Hacking the Drop Style Shupatto Bag

A roomy, self-folding bag anyone can use!

I wish crafters were more upfront about where their inspiration comes from. Sure would make it a lot easier to find things.

I recently had quite a time trying to hunt down a DIY for the "drop" version of the Japanese Shupatto eco bags. The whole search would have been a lot quicker had people described their projects as Shupatto hacks, but nooo.... none of the ones I eventually found used the name in their videos.

It's like they don't want you to know that they got the basic idea from somewhere, as if somehow they came up with it all on their own. I mean, who are they fooling?

Well, not me, mainly because I have been aware of this different take on the Shupatto from way back when. (Over four years ago, around the time I posted about my own project.)

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The Shupatto drop style bag upends the original design and locates the straps at the top, instead of the middle; like so:

A different version of the Shupatto style...

Like the original, this one is very much open to being DIY'd. As soon as you understand the essential parts of the bag and how they work, you can make it in whatever size you want, without a pattern. (I gathered most of my "how to" info from a YouTube channel called tatarapattern2756, from a video that was uploaded October 7, 2020. It's mostly Japanese, but includes pertinent data in English.)

She gives fabric measurements for a large and medium version, but if you're like me and usually work within the confines of what's available in your stash, it's perfectly fine to deviate from them. Generally speaking, a long rectangle of fabric is required, with the bag's finished dimensions being roughly width of fabric x half length of fabric. My fabric was about 55" long x 22" wide.

If you want to know the basics of how to make this bag, read on; I will provide some high level instructions.

Cutting & Prepping Fabric

As I said, you'll need a long rectangular piece of fabric, the thinner the better. Why? It will need to be folded accordion-style and it's easier to sew layers of thin fabric than thick. (I used a polyester microfiber; a rip stop nylon would be great.) Oh, and an important FYI to consider: don't choose a fabric with a directional print or it will be upside down on one side of the bag!

Fold fabric piece in half and find the halfway point along the folded edge. Draw a horizontal line there, about 40% of the length of the folded fabric. (That is, if the fabric was 55" long to begin with, folded in half, its length would be 27.5", and 40% of 27.5" is 11" — so the line drawn should be 11" long.)

At the same time, make marks along the two open edges on both sides; i.e., four marks in total (as shown by the red arrows above) corresponding to the endpoints of that line. With the fabric still folded, cut along the line, thereby creating a "hole" in the middle of the fabric.

Binding the Raw Edge of the Handles

The opening that was just created will be the inside edges of the bag handles. In all of the tutorials that I saw, the crafters used two strips of 1" grosgrain ribbon sewn together to "bind" these raw edges. I sort of did the same, but since my ribbon was 1.25" wide, I just folded it in half and wrapped it around the raw edge of the fabric instead of sewing two ribbons together. Saved me some ribbon and the end result is the same: the raw edges are hidden.

Hide the raw edges of fabric with grosgrain ribbon...

To provide reinforcement and to create a clean looking finish on the outside, two more pieces of ribbon are sewn in at the ends of this opening. (In case you're wondering, the raw edge ends of all ribbon pieces are turned under before sewing.)

Sew Side Seams

Folded with wrong side out, use a wide seam allowance (between 1/2" and 3/4") to sew up the side seams from the bottom to the marks.

Sew side seams...

Press (or finger press) the seams open. 

Because the bag is unlined, the next step is to eliminate the raw edges by seaming again. (This is why the original seam allowance was relatively large.) I don't know what this particular technique is called, but you can see it here and it's just each side of the seam being folded under and then sewn in place.

Hide raw seams and extend up along outside of handles...

Note that this "folding and sewing" will extend all the way up into that area that was previously left open, creating a seam for the outside of the bag handles.

Create the Accordion Folds

This step may or may not be difficult. Some people – like me – will happily take this and run with it (without measuring) while others will insist on having some guidelines to proceed. You do you. If you need to measure out intervals to make the folds, by all means.

