chic and easy bamboo-handle purse

This is probably the easiest purse you'll ever make. Seriously. This one was made with a piece of upholstery fabric that was never going to get used. Upholstery fabric is a pretty sturdy weight, which is nice, but you can use whatever fabric you like.

Easy Bamboo Handled Purse Tutorial

What you'll need:

*Fabric, cut to 19 x 29" (or larger/smaller depending on your handles and what size you want)
*Bamboo purse handles – we used 8 ½ x 5 ½, but you can find bigger and smaller sizes. You don't have to use the bamboo style. They come in other looks, but make sure you get a round or half circle pair, NOT a U-shaped. These are found at most fabric/craft stores.
*Sewing machine, coordinating thread, and hand-sewing needle


Okay, let's get started!

1. Cut your fabric into a rectangle 19 by 29 inches. We serged the edges first so they wouldn’t fray. You can also overstitch using a zig-zag stitch. Really, the easiest way would be to use Fray Check on the raw edges (it's on sale right now at JoAnn.com!)

2. Fold your fabric in half right sides together and mark it with a pin 8 inches from the fold. This is to remind you where to stop sewing. Sew from the fold to the pin.




3. Iron the seam open. This next part is a little tricky to explain, but I'll do my best. Take the open, un-sewn part on each side and top stitch down from the top, around the place you stopped sewing the sides, and back up the other side, taking care to reinforce the section at the bottom of the "V". (If this sounds like gobbledy-gook, check out the pictures--they should help.)




4. Fold top part down on each side about 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Iron. Fold one side of the opening over each bamboo handle. Hand sew shut. Turn bag right-side out and you're done.


You are now one hip chick!