5cm ( refer to image ).

Do the same for the other side.

Step 5: Sewing the Sides and the Box Corners

Now set the panels on top of each other and make sure the wrong side of the pouch is facing you.

Sew from one side to the other. Make sure the zipper is opened enough for you to put your hand in.

After sewing, hold the corners of the pouch with both hands and make the triangle to shape the box corners. ( you can refer to the pictures and video for a clearer guide.)

Step 6: Finished Product

Turn the pouch inside out and make sure you have everything done. The pouch should be able to stand on the table on its own.

Well done! you have finished all the steps and you can enjoy your new upcycled pouch.
Simple and quick to make, and it sure looks good too.

Do check out our other collections of designer bags made from discarded materials, like seat belts and felt (from carpets).