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Sewing Set

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This month's project is a handy, portable sewing kit that will make stitching on your travels a breeze!

Everyone should have a sewing roll! Not just to keep beside your sewing machine at home, but to hold some basic sewing kit to take with you when you travel in case you need to make emergency repairs. There’s plenty of room for all your favourite tools, whether using it at home or for travel, with compartments for your scissors, rotary cutter, thread snips, tweezers… whatever your essential equipment is. The set shown is made from three different fabrics, but this is an excellent opportunity to use up some of those fabric scraps you’ve been saving, especially the smaller pieces that haven’t had a use… until now.

There’s also a matching case for larger scissors or shears, keeping them protected and dust-free when you’re not using them. Before you cut out the pattern for the case, place you scissors over it; the pattern should be about ½in (1.25cm) larger all round than the scissors. If you need a larger case, simply draw an outline around the pattern with that extra ½in (1.25cm) or even add a bit more, depending on the size of your shears. You’ll need to adapt the scissor-case pocket piece too. See the photo for step 14 to see how the two pieces should fit together.

Note: Use a ¼in (5mm) seam allowance throughout unless otherwise stated.

Finished size:

• Sewing roll: 22 x 8½in (56 x 21.5cm)
• Scissor case: 10 x 5in (25.5 x 12.75cm)

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You will need:

Equipment

• Sewing machine, plus zipper foot
• Fabric shears
• Erasable fabric marker pen
• Iron
• Pins
• Hand-sewing needle
• Optional: tacking/basting spray

Materials

Gather:

• 44 x 18in (112 x 46cm) of fabric for the front and back of the sewing roll and scissor case: mine is grey check
• 40 x 15in (102 x 38cm) of contrast fabric for the pockets: mine is yellow
• 12 x 6in (30 x 15cm) of plain fabric for the scissor-case pocket: mine is dark grey
• 8½ x 3in (22 x 7.5cm) of felt to hold pins and hand-sewing needles: mine is mid grey
• 22 x 17in (56 x 43cm) of fusible fleece: I used Vlieseline H640
• 115in (3m) of 1in (2.5cm) wide bias binding for the sewing roll: mine is dark grey
• 10in (25cm) zip: mine is dark grey
• Magnetic snap, or you could use hook-and-loop fastening tape (such as Velcro) instead
• Coordinating button for the scissor-case closure
• 2in (5cm) of elastic cord to make a button loop: I used a grey hair bungee

Cut:

For the sewing roll –

• Your pattern pieces for the scissor pocket and scissor-pocket flap cut from contrast (yellow) fabric
• Two 22 x 8½in (56 x 22cm) pieces of main fabric (grey check) for the front and back of the roll 
• Four 8½ x 5in (22 x 13cm) pieces of fabric for the zipped pocket: I cut two of grey check and two of yellow
• Two 8½ x 3½in (22 x 9cm) pieces of contrast (yellow) fabric for the small pocket 
• Two 8½ x 5in (22 x 13cm) pieces of contrast (yellow) fabric for the large pocket

For the scissor case –

• Two main pieces, one mirror imaged from main (grey check) fabric: check the fit first as explained in the introduction
• Two pocket pieces, one mirror imaged from plain (grey) fabric

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