Easy Drawstring Pouches
Turn old T-shirt sleeves into handy drawstring pouches in about 10 minutes! By using the existing hem as a drawstring channel, you can make small fabric bags with as little as one seam.
Equipment
- Sewing machine, serger, or sewing needle
- scissors
- Safety pin
Ingredients
- T-shirt sleeve Cut from an old T-shirt
- Cord or ribbon, or fabric strips for the drawstrings
- Thread
Instructions
- Cut a sleeve off an old T-shirt and turn it inside out.
- Trim the sleeve to the desired shape and size, leaving a little extra fabric for the seams. Keep the original hem intact, as it will become the top of the pouch.
- If the sides are angled, sew along one or both sides to make the pouch more rectangular. If the sleeve is already fairly straight, you can skip this step.
- Sew across the bottom of the pouch to close it. You can use a regular straight stitch, a zigzag stitch, or a serger.
- Turn the pouch right side out.
- To make a single-drawstring pouch, cut two small openings in the outer layer of the hem, one on either side of a side seam. Be careful not to cut through both layers of fabric.
- Attach a safety pin to one end of your ribbon or cord. Use it to guide the cord all the way around the hem until it comes back out beside where you started.
- Tie the ends of the cord together to finish your pouch.
- For an optional double drawstring, make another pair of small openings on the opposite side of the pouch. Thread a second cord all the way around the hem, starting and ending at those openings.
- Tie the ends of the second cord together. Pull the cords from opposite sides to close the pouch.
Video
Notes
Use T-shirt sleeves for small pouches or the bottom hem of a T-shirt to make larger drawstring bags.
If you don't have a sewing machine, you can sew the seams by hand. Since T-shirt fabric generally doesn't fray, you don't need to worry too much about finishing the seams. A regular straight stitch works fine.
You can use ribbon, decorative cord, or strips of T-shirt fabric for the drawstrings.
These pouches are great for organizing small items, wrapping homemade gifts, or making reusable party favor bags.