Stowe Sew-Along: Cutting & Marking
Today we're starting the Stowe Bag Sew-Along, welcome to the party! There are two previous posts in this series which you can find below, but today we'll be talking about cutting and marking our Stowe bags. I'll be making the small Stowe for this sew-along since, being smaller, it's easier to photograph, but both sizes are made exactly the same way so large or small you're all set with this sew along. If you still need the pattern you can grab that here.
Cutting the Stowe
The first thing you'll need to do when cutting is to lay out your fabric. You're going to fold your fabric selvage to selvage so that you can cut two layers at a time. I like to fold my fabric with the right sides facing out so that I can see the fabric's print through the tissue pattern, but this is completely up to you.
Lay out your pattern pieces according to the cutting layout images in the pattern instruction booklet. The above image is for the small Stowe that we're making in this sew-along.
Once you've cut you'll have two bag body pieces and two pocket pieces as shown above. We now need to transfer our markings over from the pattern to the bag.
Marking the Stowe
While cutting you'll need to mark your notches. I do this with a small clip into the side of the fabric, its an easier maneuver than cutting the traditional home sewing triangles. Since you're just doing a small snip, 1/8″ - 3/16″, into the seam allowance it doesn't show in the finished bag.
Finally you'll need to mark your pocket placement points. You can use chalk or an erasable pen, but I like to stick a pin into the pivot point, that way it doesn't rub out or disappear while I work. We did this back when I worked as a patternmaker for a bridal company and it's something that's just stuck with me.
That's it for cutting and marking your Stowe, we'll start sewing in the next post and you won't believe how quickly this bag will come together! We're using the hashtags #stowebag and #stowealong on social media if you'd like to follow along, and don't forget to also tag @fringesupplyco in the photos as well as @grainlinestudio. If you have any questions on cutting or marking let me know in the comments below, otherwise I'll see you back here Friday for the next step!
