How to Make a Market Tote Bag With an Adorable Embroidered Design

Tools and materials:

• Natural cotton canvas
• Heavyweight cotton webbing
• Scissors
• Thread
• Sewing machine
• Embroidery materials and kit
• Pins

1. Measure and cut

Go ahead and lay out your fabric on a flat surface. If your cat decides to take over, that’s okay; just use the other side of the fabric. Next, measure 17 x 18 inches; you should have a long rectangle. 

Then, cut out the shape, and yes, be careful of your cat’s paws. 

2. Sew the raw edge

Go ahead and fold the top raw edges down (on the inside of the bag) and sew. Remember, the fold of the bag is the bottom part. 

3. Sew on the straps

You may be wondering how to make straps for a tote bag, but I went the easy route and bought heavy-weight cotton webbing as straps. It works better than DIY straps and will definitely be able to carry bulkier items with ease.

Measure out a length that works well for you, then lay it on the tote bag, as pictured above. 

Then, pin the short ends. Make sure you pin through the top layer and not both layers. Also, ensure the straps are centered and even. 

Open the tote bag to ensure that you only sew on one layer of the fabric. Then, go ahead and sew the straps on both sides of the straps. 

Then, repeat for the other side. Make sure the straps on both sides mirror each other. 

4. Sew the side seams

Now, fold your bag so that the fabric is right sides touching, and then sew along the side seams. 

Snip the corners afterward. 

And, here’s your cute tote bag! 

5. Add embroidery

You can stop here if you want a simple tote bag, or you can add some lovely embroidery to make it fun and unique. This step is totally optional, but I do have to say, it’s the fun part! Decide on a fun design that you want and then, place your hoop accordingly. 

I couldn't get my hoop on since the straps were way too thick, so I decided to free-hand it. If you run into the same problem, then just do what I do! 

Print the design you like and poke little holes in it with an embroidery needle so you can give yourself a template to follow when you draw it on the fabric. 

Use a pen to mark the dots of the design. 

Pull the embroidery thread apart, so you have three strings and not 6. Then, simply feed it through your needle and tie a knot at the end. 

Now, start from the inside out and follow the dots. 

For this design, I did a split stitch. You can see how to do it above. 

Fill the gaps where needed. Here, I’m filling the body of the spider. 

How to make a market tote bag tutorial

Yes! We’re done. I am super chuffed with this sustainable tote bag. So, it’s pretty simple to make a canvas shopping bag. The best part is, you get to customize it with your own embroidered design.

Thanks for joining me for this tutorial on how to make a simple tote bag. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I have.