Free DIY Reversible Japanese Knot Bag Pattern and Sewing Tutorial For The Cricut Maker

Create an adorable Reversible DIY Japanese Knot Bag with your Cricut Maker using this free cut file, pattern and step by step sewing tutorial from Hello Creative Family. This 30 minute project makes a great handmade gift. Customize the size to make handmade book bags, lunch totes, purses, snack bags and more! A fun fashion accessory for adults or kids!

While on vacation this summer, I wandered into an adorable little boutique that had Japanese Knot Bags for sale. I loved the playfulness of the bag with the asymmetrical handles, simple closure technique and unique shape. I immediately went into maker mode and started thinking how fun it would be to make them in different sizes, with fun fabrics. I knew that I would want mine to be reversible so that the bag could have two different looks.

I came home from vacation and started playing with my Cricut Maker  and Cricut Design Space. I am constantly telling all my friends who sew that they need to add a Cricut Maker to their craft room. I love that I can sit down at my computer, take different simple shapes like squares, circles and triangles, slice and weld them together and create my own patterns. It only took me 15 minutes to create a pattern for a reversible Japanese Knot Bag using Cricut Design Space and then just a few more minutes for my Cricut Maker to cut out the pattern pieces for me!

This is why I LOVE my Cricut Maker  so much. It truly has made me into a Maker. I feel like if I can dream it, I can make it. That’s such an exciting thing to me and something I want everyone to experience.

Even if you have no interest in designing your own sewing patterns now, I guarantee that you will love the Cricut Maker . There are over 500 digital sewing patterns and quilt blocks available from Simplicity, Riley Blake, and other pattern designers. Which is more than enough to keep you sewing for a very long time.

The rotary cutter on the Cricut Maker has been a game changer for my sewing life. I’ve always HATED cutting fabric. I have the hardest time cutting nice clean lines with pattern pieces that line up correctly with scissors or a handheld rotary cutter. The Cricut Maker takes all the cutting out of your hands! It cuts all kinds of different fabric precisely, cleanly and quickly while you sit back and enjoy a cup of chai or clean off your sewing table so you can get started with your project! You don’t even need to back your fabric, you just lay it on the cutting mat, pick what kind of material you are cutting from a menu, press go and the Cricut Maker does the rest of the work!

For many of the sewing patterns in Cricut Design Space you can put a washable fabric pen into your machine and it will draw lines for you of where you need to sew! Amazing right?

With the Cricut Maker Adaptive Tool Blade you can switch back and forth from the rotary cutter, to a knife blade, to a scoring wheel in seconds allowing you to cut hundreds of materials, from the most delicate fabric and paper to matboard and leather!

Read more about why I think you need the Cricut Maker in your life here. 

Seriously friends, if you love crafting, or want an easy way to start getting more creative, the Cricut Maker is the vehicle that is going to make all your creative crafting dreams come true– like it did for me for making my Japanese Knot Bag!

Speaking of which, ready to get started with this project? I CAN’T WAIT to share this pattern and sewing tutorial with you today and to see all the different bags that you create! Let’s get started! Read on for my Free Reversible Japanese Knot Bag Pattern and Sewing Tutorial For The Cricut Maker!

[hr gap=”30″]Free Reversible DIY Japanese Knot Bag Pattern & Sewing Tutorial For The Cricut Maker[hr gap=”30″]

Materials:

–Hello Creative Family DIY Japanese Knot Bag Pattern Cut File

-Cricut Maker

-2 pieces of 12″ by 20 inches pieces of fabric which will be referred to as fabric A. This is the green fabric in my photos which is Riley Blake Alpine Fabric

-2 pieces of 12″ by 20 inches pieces of fabric which will be referred to as fabric B. This is the black kokeshi doll fabric in my photos which is Alexander Henry Kokeshi Dolls Fabric

–Cricut Rotary Blade

–Cricut Fabric Grip Adhesive Cutting Mat in 12×24″ size

-Sewing Machine (this is the one I have)

-Thread in coordinating colors (this is one of my favorite brands)

-Fabric Scissors, pins and pin cushion or Wonder Clips (You’ll love this sewing kit from Cricut that has all the tools you need to start sewing)

-Iron or Cricut EasyPress

–Cricut Sushi Iron-On Design or one of your other favorite Cricut Iron-On Designs

Instructions:

Step 1: Login to Cricut Design Space and then open the Hello Creative Family DIY Japanese Knot Bag Pattern Cut File (see top of supply list above).

