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How to Sew a Custom Canvas Tote

How to Sew a Custom Tote

Tote Week | Pretty Handy Girl

Hey guys! Do you know what today is? It’s the beginning of Tote Week! What, you had no idea? Tote Week here on Pretty Handy Girl is five days devoted to Tote Bags! Learn how to sew adorable tote bags and how to customize store bought tote bags.

If you’re just joining in here’s the line up:

To start us off, Jaime is here to give you the basic sewing tutorial to make your own lined (and monogrammed) tote bag. Jaime is from That’s My Letter, a blog filled with DIY Tutorials. Today, she’s showing you How to Sew a Custom Canvas Tote complete with painted monogram:

canvas tote

This tote makes a great everyday bag or purse, just big enough for all the important stuff but not too bulky.  The finished size is 16″w x 9″h x 8″ square at the base, and the handles extend about 6″ in height.

canvas tote 13

The tote is fully lined and includes an interior zippered pocket.  The zipper is easy as pie I promise!  I’ll show you how down below.

You can add any monogram or name to personalize the tote.  Then you’ll be making canvas totes as gifts for all your friends.

canvas tote 3

The square base makes for a nice wide tote and the canvas is super durable:

canvas tote 2

Materials:

  • drop cloth canvas (1 yard)
  • blue canvas (1/2 yard outdoor patio fabric Sunbrella or the like)
  • lining (1 yard)
  • medium weight fusible interfacing (1 yard)
  • firm interfacing – 9″ x 9″
  • 1 1/2″w cotton webbing (1 yard)
  • 9″ zipper
  • lightbox
  • small paintbrush
  • acrylic paint
  • sewing machine, thread to match, iron, seam ripper

Materials Cut List:

Base:

  • 1 – blue canvas 9″ x 9″
  • 1 – lining 9″ x 9″
  • 1 – drop cloth canvas 9″ x 9″
  • 1 – firm interfacing 9″ x 9″

Body:

  • 2 – drop cloth canvas 10″h x 17″l
  • 2 – med. fusible interfacing 10″ x 17″
  • 2 – lining 10″ x 17″
  • 2 – blue canvas 4″h x 17″w

Handles: 2 – 1 1/2″w cotton webbing @ 17″l

Instructions:

canvas tote fabric cuts

Step 1: Cut materials (see cut list above).

canvas tote base

Step 2: Prepare base.  Sandwich drop cloth, firm interfacing then blue canvas. Read more

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DIY Pouf Ottoman ~ Tutorial and Lessons Learned

DIY Pouf Ottoman ~ Tutorial and Lessons Learned

Hey everyone!  It’s Katie again from Addicted 2 DIY.  Today, I have (1) a tutorial on how to make a fun DIY pouf ottoman and (2) a few lessons I learned while I was making mine that will help you out when making your own.  I’m pretty certain it’s hard to miss the fact that pouf ottomans are everywhere right now.  The problem is the price.  These babies are expensive!  I refuse to pay a high price for something that I can make myself. I bought some fabric and figured out how to make my own!

DIY Pouf Ottoman ~ Tutorial and Lessons Learned

I’m no pro at sewing, so know that this is a tutorial for even a novice sewer! Sewing is not one of my chosen hobbies, but I do love the fact that I am able to save a ton of money when I make things myself.

Materials:

Instructions:

Cut your fabric pieces.  For the top and bottom of the pouf, cut two squares of fabric at 19×19″.  For the sides, cut four pieces at 19×15″.

DIY Pouf Ottoman ~ Tutorial and Lessons Learned

Sewing on the Zipper:

Sew two side pieces together (on the short sides) with a basting stitch.  Press open the seam and place the zipper face down on the seam.  Pin the zipper in place.  (Note:  You don’t have to use a zipper, and I didn’t on my first pouf, but it will make it difficult to sew together when it is stuffed because the polystyrene beads will try to fall out everywhere.) Read more

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Home is Where the Heart Is – Door Decor

house-shape-door-decor-1

house shape door decor collage

How about an unusual front door decor idea today?  Jaime from That’s My Letter here to share this house shape door decor project with free plans to make your own.

house shape door decor title

A little play on “home is where the heart is,” this door decor is definitely different and not your typical wreath.  I used 1×3 pine boards to make the house shape then added the cut out hearts to hang in the middle. (Yes the house shape does look like an arrow. If you want to make an arrow shape, those plans are below as well.)

house shape door decor 1

This would also make great indoor wall art. Imagine all the paint color possibilities!

house shape door decor hearts

Supplies:

  • 1 – 1″ x 3″ x 6′ pine board
  • 1/4″ plywood scraps
  • miter saw
  • measuring tape
  • pencil
  • wood glue
  • finish nailer
  • 1 1/4″ finish nails
  • 3/4″ finish nails
  • scroll saw or jigsaw
  • sandpaper
  • wire hanger
  • drill
  • 1/8″ drill bit
  • wood putty
  • white spray paint
  • red acrylic craft paint
  • paintbrush
  • clear exterior grade polyurethane spray

Below are the step-by-step instructions to make your own wood house shape door decor. Always follow all precautions and safety rules when using power tools.

house shape door decor dimensions

 

Cut List:

  • 1 – 1×3 @ 12 3/4″, one end 45 degree miter (roof)
  • 1 – 1×3 @ 12″, one end 45 degree miter (roof)
  • 2 – 1×3 @ 2 1/2″, one end 45 degree miter (roof overhang)
  • 2 – 1×3 @ 13″ (sides)
  • 1 – 1×3 @ 9 1/2″ (base)

 

Step 1: Assemble roof.  Attach long side to short side using glue and 1 1/4″ finish nails.
house shape door decor step 1

Step 2: Add roof overhang pieces to mitered ends of roof.  Use glue and 3/4″ finish nails here.  Below demonstrates how to cut these super short mitered pieces. Read more

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How to Make an Ottoman Table

How to Make an Ottoman Table

Design inspiration can often come in the least-expected places. It can happen when you are in an airport or at the farmers market or just plain window shopping in your home town. Last year when I was at the Haven blog conference, I fell in love with this table I saw in the hotel restaurant.

How to Make an Ottoman Table

But want is it called? An ottoman tray, a side table, a bridge? Turns out it is all those things. Today I’m going to teach you how to make one. This simple piece of furniture is not only easy to make, but very functional too. It can fit perfectly over an ottoman in your home and give you a steady place for a book or your favorite drink. Or if you don’t have an ottoman, it makes a nice side table too.

Materials:

  • MDF board – These come in many sizes at the home improvement store. For this project I used a piece that was 1 x 10 x 72″.
  • L-brackets
  • Wood screws
  • Primer
  • Paint
  • Drill and drill bits
  • Circular saw (optional)

Instructions:

First, measure the size of the ottoman you want to slide the ottoman table over. Make sure you have enough clearance for it to fit the width and the height of the ottoman. You will have three boards total. Two that will serve as the “legs” and one that will be the top.

Transfer your measurements to the board. Using a circular saw, cut the board in two places according to your measurements, giving you three boards.

You can have the board cut for you at the home improvement store and save yourself a step. (This works for me a lot since I have a small car, then it easily fits inside on the way home.)

Wipe of any sawdust with a rag.

How to Make an Ottoman Table

Prime and paint the boards. It’s a good idea to use a “gripping” primer so that your table will be stand up to frequent use. There are also enamel paints that are meant for furniture that you can use as the color. If you have paint on hand, use what you got! Or, sample cans are only around $4 and should cover your entire piece, depending on the size.

After the boards are dry, you can assemble the table. Take the top piece and turn it upside down on a soft surface. Place a “leg” board perpendicular next to it and mark where to place the L-bracket. Read more

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Wall Mounted TV with Hidden Wires Tutorial

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

Do you have a flat screen TV? Do you have children? Wish you could mount your TV on the wall for space and safety? Or have you already mounted your TV, but the wires are visible and hang below your screen? GASP—not the dreaded visible wires syndrome!

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

Today I have a tutorial to show you How to Install a Wall Mount for your TV AND How to Hide those Unsightly Wires in a cable management system. SANUS sent me their Full-Motion TV Wall Mount and In-Wall Cable Management to use for this tutorial. Before you start thinking that you can’t do this, or that you have to hire an electrician to run power behind the TV, you don’t! And this is a very easy DIY project! The SANUS In-Wall Cable Management System is the coolest product. It allows you to hook up to an existing outlet elsewhere (within 60″ horizontally from your TV)! (Per FTC regulations, you should know that this is a sponsored post for SANUS, but I approached them after researching TV mounts and cable management systems. )

Genevieve Gorder has some good information about why you want to use a SANUS mount in this short video:

Why did I want to use the SANUS mount? Here’s just a few reasons:

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

You can pull your screen out from the wall or press it back to just a few inches away. (The arms extend a full 20″. Further than shown, because our cables are too short to fully extend.)

The power cord plugs into an ultra low profile in wall cable system. All wires are hidden behind the TV.

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

The TV can also extend and swivel from left to right. This allows us to be able to watch TV from the adjacent room! Which means the kids can eat pizza AND watch a movie because they can safely sit at the kitchen table and view the movie in the living room. Score one for Mom!  No more pizza stains on the rug or sofa.

Installing a Wall Mount Flat Screen TV + Hiding Cords | PrettyHandyGirl

Ready to learn how you can easily mount your flat-screen TV on the wall AND hide the wires? Let’s get to it! Read more

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