I was asked last year if I would be able to make a tote bag out of a very special pair of men’s shorts. I was sent a picture of the shorts, and they were stunning! I immediately said I was keen to do it, not quite knowing just how I would do tackle it. I knew I had to have the shorts in front of me, before I could even begin to work out just how to go about this task. They were a treasured pair of shorts, as they had belonged to the deceased son of the lovely person wanting the bag made from them. The shorts were sent across the country to be transformed by me. The pressure was on….
I had never done this before, though I had successfully made a smart skirt and bolero jacket suit for my youngest daughter out of an old suit of her dad’s (challenging, I must admit!), and I had made some tote bags, so this was a new challenge, but I felt up for it. The person wanting it had seen a tote bag I had made and loved it, and trusted me to be able to make a beautiful tote from her beloved son’s shorts.
I had those shorts on my sewing table for a few weeks, as I pondered how to go about the task! I knew I needed extra fabric for the lining, so bought something suitable. I looked at them every day; I watched some videos on Pinterest and Youtube, and then one day I got bold and started cutting – there was no way back now! The shorts were going to be transformed into a beautiful bag, using just about every part of them. I was excited!
I unpicked the inner leg seems of the shorts, and straightened up these seems so that I could sew them together as a centre seem down both sides of the bag. I didn’t want to lose the basic shorts look in making the bag, so the two sides of the bag would look like the front and back of a pair of shorts. I sewed closed the front side pockets as wanted to use the inner fabric of the pockets for the new ones I was making on the inner of the bag. The back pockets remained in place, to be used on the bag.
I made the inner lining and added two beautiful pockets, one with a zip and one without, using the striped fabric from the front pocket inners, and the smart zip from the front of the shorts, as I obviously sewed this closed as well. I carefull took off the name and size label from the inside of the shorts and sewed it onto the new pocket I made for the outside front of the bag. I was taking shape now and I could picture the finished product.
The straps were made from the inner lining fabric as well, and I had to buy a zip for the main opening as that was about 40cm long. I made a lovely zip tag for it from the lining fabric too, so everything mixed and matched and looked good together. To finish it off, I tied a matching scarf through the belt loops, and it just completed the look!
I had overheard a woman in a fabric shop about two years earlier, saying she was doing so well making and selling tote bags, and they were easy to make! Of course my interest was piqued and I was intrigued, as I had never tried making a bag. I love bags, so went straight to the pattern books and found a pattern. I went home and made a bag, quite successfully too, except I thought it was a little small and needed a few adjustments to get it to my liking, like a zip to be able to close it properly, and a lining, and then I got making some more. I find mine so useful as a carry all, and have given them to friends and family as gifts. I went wrong with the zip at first (that was my addition of course), and soon realised I needed a stronger and tougher one, so have replaced a few and now use better quality zips for my totes.
I am still experimenting a bit with fabrics, as there is so much scope for creativity in making a tote. Making the tote from shorts taught me that, and I have made another tote from a pair of old and worn denim jean now too. It also worked well.
My finished tote from shorts was a great success, I thought, and after taking a few pictures, some of which you can see here, I sent it off to the recipient, and waited with baited breath…..She received it and loved it, and last I heard hadn’t used it yet as it was so special. I am sure by now it is in use and well loved and it will always carry special memories with it, of her wonderful son now gone. I was so touched to have been asked to make this bag, and am so glad that the bag I made is part of those memories which will be treasured forever.