Create accordion folds and press...

The thing is, there is no hard and fast rule as to how many accordion folds you need to have. (I ended up making three; in my opinion that's enough, although actual Shupattos feature more and narrower pleats.) The objective is to have the same number on both sides and both halves and for them to be more or less even. Perfection, however, is not required! In the end, it will function even if the folds are not exactly the same.

Once you're done folding, a trip to the ironing board is recommended, to give the pleats a good press to set them. (Be careful with the iron if the fabric is prone to scorching — now is not the time to ruin your project!)

Secure Bottom of Bag and Top of Handles

Once the bottom has been sewn together and trimmed, another piece of ribbon is attached – along with an elastic – to finish off the bag. The layers at the very top of each handle are also sewn together for ease of use, particularly to effect that famous Shupatto snap.

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For the original Shupatto, you'd yank on the two bound ends to snap the bag back into its accordion folds. For this one, you pull on the bottom and the top handles to do the same. Then you just fold a few times along its length until you can wrap the elastic around the whole thing.

Folds into a 4" x 4" square...

This is a fun and functional bag. And really, I know we all have those hefty totes that we take to the grocery store, but having something light like this that can fold away and be handy for "emergency" shopping — you can't beat it.

For something that folds down easily into a small square, it holds a lot!

In the size that I made, it can hold a lot; there are a couple of folded bath towels inside the bag in the photos here. (Depending on what you make it out of, it can also be quite strong.) I will say that loading the bag is not the same as the original Shupatto, which had the advantage of being able to be spread out absolutely flat. Not like it's hard to put things in this, but the switched up orientation of the bag means that the opening is narrower.

But hey, it's got a style and purpose (it was developed to hold vertical items more securely) of its own and is a noteworthy companion for the original. It's also a wonderful rainy day project – which it was for me and explains the questionable lighting in some of the photos – and any you make would be great stocking stuffers.

By the way, I rarely offer up external links these days, but the actual Shupatto site is quite an entertaining destination; check it out. 

'Til next... 🇨🇦🍁

Of Comics & Quilts

Betty asking about Elizabeth Hartman's quilt design...

Towards the end of my university days, I came across a comic strip by the unlikely name of Bub Slug, created by fellow alumni Gary Delainey (artist) and Gerry Rasmussen (writer), who had the sheer audacity to situate the titular character in their own home town: the unassuming city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; aka, my home town.

Bub was a hockey-loving blue collar worker. (His job, I believe, was being the maintenance man for our iconic High Level Bridge.) At some point, Bub Slug – the strip, not the character – disappeared into the comic strip ether, but in the early 1990s, a new creation called Betty (featuring Bub's wife, but also involving Bub and their son) took its place.

I've been reading Betty on a regular basis for many years now.

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Why am I telling you this? Well, because one, it's still increasingly difficult for me to come up with things to write about, but mainly two, because sometimes other interests of mine intersect with the topic at hand here, quite unexpectedly. I had known for some time that Betty is a crafter and sewer (having seen evidence of it on various occasions) but recently, the moment arrived for me to write about her.

Here's a funny strip from June of 2023 that tells you all you need to know. I saved this because, first of all, I totally identified with the idea that it takes a long time to pick out fabric... particularly if you're doing so in an actual fabric shop. (It's a very intimidating experience.) Second of all... well, the visual punch line of course!

A notable Sunday edition of Betty from June 2023 that was a hoot!

What ultimately convinced me to write about Betty is that in mid March, the boys unveiled a storyline about quilting, with the first strip showing Betty watching videos online, resulting in a side conversation between Bub and son Junior that with Mom thinking about making another quilt, she'll be taking over a part of the house for about a month.

Only a month?

I look at full-size quilts and see them as years long projects. They have the potential of becoming albatrosses around their makers' necks; or more aptly, in sewing parlance, WIPs or UFOs that hang around forever. Now, for someone who's an active quilter – i.e., not Betty or me – making a quilt is just a natural part of life and if approached as if it were everyday work, it might just take a couple of months to make (assuming it's not a "quick and dirty" t-shirt or rag quilt).

