Hexagon Patchwork Purse Tutorial and Free Pattern. This little bag is one of my most cherished works.
It's all handmade and very easy to make.
Here are some of the basic materials you'll use to make it.
EPP is the acronym for the patchwork technique that stands for English Paper Piecing.
In the photo below, I used interlining with glue on one side.
You have to choose the fabric for your coin purse and place the glue side of the interlining on the reverse side of the fabric you have chosen.
You'll only need 16 hexagons with 3cm sides to make this coin purse.
And you can place them all on the wrong side of the fabric.
And you must keep a distance between them, as they will need a margin to be sewn together.
At the time I made this article, I used Virtual Brasil cotton canvas.
But nowadays I prefer and recommend the hexagons from Atelier D. Fuinha.
When ironing, the glue of the interlining sticks to the fabric you have chosen and this makes your job easier when doing this technique.
A warm iron is enough.
Once the interlinings are stuck to the fabric, just cut around them, keeping their shape.
You can do this with paper and then remove it.
Here's what they look like once they've been adhered to the fabric and cut out.
The next step is to baste all the hexagons.
One by one, turn the seam allowances inside out using the interlining as a guide and baste all 5 sides.
At the end, all the basting is removed.
It looks like this.
Notice how the shape of the hexagon remains after basting?
This is important to avoid deforming the work.
That's why we use paper or interlining templates.
Once you've made all 16 hexagons, the next step is to join them one by one.
An important detail is that the ends of the hexagons must be well joined.
That's why I always start with them.
Enter the needle from the wrong side and go with the tip of the needle right into the corner of the hexagon.
And when you start to join the two, the first stitch should be exactly at the tip of the other hexagon.
This way they are well matched and the stitching doesn't distort the shape of the hexagon.
Occasionally the sides of the hexagon won't be exactly the same size because of the fabric or your basting.
But that's not a problem.
Quite the opposite.
All handmade work has this characteristic.
That doesn't mean you won't get it exactly right.
A well-made seam makes everything come together in a geometrically exact way!
By pairing them well and joining tip to tip, you can keep the hexagonal shape without any problems.
I use two types of thread to do this job: either I use two strands of mouliné or I use Sylko thread.
Some people prefer to use 100% cotton sewing thread and some prefer to use synthetic thread.
The only thing to remember at this point is that the material you choose to use depends on the project you're doing.
If you're doing work that will always be washed and ironed, prefer cotton thread.
They say that synthetic threads melt on the iron.
That's never happened to me.
However, you should be careful.
You need to join the two hexagons together with very small dots.
I always sew them together right sides together.
But I know people who do it the other way around and it doesn't look bad.
In the photo below, I sewed them with the stitch you see, so that it would be clearly visible in the magazine.
However, I use the invisible stitch.
I prefer it.
But some people prefer this stitch because it makes the work look more like handwork.
What's more, making these dots is an art!
They're tiny of tiny of tiny!!!!
Look how the right side looks after the hexagons are joined.
Ideally, you should choose a thread that is the same color as the fabric.
Then the stitching will only be visible to those who really want to see it.
But there's nothing stopping you from choosing a completely different color and making a thread-fabric composite.
You highlight the seam, add color to the work and get out of the sameness.
I've done it before and it worked.
In fact, it always works.
There's no mistaking this technique.
To join the hexagons together there is an assembly scheme.
Here's the diagram:
You sew all 16 hexagons together so that the top is exactly this shape, with the fabric right side up.
Ideally, you should print out the pattern and make a cardboard template so you always have it with you.
This is a bag you can make in just one afternoon and it's a lovely little gift to give away.
And what's with the cardboard template in the diagram above? To cut out the lining.
When you cut it out, you need to leave a seam allowance.
And, as you can see in the photo below, the next step is to sew the lining to the top you've made.
Placing it inside out, you fold the edges of the lining to the inside and sew, pin and sew all the way around with the same tiny stitches as you sewed the hexagons.
And here's a detail: there are two ways of making this coin purse.
In one of them you don't put a blanket and you just sew the two layers together (top + lining).
The coin purse is then soft enough to put in your pocket or throw in your bag, without bulking it up.
The other way is to use the blanket to give the coin purse structure.
That way it stays upright.
For those who choose to use the blanket, the procedure is as follows: cut the blanket to the size shown in the diagram above, with no seam allowance.
Once you've cut out the blanket, place it on the reverse side of the lining fabric, turn the edges of the fabric to the reverse and baste.
Pair with the top of the coin purse, wrong side to wrong side, and sew with small stitches.
Once you've finished, you'll have a double-sided sandwich.
The top, with the hexagons you sewed on, and the lining will both be on the right.
Take a look at the diagram below.
There are two numbers each, see?
That's how you can sew this coin purse together without any mistakes.
Just join the sides that have the same number.
Sew 1 to 1, 2 to 2, 3 to 3 and so on.
This makes sewing much easier. I then remove the tape as I sew on the pairs of numbers.
It speeds up the work and there are no mistakes, despite the awkwardness of doing it for the first time.
It closes as you sew.
And to sew it, you can choose to close it from the lining side or from the hexagon side.
It doesn't matter, as long as the dots are tiny.
So, follow the pattern.
At the bottom will be a triangular base.
Its lid will be these 3 hexagons at the top of the diagram.
It's a bit crazy, but the result is beautiful!
Once it's sewn on, we need to attach the zipper.
In this project I did for the magazine, I sewed on a snap button to close it. It has a small opening and this type of button is enough.
One side of the button goes on this hexagon with the numbers 3 and 4 as sides.
The other goes on the cover.
The one on the lid goes on the inside.
So I always put a decorative button on the outside, just to add a little charm.
Look how pretty it is.
And the finished purse looks like this.
Isn't it a beautiful project?
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