Fabric box and quilt work bag

My daughter has last year in kindergarten and it was time to gift her kindergarten teachers. They have had a recycling theme at the kindergarten so it's more than fitting to make the gifts out of recycled materials. My daughter wanted to bake cookies so I thought I would make fabric boxes for the cookies.

The outer fabric is from a dress that came to us in a package of used clothes and has never been used here. Apparently it isn't pink/violet enough for a little girl, even though I think it is pretty. I have tried to sell it, again, for couple of euros but maybe it wasn't pink enough to be worth of that. :D 

This is what I got out of the dress:

Naturally there is the skirt and the zip but I would like you to look at the white fabric on the left. It is from the hem line and its width is about 10cm, plenty of beautiful fabric for other projects! I kept the upper part as whole as it is my daughters size and I can sew it together with maybe something pink.

The rose fabric is a left over piece that I have had in my storage for 15 years, time to use it, I think?

First I attached the fusible interfacing to the brown fabric. It would have been good idea to use something stronger, or at least add it to both of them but works ok like this.

I cut the interfacing in parts rather than just one piece and left small gaps between the parts to make it easier to fold.

Then it was time to make and attach the ribbons. Fabric for the ribbon is from old shirt of mine. I would have like to use something from the dress or at least the rose fabric but they were too thick to be used in a small box like this. Simply, attach them to the right side of one fabric (it doesn't really matter which one).

Then just sandwich it (brown and rose fabric that is). Remember to make sure the ribbons don't go under your seam and leave a hole of 5cm for turning the box right way up. Turn it and iron! It looks kind of mess but ironing gives it the look it is supposed to have. Stich around 1-2mm from the edge to give it support and close the hole that was left to turn it. I also sew "a frame" on the bottom along the gaps of the interfacing, again to give it more shape. And you are done!

I have been meaning to give some fabric pieces to the kindergarten to be used for crafting but have been forgetting it whole year. Now I remembered it and I also made a small quilt work bag to put them in. Also the bag was part of the gift.

 I followed partly this instruction to make the bag. I took a selection of old children clothes and cut squares of 10cm x 10cm, sew the main piece together and the side pieces. I also made a lining for the bag to give it support. If you want to make like I did, follow the instructions behind the link for steps 1-4 and the same for lining (leave a gap of about 7cm in one of the seams to be able to turn the bag. Stich the handles on their places and sew the top edges of these two bags together, right sides facing of course. Use the gap to turn it around, close the gap. If you want real smooth finish, hand stich it or like I did, make a little seam over it. It doesn't show that much being inside the bag. Iron and you are ready! Though I stiched the corners to give it more shape but it isn't necessary. 

So the teachers got cookies and the boxes, the kids fabric for crafting and I some more space to my sewing room!

Elina