Click “Make It” in the upper right hand corner.

Click “Continue” on the following screen.

Select your Cricut Maker from the drop down menu. Then select the material that you are cutting.

Place your fabric on your cutting mat, load it into your Cricut Maker and then press the cute flashing little Cricut C on your Cricut Maker to start cutting.

You should have two pieces of fabric A (the green fabric in the photo below, and two pieces of fabric B (the black kokeshi dolls).

Step 2: Pin your two pieces of fabric A so that all of the edges are aligned and the printed side is sandwiched in the middle. Repeat with fabric B. Using a 1/4″ seam allowance sew a line across the top of each of the handles. Using a 1/4″ seam allowance sew from the notch below one handle, around the curve of the bottom of the bag and up to the notch below the second handle. You want the sides of your handles and the “U” between the handles to remain unsewn.

Step 3: Flip fabric B so that the printed side of the fabric is right side out.

Slide fabric B inside of fabric A so that both of the long handles are on the left side and both of the short handles are on the right side.

Line up the handles, the notches and the U shaped part. When everything is lined up pin the top two layers (the top fabric A to the top fabric B) together and the bottom two layers together (the bottom fabric A to the bottom fabric B).

Pop your bag open so that your U looks more like an O. Using a 1/4 inch seam allowance sew all the way around the O (you should be sewing through two layers of fabric, fabric A pinned to fabric B) starting at the inside of the top of the long handle, around the bottom of the O, up the inside of the short hand, around the top of the O and back down the long handle to where you started.

Using scissors cut little notches around the U between the edge of the fabric and your seam, making sure to not cut your seam. This will help everything lay nicely when you turn it right side out.

Optional step: Once you turn your bag right side out you are going to fold in the raw edges of the handle by 1/4 inch iron them into place and then sew your bag shut. Working with such tight curves I found it easiest to do this to fabric A before I turned the bag right side out. I also used my scissors to cut a 1/4″ cut into my fabric right at the base of each of the handles to make folding the fabric in even easier.

Step 4: Turn your bag right side out going through the opening in the side of the long handle. Fold the raw edges of the handles in 1/4 inch and press then pin in place.

Close your bag by topstitching the arms of your bag closed using a 1/8″ seam allowance. Go around the O of the armhole of the small handle, around the O of the armhole of the large handle and then around the O between the long handle and the short handle. Use your iron to press the fabric so your bag looks nice.

Step 5: Finish your bag by adding your iron-on design to fabric A. If using an iron set your iron to Cotton/Linen and make sure the steam setting is turned off. If using an EasyPress set the machine to 340F. (Confirm heat settings in the instructions that come with your iron on design.) Figure out the placement for the design and then preheat your bag for 15 seconds.

Place the design onto the preheated material and heat for 50 seconds using medium pressure. Flip shirt over and heat backside of the design for 15 seconds. Cricut suggests letting the design cool before removing the clear plastic lining but I prefer doing a warm peel.

Voila! You have a gorgeous DIY Reversible Japanese Knot Bag! Just tuck the long handle through the short handle to close this bag up, which I think gives it such a fun look. Experiment with the sizing of the bag and the fabric for different uses! I think these would make adorable lunch bags, book totes and snack bags depending on the size!

I hope you have so much fun with this pattern! I’ve already made it in a few different size– one to put my glasses in, one that makes the perfect little snack bag and two that are this size for each of my kids.

[hr gap=”30″]Tell me… Do you own a Cricut Maker? Will you be adding it to your wishlist for your next birthday or holiday? What fabrics would you use to make this bag and what would you put in it?[hr gap=”30″]

Disclosure: Thank you to Cricut for working with us on this post. As with all articles on Hello Creative Family all thoughts and opinions are 100% our own. We only share things we love and we love our Cricut Maker. 

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