A Professional Finish for Handmade Bags!

Do you ever finish a bag and think, “How can I make this look even better?” Or, are you a beginner bag maker looking for tips to make your bags look more polished? You’re in luck! In today’s post, we have compiled our top tips to create a beautiful, professional finish when making handmade bags, clutches, and pouches! We’ve organized them into different sections so you can refer to these tips whenever you need to!

NOTE: We have added links to our most popular tutorials and free videos throughout this post! See the bold, peacock blue coloured words through this post? Click them to check out the free steps to achieve the desired look or installation process!

Clean Seams

When stitching your side seams along your bag, try to use thread and bobbin colours similar to the colour of your material. Don’t want to use up that pretty thread? Try using grey instead of black or white! Surprisingly, grey hides beautifully for most colours prints, so you can save the pretty colours for topstitching! Along with matching thread, use a smaller stitch length. This helps to prevent gaps when the bag is sewn. 

For thicker materials, like sewing foam stabilizer, stitch over your seam allowance a second time to reduce the bulk. This helps lock in the seam and helps with any gaps! Don’t forget to backstitch over ends and places where the material is bulky or two fabrics are joined!

Always trim your seam allowance to ¼” (0.6cm) after sewing to reduce bulk. To reduce the bulk even further, cut your foam or fleece out of the seam allowance. When trimming your curves, you can clip notches in the seam OR use our favourite tool: pinking sheers! Pinking sheers give a flex to your seam, resulting in a beautiful curved piece. 

*Bonus tip: you can get a pinking shear blade for your rotary cutter to make clipping even easier!*

Consistent and Even Stitching

The number one tip for even stitching when sewing is to maintain your sewing speed throughout your project. Allow your material to be guided gently through the feet and do not pull it so you get a consistent line of stitching that is all the same length. If you find you have a hard time with the consistency, use a slightly smaller stitch length. The inconsistent lengths will be less noticeable and the lower feed dogs will pull a little quicker needing less pulling.

To get consistent seam allowances, follow your seam at the presser foot where the needle is. This will be the most accurate point and keep you consistent throughout.

If you still struggle to maintain a consistent speed, try using a walking foot. It guides your fabric wonderfully and prevents you from forcing it under your foot. Just note that sometimes a walking foot can be too bulky or not be suitable for stitching unusual shapes, so it may not be best for every step of your project!

Topstitching

The main goal of your topstitching is to secure your seam allowance in place and prevent it from coming loose. Try to use a thread that coordinates with your fabric for the cleanest look. If you go contrasting it can sometimes be too intense and take away from the overall look of your project. Along with matching the exterior fabric, match the lining with your bobbin too!

For the best looking topstitching, use a triple stitch! It gives you the most beautifully clean look, makes the stitches even and forces you to slow down and allow the machine to do the work!

Zipper installation

To get a professional finish to your zipper installation, invest in higher-quality materials. Sometimes when you purchase zippers on Amazon or other marketplaces, they can be a little ripply and while we love zippers by the yard, purchasing some that are a little more pricey is worth it for accuracy! We love to use zipper by the yard so we can cut exactly what we need for each project without any small offcuts! It also allows you to easily make double-pull zippers whenever you need them!

To get the smoothest zippered pocket application, tape or glue your zipper in place. It keeps your zipper both flat and straight! I prefer to use glue as it doesn’t gum up my sewing needle and I can place it close to the edge of the zipper tape and out of the way!

For a professional finish of recessed zippers, stitch your seam allowance in the same direction for each side. This stops your fabric from stretching and stops the zipper from going wavy!

Do you struggle with a wavy zipper? Use Wonderclips instead of pins to keep it in place when there is a situation where you can’t use glue or tape. Clips allow you to keep the zipper smooth and in place.  

For your zipper seam allowance, be mindful of how close your zipper foot keeps your stitching. Too close and you won’t be able to open your zipper and too far and you won’t be able to topstitch! The prime distance is 1/4” (0.6cm) away and allows you to topstitch 1/8” (0.3cm) seam allowance while still catching the zipper tape underneath! If you don’t catch that tape, you risk it pulling out over time!

Hardware

As we mentioned for zippers, investing in quality hardware makes a big difference in the overall look of your finished bag. Using high-quality hardware in all the same finish or material gives you a clean, consistent and professional finish. When you are installing the hardware, cover it with plastic or a piece of painter’s tape so it doesn’t get scratched. Leave the tape on as you sew so it is protected as you sew as well!

For hardware like magnetic snaps or turn locks without screws, make sure the “legs” are facing away from the center. This places the stress point across the placement spot instead of the very middle of the hardware. If the legs face the middle, over time that point can get stressed and your snap will pull right off.

For a professional finish on your strap connectors, stitch as close as possible to your d-rings and rectangle rings. This not only gives a nice finish, it prevents your rings from moving and twisting over time while in use!

Materials

When deciding on the material to use for your bag, most fabrics will work but what is important is to be consistent with the material you use for your bag. If you are a beginner, use cotton for the exterior and interior of your bag. If you have a little more experience, go ahead and mix up materials but make sure you are changing your needle as you switch fabrics. 

We’ll have more tips on choosing fabrics for your handmade bags soon! Until then, consider using a Denim or Microtex needle when sewing bags as you will be going through many layers! These pierce the fabric more consistently and give a professional look to your stitching!

Ironing and interfacing

Your iron is your friend! Pressing your fabric and seams as you sew truly is the best way to get a professional look. It keeps seams smooth and flat, prevents your fabric from being wrinkled and gives your bag an overall clean look! Invest in an iron you can handle easily and that gets hot enough!

Always interface your lighter materials like cotton before attaching your stabiliser. This strengthens your material and gives it a cleaner look.

Accents 

For a fun and professional look add some coordinating handmade piping. It’s a quick and easy way to add a little accent to your project while looking professional. Make sure that you stitch nice and close to your piping for the cleanest look. If you struggle to get close enough, try using your zipper foot. The closer the stitching, the cleaner the look you will achieve!

For a personalised touch, invest in small tags or bag bling to add a professional, branded touch. Attach these in a discreet spot like the back of the bag, along the seam or at the top over the topstitching. 

Most importantly get to know your machine and practice, practice, practice. Your professional finish won’t happen overnight so don’t be discouraged!

Until next time,

<3 Aimee