I have been wanting to make this for over a month. While I was cutting fabric for totes last night, I got re-acquainted with a fabric which I thought would be perfect as yoga mat bag.
FUN FACT: I made this the night I skipped yoga class. HEE.
YOU WILL NEED:
Okay, I didn’t have to post the picture above. I just wanted to brush up on my photoshop skills.
1. Measure the circumference and length of your rolled-up yoga mat.
2. Cut your fabric. You’ll get one rectangular piece (circumference x length) and a round piece for your bottom. Add a two-inch allowance to your rectangular piece. For the round piece, I am sure that there is a formular somewhere for getting the exact measurement. I eyeballed mine and used my rolled-up yoga mat as template. Cut the same pieces for your lining. You should also cut 2 strips for your strap. Mine was 33 inches long and 1.25 inches wide.
3. Start sewing. Start with your strap.
4. Turn inside out and topstitch.
5. Fold your rectangular piece, lengthwise. Right sides together.
6. Sew the long side, starting two inches from the edge, but on one side only. Sew all the way to the other end. The unsewn part is for your drawstring.
7. Mark three inches inches from where you started sewing. Pin one end of your strap. The position should be the same as the picture below.
8. Sew your strap to the bag. Be careful not to sew the other side of the bag. Reinforce this part by sewing across the strap several times. I used zigzag stitch.
9. Take your circular part and pin it to the bottom of your bag. This would be the side opposite to where you sewed the strap. Make sure that you sandwich the other end of the strap between the circular part and your bag. In the picture, the strap is between the pink and blue-ish pins.
10. Sew them together. Turn inside out. After that, your bottom (well, not YOUR bottom) will look like this:
11. Sew your lining using similar steps. There is no need to start several inches from the edge when you’re sewing the rectangular part of your lining, though.
12. Insert your lining inside the external part of your bag.
13. Now fold 1 inch of the bag towards the lining. This is the piping for your drawstring.
14. Fold 1/4 inch of the lining towards the part that you folded in Step 13. This would lock your piping nicely.
15. Sew together. When you’re done, you will have a hole where you can insert your ribbon.
FINISHED BAG:
ACTION SHOTS:
HAPPY SEWING!
Jan 20, 2011 @ 20:25:59
Thank-you so much for sharing this. Was in a fix trying to go it alone and make my own yoga mat bag and realised I didn’t have a clue what I was doing! Now, after having come across your site, i am the proud owner of a new, functioning, yoga bag!!
Jan 26, 2011 @ 22:53:39
hey!i love you!i sooooo love you!!!!!not that i changed my sexual preference but i just adore you and your craftyness!i have been a crafter since i was 10 years old..but i never really took everything seriously until a few months ago..i was surfing for inspiration at crafter.com and i came across with one of your works..i totally fell in love with it….and now, guess what???!!!!im followin you! thanks a lot for existing
by the way, are you from around here(i mean from the Phil)????
Feb 27, 2011 @ 06:44:00
I saved this post a LONG time ago and never got around to making my bag. I just made it today! :) I LOVE it! I turned out great. Thanks so much for the post, I had so much fun and it only took me about an hour and a half.
Jun 18, 2011 @ 04:09:45
Es un tutorial genial, ya hice la bolsa quedo de lujo, gracias, muchas gracias.
Aug 01, 2011 @ 07:02:02
This is so cool! I’ve been eyeing patterns to make one for my boyfriend, and some were basically totes. This one would be masculine enough for him, without looking like a handbag. Thanks for sharing! I shall be making it soon for his birthday!
Oct 20, 2011 @ 06:30:25
Hey thanks so much for this :) Now I can ride my bike to yoga class in style thanks to you!
How to make a yoga mat bag « yselite
Nov 30, 2011 @ 17:25:51
[...] course I cannot do it without my online tutorial. Thanks to Meream of [...]
Jan 30, 2012 @ 11:41:44
I used your tutorial to make a bag like this tonight. I went a bit overboard and used a technique called cushioning on the fabric where I took multi colored yarn and fed it into the sewing machine and made a beautiful fabric design on it. I also added a pocket! The bag turned out a bit big but I’m happy with it because I have room for adding my hand towel and foot socks!
Thank you for sharing this tutorial.
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Dec 11, 2012 @ 03:31:38
[...] Yoga mat bags from old sweatshirts or jeans – Get out your needle and thread! (or a sewing machine, might be faster.) Try this how-to. [...]
Mar 24, 2009 @ 10:15:27
Thanks! :)