But only a month for the likes of Betty? (Or me?) No, Bub, it probably ain't gonna be just a month. Not unless she throws herself into the project full-time. (I can just imagine all the cutting!) Now, this particular storyline eventually segued into a "maybe we should finish our basement so that we both have a permanent space to do our hobbies" thing, but not before Bub accompanies Betty to the intimidating fabric store where he gives and receives advice on the whole fabric selection process. Har!

Here's the strip that essentially triggered this post...

Penguins?? Did someone mention penguins??

I looked up "Penguin Party" to see if it was an actual quilt design, and of course – good work, G and G – it was. It's the creation of Elizabeth Hartman, who has designed some nifty looking, non-traditional quilt patterns, in my opinion. Looking through her shop, I was almost tempted. I was particularly drawn to the Greenhouse and Beehive patterns, for the fact that they remind me of our indoor garden (which we've now guided through a fourth winter) and for my love of bees in general.

Given that she's made quilts before, I would think she has some idea...?

To any of you who have been around here for awhile, or have seen my first project, it'll also come as no surprise that I am enamoured of penguins as well. Potentially making Bub's "about a month" prediction possible, Ms. Hartman's options for her Penguin Party pattern encompass a throw pillow, a child's quilt and a lap quilt... i.e., none of them are sized for bed use. But what I loved about the design was the hack that she provided for dressing the penguins in long sleeved sweaters!

Is there anything cuter than penguins wearing sweaters??
(image courtesy of elizabethhartman.com...)

I was "this close"...! But no, I don't need another throw pillow, and I have no want to make a quilt of any size. (I also don't have the fabric stash required to make quilts like this look good, and at this point, I'm definitely not buying more fabric.)

Ya gotta love Bub!

This kind of "precise measuring, cutting and build-a-block sewing" style of quilting is not beyond my skillset – as I found out when I turned some large blocks into mini quilts several years ago – but the rigidity and repetitiveness of it is not my thing.

Remember Fat Quarter Shop's Snapshots quilt for St. Jude?
This is the Camera block that I ended up making (but never posted about) in the fall of (pandemic) 2020...

If I'm going to do any more quilting, it will involve the more scrappy, forgiving methods that I've come across: "free-form", bargello and improv.

In all honesty, even the free form appliqué quilting that was done on this kite was a bit too much of an ordeal for me.

One side of my kite window hanging...

If I'm going to quilt again, the results won't be so big that they need to be spread out on a bed or sofa. (My first bargello table topper is actually draped over the headrest of a leather chair in our bedroom.)

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I found other bargello patterns that intrigued me after I made my own version back in 2023. (One that particularly caught my attention is something called a Spicy Spiral, which I may get around to making someday.) I also happened upon a relatively obscure YouTube video by Connie Spurlock.

If you were a reader here towards the end of my "regular" blogging stint, you may recall one of the last things I did was to DIY a wedge ruler to help me make my second wavy bargello table topper. Connie's video is an instructive demonstration of the different quilting patterns you can make with a ten degree wedge ruler. The method can be used to design things ranging from large wall hangings to small pot holders... and of course, you can also incorporate bargello into the mix.

Connie Spurlock offers up a great selection of quilting options using a 10 degree ruler...
(image courtesy of YouTube)

It's definitely worth taking a gander at if you're at all interested in what I call "quilting without too much commitment."

And on that note, I am done with comics and quilting for today. But before I go, I want to acknowledge that I reached out to Gerry Rasmussen – and through him, to his partner in crime, Gary Delainey – to ask for permission to reproduce their work here for this post. (From the standpoint of someone who has had her work misappropriated, it's the right thing to do, as always.) I was delighted to receive an enthusiastic affirmative response very quickly on a holiday weekend. It confirmed my belief that we Edmontonians are simply the best!

