More Denim and Zippers

My latest project inspiration actually came from this zipper.  I found it at SAS and loved the heavy industrial nature of the zipper.  I actually scored 3 of them for $0.25 each.  I also got to help my sister fix some denim overalls for a neighbor and there was a lot of material left over.  I asked if I could use some of it and she graciously said yes.  The brown corduroy was some I already had in my stash.  I wanted to use all the zipper and not cut it.  Plus I knew even my industrial straight stitch sewing machine wouldn't make it over those teeth.  So I decided to make a large cross-body hobo bag.  As you can tell I'm still loving the frayed denim look, plus a little chevron, and you can't go wrong. So here's how I made the bag.

First I made the pattern out of freezer paper and cut 2 pieces of the denim, and 2 pieces of the corduroy.

Next I cut the chevron.
It's actually one piece of denim folded in 4th's and cut at a slant.
Open it up and Voila!  A perfect Chevron.
Pin the strips in place and stitch down.

I wanted an inner pocket in the bag so I added one with another zipper I picked up at SAS.

I cut the rectangle to be just larger than the length of the zipper and marked the fabric where the ends of the zipper  were. Put one of the rectangles on top of the inside piece of corduroy and pin in place.

Sew a rectangle like shown to be just larger than the size of the zipper.  Clip the inside of the sewn rectangle like shown.

Flip one of the pieces inside the other one to create the window, press flat, and top stitch the zipper inside the window.  I thought I took a picture of that step. Sorry 'bout that.  Then take the extra rectangle and sew around the edges to the inside piece already attached to the purse body.

Now for the other side.  I just wanted some big pockets, at least big enough to fit my iPhone, pluse some other treasures like pens and chapstick.  I cut a piece to fit the inside body of the purse, hemmed the top edge and pinned where I wanted the pocket lines to be.  If you look close you can tell I put a little breathing room in each pocket, not sewn down tight and flat.

Now assemble the purse leaving the raw edges exposed.

I just put the inside corduroy with the outside denim and sewed them together 

with a long strip for the bottom of the bag.

Here's a close up of the edges.

Add the handle and zipper and it's done.

I clipped the edges then washed it twice.

Cute  Done,  & Upcycled.