A tote is the bag most people make first, and it deserves that reputation. Flat panels, straight seams, no fitting to worry about — and at the end you have something you'll actually carry rather than fold away in a drawer.
This is the unabridged version. Heidi builds the whole bag in real time rather than cutting away between steps, so you can sew along at your own pace: choosing your materials, cutting the fabric, sewing the pieces together, attaching the handles, and finishing the bag neatly.
What you'll learn
- How to choose materials for your tote
- Cutting your fabric pieces
- Sewing the bag body together
- Attaching the handles
- Finishing the bag neatly
Fabric weight decides how the bag stands
More than any other choice, the fabric you pick determines whether your finished tote stands up on a table or slumps flat. Quilting cotton is lovely to sew and easy to find, but on its own it has no backbone — a tote made from it alone will be soft and floppy. Canvas, duck cloth and home-decor weights hold a shape by themselves.
If you want a structured bag from a fabric you love that happens to be lightweight, that's what stabilizer is for. Our guide to bag stabilizers covers how foam, fusible fleece and lightweight interfacing each change the result.
Handles take all the strain
The handles are the part of a tote that fails first, because everything you put in the bag hangs from two narrow strips of fabric and a few inches of stitching. Reinforcing where the straps meet the bag — stitching a square with a cross through it, or simply going back and forth several times — costs a minute and is the difference between a bag that lasts years and one that tears at the top edge.
Strap length is worth deciding before you cut. Shorter handles sit in the hand; longer ones clear your shoulder and a coat. It's easier to pin a fabric strip to the bag and try it than to guess from a measurement.
Why a long tutorial is the right format here
Short bag videos skip the parts where people actually get stuck — pressing, pinning, the order things go together. Following a full build start to finish takes longer, but you see every step in sequence, including the ones that look obvious until you're holding the fabric.
Where to go next
For the fabric, see our fabric and precuts and yardage. Tools and supplies are in notions, scissors and shears, cutting mats and thread.
Adding a zip to a bag is the natural next step — our lined zipper pouch tutorial and adjustable zipper foot guide cover that. More tutorials are on our Video Tutorials page.