Thanks, guys, for the permission to share, as well as for your ongoing creativity. I appreciate having the unique opportunity to let you know how much I've enjoyed your work over the past decades. Here's hoping I will continue to see Betty's adventures throughout my senior years!

Question for the rest of you: has this discussion piqued your interest in quilting by any amount?

'Til next... 🇨🇦🍁

Customized "Eggsy" Shoulder Bag

Customized Eggsy Shoulder Bag for my man...

I promised this "before the end of summer" and here it is one day prior!

When I came across Miko Craft's YouTube channel back in March, I determined to make one project and tagged a second one for future consideration.

As it happened, both projects shared the charmingly descriptive name of "Eggsy" — one being a backpack and the other being a sling bag. Per their namesake, they each have an oval rounded shape to them.

You've already seen the customized backpack that I made for me. Within a month of finishing it, I had a spare week alone – hubby was off camping – to work on the sling, which was destined to be a birthday gift for him. It took me a day and a half to sew up and I was quite pleased with how it turned out.

As with the previous bag, I added things and changed up the strap. I also came away with "lessons learned", which may be the subject of a future blog post, for the edification of anyone wanting to make either of these bags with the same modifications.

To start today's discussion, let's go back almost a decade to a personalized sling bag that I purchased from Vistaprint.

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This is the Twister Sling Bag by Leed's that I bought for hubby's bday that year. The image below is a generic one from the manufacturer; the one I ordered is the same colour, but had a custom image imprinted on the main front panel (the phrase from our joint design project, You Just Can't Fix Stupid).

image courtesy of Leed's...

The bag, while serviceable, was bigger than he preferred and had a cheap, nylon-y feel to it that just didn't make the grade. (It definitely shows better in the photo than it felt in RL.) Ultimately put aside, I figured I would eventually take the materials and turn it into something more suitable.

Which is how I arrived at this customized version of the Eggsy Shoulder Bag. For this project, I harvested the two zippers, the mesh pocket, an interior hanging pocket, and the complete strap assembly. (Oh, and of course, I also cut out the personalized part that read "You Just Can't Fix Stupid.")

Front view...

The original Eggsy has no pockets apart from the two zippered compartments. It's actually fairly plain in that sense, and while I knew that it's likely because it's somewhat of a small bag, the idea of no additional pockets just doesn't sit right with me. So of course, the first plan was to add one, or two, or three...

Actually, the first plan was to choose fabrics. Since there weren't many options, I was happy with what I found. (Thought briefly about using old denim, but decided against it because – once again – my supply of it is too distressed to turn out a bag that doesn't scream, I was made out of old jeans!) These selections are from a 2018 Craftsy purchase. The gold/brown micro dot print (as well as the cream coloured lining) is part of the Boundless DECOdent Earthtone collection and was first used on my Purl Bee Penguin. The contrasting front side panels are made out of Tim Holtz Eclectic Elements (Rulers) leftovers from this pouch that was also made for hubby.

Back view of my customized Eggsy Shoulder Bag...

As is the case whenever I do a YouTube project these days, I ran the video and snipped screenshots out to a Word doc. After determining what my modifications would be, I then added notes where required in the process. For example, for the mesh pocket that was added to the back of the bag, this was where I put the instruction in my Word document:

images courtesy of Miko Craft's YouTube channel...

Even though I knew the gusset was going to be quite narrow, I still added a slip pocket to each side. They're good for holding pens, combs, straws. My other half has clip-on sunglasses that can fit in there.

Side view showing one of the gusset pockets...

The largest pocket that I added was a full-width interior slip pocket against the back of the bag in the main compartment. It was made out of the same fabric as the lining.

At the top of this same compartment, I attached a key chain and tiny pocket combo that I kept from a discarded key case. The key chain is secured by two snap fasteners. I believe if it's turned upside down, any keys on the ring can be stored inside the pocket; otherwise the pocket is probably only useful for keeping a shopping cart coin.

