At the end of last term, I made a promise to myself that I was going to get a proper school bag. Before then, I’d been lugging folders, books, my lunch etc around in any bag I could find at home. Not great for my back or keeping track of my stuff. I wanted a very specific style of bag – a messenger bag. It’s perfect for keeping my planner in and all my other bits that I need for school every day. But when I looked about, I couldn’t find one that I wanted or one that I liked. So, I thought, lets make my own!

I had a look about on Pinterest for a suitable pattern and came across this tutorial. It was straightforward to follow and broke down the different stages really well. When I’d bought my fabric, a lovely blue corduroy for the outside and a gorgeous spotty pattern for the inside, I set about cutting out the shapes I needed from baking parchment.

Once I’d cut the shapes out in fabric, it was surprisingly quick and easy to put the pieces together. Instead of having the bottom and sides as one whole piece, like the strap, I cut them into three and joined them individually. For me, that was easier to manage. I decided not to put any pockets or embellishments on, as I won’t use them.

While the bag isn’t perfect, I found sewing the strap in a bit tricky, it’s not bad for a first go. I did buy enough fabric to make a second one if I needed to, but I’m happy with it enough to stick with this one. If I could shorten the strap, I would and I might try to find a way to do that, as it is a bit long, meaning the bag hangs lower than I would’ve liked so I might change that when I get some time. But overall, I’m pretty pleased with it. Using something that I made everyday is pretty cool too!