We try to generate as little waste as possible by reducing our consumption, reusing what we can, and recycling products that we're able to. Normally, when I pack a picnic or to-go lunch or snack for my girls, I use as many reusable containers as possible to avoid having to use disposable plastic baggies. That usually means lots of lidded plastic bowls or a small glass Pyrex dishes. Needless to say, those don't always fit nicely into a lunch box! I've been wanting to make some Reusable Snack Bags for a while now, and finally got around to tackling the project.
These bags are EASY to make. You won't need to pin a thing, will sew a total of 6 straight seams, and be finished in about 5 minutes (promise). They're not waterproof, but will do just fine for holding crackers, cut fruit, or baby carrots. After you've used it , turn it inside out and throw it in the wash.
Grab your fabric stash and whip up some reusable bags. Your kids and the planet will thank you!
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Materials for Reusable Snack Bags
- Small amount of 100% cotton fabric in 2 coordinating prints or colors
- Thread
- Scissors
- Sewing Machine
Cut Your Fabric
Using 2 contrasting fabrics, cut 2 rectangles that are 6.5" wide and 12" long. This will make a finished bag about 5.75" wide and 4.75" tall. This size isn't quite big enough to hold a sandwich, but you could easily adjust the dimensions to make smaller or larger bags. It does hold plenty of crackers, grapes, raisins, or other kid friendly snacks.
Start Sewing!
Place the fabric right sides together and sew a seam along one of the short sides (the yellow line).
Open the seam and turn the fabrics so that the wrong sides are together. You should have one rectangle 6.5" x 12". (Fabric hasn't been folded back over on itself in the above picture.)
Take the fabric on top (in my case, the butterfly fabric). Fold it back over, so that the wrong side is facing you. Do not make the edges meet, but instead, make the top edge overlap the lower edge by about 2 inches. See the arrow on the picture above? That is pointing to a single layer of fabric overlapping this whole folded pile.
Can you see it better in this picture?
Next, flip the whole stack over and fold the other fabric up so that it matches the other edge.
Does this help? You basically have a "W" shape, with the right side of the fabric all facing inward, and the far right and left sides of the "W" extending up past the middle fold.
Now you're going to sew it all together. Sew 2 seams, along the yellow lines in the picture above. The "A" arrow is pointing to the side with all the folds. The "B" arrow is pointing to the open side. Leave a gap of about 3 inches between the seams for turning.
Clip the corners of the fabric, making sure not to snip the seam. You've got a little hole. Reach in and turn the whole thing right side out. As you turn it, you'll be able to choose which fabric you want to be on the outside and which side you want to be the lining. It's hard to explain how that happens, but you'll get it when you turn it. Poke all the corners out really well using your fingers or a small tool.
Now here's what you have. A little open bag with a flap.
The next step is to top stitch the hole closed. Tuck the edges of the opening under (you could press it with an iron if you wanted) and sew a seam as close to the edge as you can, along the top of the flap.
Like this!
Fold the flap down and top stitch along the side, like in the picture above. You can sew along the entire side seam OR just sew along the side of the flap area. Either way works; it's just a matter of aesthetic preference.
Here's your little bag! Trim all the loose threads.
You can flip the flap over and behind the bag to fill it up or to eat from it.
Make a whole slew of them and you can really reduce your disposable lunch waste.
My girls LOVE choosing which bag to use for their snacks, and they quickly mastered the art of flipping the top back to get to their goodies.
And closing it back up again!
You May Also Be Interested In:
Fat Quarter Fabric Bunting
How To Make Cloth Napkins For Your Child's Lunchbox from Buggy and Buddy
Zippered Snack Bag from The Sewing Loft
From Other Great Bloggers:
Sew A DIY Reusable Snack Bag (with Velcro) from The DIY MommyHow To Make Cloth Napkins For Your Child's Lunchbox from Buggy and Buddy
Zippered Snack Bag from The Sewing Loft