View of main compartment interior...

By the way, I used Decor Bond as the interfacing for the exterior fabric. True to reputation, it tends to crinkle with repeated handing – and (man)handle it you must when it comes to turning these assemblies right side out – but the effect is always less noticeable on darker fabric. Also, if you can press at each juncture, it goes a long way to alleviate the problem. I do like the stiffness that it provides.

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The Twister Bag had a nylon slip pocket that was sewn to the top of the lining inside the main compartment. It was therefore an easy decision to reuse it in the same manner here. The only difference is that it's in the top (smaller) compartment of the Eggsy.

Recycled interior hanging pocket...

For the second time in a row, I totally changed up the strap. Of course, this time it was unavoidable since I took an entire strap from one bag to reuse on another.

 

The strap that came with the Twister Sling Bag was very long. As you can see in the various pics, the portion of webbing left hanging free is rather substantial... and this is after I cut off at least half of the wider section of fabric connected to it. I suppose if you're a big bulky linebacker and need to carry the bag across your body, the extra length might be useful, but here it was just excessive.

Opposite side view showing strap attachment...

The nylon fabric section of the strap was directly attached to the top of the Twister bag, unlike what was designated for the Eggsy. The Eggsy called for 4cm wide webbing to be encased in the anchor at the top of the bag. Meanwhile, the webbing that formed the bottom part of the Twister strap was only 2.5cm wide.

It was a problem begging for some "outside of the box" thinking. I arrived at my solution by unpicking the binding around the nylon section, sewing a section of webbing to it and then attaching the binding to the webbing to create the required width. In doing this, I was also able to sew the personalized piece onto the lower part of the nylon fabric area. Win-win!

As usual, for an idea of scale...

This bag was a more difficult "sew" than the Eggsy Backpack. I would classify it as an intermediate project at a minimum, largely due to the repeated "sewing around in a circular fashion" that's not easy to do when zippers are part of the equation. Add the fact that this is a fairly small bag that would tend to show imperfections more readily than a bigger backpack.

Miko fully demonstrates all of the required sewing in the video, but darned if he doesn't make it seem so easy! (Mind you, my use of Decor Bond – as well as the extra layers that were added with all of my modifications – did not make the sewing any easier either!)

'Til next... 🇨🇦🍁

Pearls of Wisdom

One of two painstakingly hand-crafted pearl trees...

I love trees.

It's not something that I think about on a regular basis, but whenever I see an unusual or particularly magnificent tree, I'm reminded of this fact.

On our vacation through Cape Breton Island and Ottawa, I was captivated by how leafy trees canopied the highways in that part of the country. It's so unlike what I see at home on the prairies, where – if it's not flat farmland disappearing into the horizon – the trees are more the tall, sparsely branched evergreen variety than the thick, bushy deciduous kind.

Anyway, for those of you who don't give two figs how I feel about trees, that was a long preamble to the subject of today's post, which you can tell from the photos is clearly not about sewing, although it is somewhat about trees. It is also a bit about problem solving and making do. As I've learned over the past decade, to evolve as a student of sewing – or any craft or livelihood – it is extremely helpful to know how to adapt to unforeseen circumstances.

Pearl trees bookending my ROKR wooden owl...

Sometime last year, I looked up what item traditionally marks a 30th wedding anniversary and learned that it was pearls. When I did a search for what type of pearl gifts were common, I found a whole lot of trees. Naturally, my immediate thought was, how can I DIY one?

Off I went to YouTube.

By the way, I don't recall which exact videos that I watched, but here is an example that shows one way of tackling this (you'll have to copy and paste the link to make it work):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opJhbuOsvmE

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After seeing a couple of videos, I felt confident of being able to attempt the process. I wasn't looking to replicate anyone's project, just wanting to understand the basic technique enough to put my own spin on something. (Didn't realize how true that would end up being at the time!)

For supplies, trips to Dollar Tree and Dollarama yielded the following items for $8.50:

My DIY supplies...

