Travel Purse

Even though we have more and more access to travel documents on our phones, it is still necessary to carry our passport and paper documents. This travel purse will make these documents easy to find and access, while keeping them safe and in one place.
Being a young traveller, I love the idea of having something bright and colorful.

Materials

You will need:

For the template:
- 2 A4 & 1 A3 pieces of paper
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Paper Scissors

For the Purse:
- Fabric Scissors
- Sewing Machine
- Pins
- Iron
- Cotton or Cotton/Polyester Fabric (you can choose any colour/s you would like. I used two different colours)
- Quilt Batting
- Thread to match your fabric

For the Button Closure:
- Needle (for hand sewing)
- Elastic Hair Tie
- Button (of your choice of colour and size)

Template

The back piece that I cut out was 23.2 cm x 25 cm.

I found it best to cut this piece out of A3 paper, if you don't have A3 paper out as much as you can from the A4 and then tape an extra strip on the top

The first pocket was 17.7 cm x 25 cm.

The second pocket was 12.7 cm x 25 cm

I cut the two pocket templates out of the A4 paper

Iron the Fabric

Iron the fabric

Cutting Out the Back

Cut two back pieces out, one out of each fabric.

Pin the template to the fabric that you are going to use and cut it out using fabric scissors

If you are using two different fabrics like I did, use the same template and pin it onto the second fabric and cut it out like before.

Cutting Out Quilt Batting for Back

Again use the same back template and pin it to the quilt batting. Cut it out using fabric scissors.

You should now have two pieces of fabric and a piece of quilt batting for the back.

Cutting Out Pockets

Using the templates as shown in the previous steps, continue cutting out the two pockets.

For the pockets you will need two pieces of fabric.

Sewing the Pockets

This step will be applied to both the pockets.

Place the two pieces right sides together and pin them in place, as shown above.

Sew along one of the long sides, keeping a distance of approximately 0.5 - 1 cm from the edge of the fabric.

In order to maintain this distance the whole length, I used the presser foot on the sewing machine as a marker.

Fold Over and Iron

Remove the pins and unfold the piece as shown.

Fold it over in the opposite direction so the right sides of the fabric are on the outside.

Iron at the fold

Sewing Down the Middle of Piece

Place the back pieces together with the quilt batting in between the two fabric pieces.

Place the two pocket pieces on top of the back piece. Place the large pocket on first and then the smaller one top. Place them on the back with the sewn edge at the top.

Measure and find the middle of the piece. You can do this by measuring or folding it over. Use a ruler and either a pencil or preferably fabric chalk to draw a line down the middle of the fabric.

Sew along this line using the sewing machine.

Pin and Sew Binding to the Inside

Unfold on edge of the binding and carefully pin around the outside of the purse. Make sure the pockets are facing up, as shown in diagram.
Using the fold line to get a straight line, sew the binding to the purse.

Fold Binding Over to Outside

Fold and pin the binding to the outside of the purse.

I chose to fold the whole width of the binding so it is not seen on the inside.

Sewing the Binding

Sew the binding to the outside of the purse, making sure to stay as close as possible to the inside edge of the binding, as shown above.

Sewing on the Hair Tie

For the closure I used a hair and button, but any thin piece of elastic would and you could also make a velcro closure if you would like.

The first step in making the hair tie closure is to sew the hair tie to the back about half way down.
Hand sew ensuring that the stitches are firm.

Sewing on the Button

Sew the button onto the opposite side of the hair tie, making sure it is in line with the hair tie.
Hand sew the button on going through each hole until firm.

When sewing on the button try to only go through the back layer. This will make easier access to the pockets.

Finished Purse

You now have a finished travel purse that will fit the necessary travel items - passport, boarding pass & phone