How to Sew a Lunch Bag - Upcycled
Rain Poncho

This is a free pattern for a lunch bag without an actual pattern. This sewing project is perfect if you're looking for a practical insulated lunch bag. It's large enough to fit a lunch box and some extra fruits, your cutlery, and a dessert. To close it, you just roll the top of the bag and secure the buckle. Your lunch items are held together properly, and nothing leaks out. The buckle and strap also serve as a comfortable handle.

I didn't buy any cute new fabrics but dove into my stash and dug up an old rain poncho and some special curtain fabrics that are insulating and sun-blocking, both from IKEA. It's the piece that I cut off at the bottom to make them fit my windows. I love reusing and recycling. It makes me happy to finally use something I've been holding onto for years... Yes, you need some storage space to dig up stuff like that! :)

Below are step-by-step instructions for this sewing project with all of the measurements to make a lunch bag that has a finished base size of 7 ½ inches by 4 inches. There is no downloadable pattern because it is so easy to cut the different fabric pieces to size. It is also easy to scale this to another size because all of the fabric pieces are the same size.

Choose the fabric that suits your needs and taste, and assemble this little bag in no time to go to work or school, or on a day trip.

• Outer fabric:
  • 2 pieces of 17 inches by 12 inches
  • I used fabric from an old rain coat
• Lining fabric:
  • 2 pieces of 17 inches by 12 inches
  • I used fabric from a sunblocking curtain
• Optional: Insulating material (thermal batting):
  • 2 pieces of 17 inches by 12 inches
  • I used a piece of thermal curtain fabric but you can buy Insul-Bright Insulated Lining fabric
• Clip or buckle (for strap closure)
• Strap (webbing): 35″ long, the width has to match the width of your buckle.
• Sewing machine, pins/clips, thread, scissors, ruler, marker, iron, protective ironing sheet

What fabrics you use depends on how insulating and how waterproof you want your lunch bag to be. You can use heavy cottons or canvas if it doesn’t matter, and you just want a bag to hold your lunch stuff together. I don’t always trust my containers, so I needed a bag that’s waterproof. That is why I used waterproof fabric for both the lining and the outer fabric. And I like to reuse and upcycle, so raincoat, umbrella, plastic table cloth or tent material can be used. If you need to buy fabric, look for vinyl fabrics, waxed cottons, ripstop, or PUL fabric.

I don’t live in a hot climate, so the insulation part is less important. And I can put my lunch in the fridge at work. Because I wanted to show you how to work with the three layers, I added a piece of a thermal curtain that I cut off when adapting it to my window size.

If you need a larger bag, you will just need to adapt the size of all fabric pieces. And also add the extra inches you added to the width of the fabric pieces to the strap length.

1. Cut rectangles measuring 17″ x 12″ for each piece (outer fabric, lining, and insulation). You will need six pieces of the same size in total.

2. From two corners on one short side of each fabric piece, cut out a 2″ x 2″ square to shape the bag base.

First, we’ll assemble the bag that has three layers of fabric: the outer part, the lining, and the insulation layer.

Place right sides together of the outer pieces and sew the long side seams and bottom seam with a ⅜″ seam allowance. Don’t sew the cut-out corners just yet. Do the same for the insulation fabric pieces.

The lining piece is a little different from the two others since you need to leave a small opening in the side seam of the lining (my lining is blue on the outside and black on the inside) for turning the project in one of the final steps.

I’m sewing these seams with a contrasting thread so you can see the stitching better. I would always advise to use thread that blends in or matches your fabric better than this yellow thread.

Pinch, open and align the seams at the cut-out corners to form the bottom. Sew straight across as shown in the pictures below. This is how you make boxed corners and a flat base. If you want you can also finish the edges of all three layers with a serger or pinking shears, but as all these raw edges will be hidden, I didn’t bother doing this.

Insert the insulating layer wrong side to wrong side with the outer fabric. The outer fabric is on the outside. Place the lining right sides together with the outer bag, with the outer bag inside the lining. The lining is now on the outside with the turning hole. Align and secure the edges of the three layers with sewing clips.

Sew all around the top edge of the bag through all three layers.

Pull the bag right side out through the opening in the lining. First you will have a long ‘sausage’ where the outer fabric and the lining are showing.

Sew the opening in the lining closed with a topstitching close to the edge.

Push the lining into the outer fabric part. If you are working with cotton fabric, give the seams a good press before you continue with the next step.

Now it is time to attach the strap and the buckle that you can use both as a handle and to close the lunch bag.

1. Cut 35″ of webbing. Mark the center and make additional marks 2 ½″ on either side of the center mark. The markings show where to position the webbing. You need a loop of 2.5 inches long (5 inches of webbing in total) on both sides for the buckle.

2. Pin or clip one end of the strap to your bag top starting from one of the 2 ½″ marks. The center mark will align with the buckle placement. Insert one part of the buckle and pin the other end of the strap starting from the other 2 ½″ mark.

3. Sew along both edges of the strap, beginning and ending ¼″ from the side seams.

4. Insert the second part of the buckle. Measure 2.5 inches at each end and stitch these ends together. Fold the raw edges inward and give an extra stitching to finish this loop off neatly. Cut off excess webbing if necessary.

Give your bag a final press, if needed, and you're done!

• Tools: Use sewing clips instead of pins when sewing through waterproof materials or insulation to avoid holes. Use a protective sheet to iron on plastic fabrics.
• Give an extra topstitch around the top edge for a professional finish.
• Add a little name tag in the side seam of the outer fabric.

Any questions regarding this lunch bag pattern and tutorial? Don’t hesitate to leave a comment below and I’ll be happy to help you out.

Hope you liked this project. Give a thumbs up, share the blog with your sewing friends, or tag us on Instagram so we can see how you made this project ‘yours’. Every handmade item is unique and can inspire others to start making one for themselves!

If you also need a little pouch to hold your cutlery, check out this free pattern that I wrote some years ago. And you maybe would like to make some reusable napkins as well to go with the bag?

Happy Sewing!

An
Blogging for Madam Sew

Download the Madam Sew Lunch Bag Tutorial here