I was actually quite pleased with the look of the pearls and purchased four packages in three different sizes. Underneath the supplies, you can see my planning sheet where I scribbled out how to make various branches and how many beads they would require.

I'm calling them beads because that's what I assumed they were based on the labeling on the packages. Even after I opened them up and dumped them into small zippered bags, it still didn't occur to me that they were oddly missing one important characteristic of being called a "bead."

THEY HAD NO HOLES.

Technically, not beads!

On the day that I sat down to start making my tree, I cut a length of wire and finally noticed that I had no way of threading these!

I knew that I only spent $7 on these "beads" and could have gone out and found others with actual holes in them, but something told me to make the best of the situation and come up with a solution. This meant, of course, going back online and searching for ideas.

What I came across were stones and other found items being wrapped with wire to make jewelry. While I could see how that would work for odd shaped pieces, a slippery round bead would surely be hard to wrap, right?

As it turned out, if one is patient and determined, it's doable.

A "make do" solution...

At first, I used two lengths of wire, overlapping them to form a cross around the pearl. I figured this would be the most secure way to hold them (and it probably is). However, this method used up a lot of wire and the result wasn't pretty. It led me to decide that my original instinct – the single wrap that you see here – was the right choice, even though it's obviously not the most secure.

What I discovered was that if I twisted really tightly, the hold was surprisingly good. (And no, I didn't have to apply any glue.)

My plan was to make twenty branches with eleven beads on each. The first seven beads were the small size, followed by two medium and then two large ones. The branch pictured below is nicely done – I definitely got better with practice – but the first attempts were imperfect, to say the least.

I made eighteen branches in this general style...

I ran out of wire after finishing fifteen branches, so it was back to Dollarama to pick up more. With a new supply of wire, I decided to start wrapping branches together to see if I could form a decent looking tree of any sort. It soon became clear that this particular wire wasn't strong enough to support more than three branches put together, so – once again – it was time to re-think the process. Instead of one big tree, I decided to create an arrangement using combinations of three branches.

This arrangement has six branches...

My plan was to push these branches into a floral foam block and then put that into a decorative pot. But around the same time as this crafting was happening, I was trying to find a way to make a couple of Airwick air fresheners work again.

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Destined for the garbage bin, these came in handy...

I'd had these for years and years and didn't realize that the batteries aren't replaceable. (What a waste, huh? Luckily both of these units were free; would have been a bad purchase.) With no way to initiate the warming action anymore, I had pulled off the plastic cover and was simply waiting for the remaining oil to disperse. The little glass bottles, however, gave me inspiration.

They are just the right size and have enough weight to them to hold my pearl branches in place. The opening, however, is only big enough for three bunches of three branches, so I made only three others, calling the project a done deal at eighteen branches total.

Very happy to have found another opportunity for reuse in the most unlikeliest of circumstances!

This arrangement is made up of nine branches...

By the way, as I was wrapping the branches together, I only had three beads pop out on me. I was super impressed that they held up to being manipulated in such a manner. I had another two pop out as I twisted and bent individual "leaves" to arrange them, but all in all, their holding power has been amazing.

In the end, I'm totally satisfied with how this project came together after the unexpected obstacle of beads having no holes. (Oh, I've since been edified about these pearls: apparently they're meant to be used decoratively as filler for vases or glass containers. I still think they should be clearly labelled as having no holes, however.) The only real negative was that it wasn't a project that hubby was able to participate in; per my original intention. I had envisioned us taking the supplies on our vacation out east and assembling branches during our down time. Given how the process ended up being rather finicky, neither the ultimately fragile branches nor hubby's bigger fingers would have made that plan a reality!

Before I sign off – to stay on topic and as further evidence that I am fond of trees – here are three tree projects that are actually sewing related that I've either made or provided a reference to: the hanging Christmas tree, tabletop tree and button tree.

'Til next... 🇨🇦🍁