Holidays are fast-approaching, and while thoughts of cold weather, hot chocolate and pretty lights come to mind, so does the thought of gift-giving. My annual tradition, if you will, is to join the masses on Black Friday and knock out as many gifts as possible.

But this year, it’ll be different.

I’m putting my foot down and resisting the urge to shop among consumers who (knowingly or unknowingly) fall into a zombie-like shopping spell when holiday sales and specials roll around. It’s know in the counter-culture world as Buy Nothing Day.

Instead, I’ll make nearly all my holiday gifts, starting with this one: a sleek, professional makeup bag! Of course, it can be used for jewelry, random belongings, or cosmetics, but it’s so beautiful that I’m sure my friends will find a reason to use it.

It took me some time to figure out the pattern and steps, but lucky for you, I’ve laid it all out for you here.

Ingredients:
a sewing machine
two complementary fabrics, at least 16″ x 12″ (for exterior and lining)
fusible interfacing 16″ x 12″ (helps the bag “stand up” but not necessary)
matching thread
9” zipper

1. Choose your fabric and notions
You’ll need one (preferably thicker) fabric for the exterior, and one (cotton or satin) fabric for the interior. Don’t forget a 9″ zipper and fusible interfacing if you’d like it to be extra sturdy. I used this beautiful laminated cotton for the exterior and the green for the interior.

2. Make your pattern
Cut out an 8″ x 6″ rectangle. You can use construction paper, a paper grocery bag, or butcher paper. Don’t forget to label it for future use!

3. Cut the fabric
A) Pin the pattern to your fabric and cut it out. B) Do this until you have TWO each of the fusible interfacing (optional), exterior fabric, and interior fabric. You should end up with 6 rectangles (or 4 w/o interfacing). *If you’re feeling bold, you can stack the fabric and cut out a few at once.

4. Iron on the fusible interfacing
Iron the fusible interfacing onto the inside of the interior fabric. Set your iron to a medium heat setting (like wool) and iron until the two pieces are stuck together. Do this for both pieces of interior fabric.

5. Attach the zipper
A) Iron back 1/4″of the exterior fabric on the long (8″) side. Do this for both pieces. B) Take the ironed-back sides of the fabrics and line them up with the zipper (so that it’s in the middle). Hand sew a loose seam to keep the fabric attached to zipper while you machine sew. C) Sew it on the sewing machine!

6. Sew the interior fabric
A) Iron back 1/4″ as you did in step 5. Do this for both pieces of interior fabric. B) Machine sew the interior fabric onto the opposite side of the zipper, so that it’s sandwiched between the int. & ext. fabrics. C) Voila!

7. Sew it shut.
A) *I DON’T HAVE A PHOTO FOR THIS!* Flip the pieces over so that the faces of the exterior fabric are facing eachother. Position it so that the zipper is on the left, and the edges of all four pieces of fabric are on the right. Sew the seam on the right shut, so that you’re left with a tube.
B) (Photo below) Rearrange the tube so the zip sits on top of the bottom seam if you like. Make sure the zipper is in the middle! Also make sure the zipper is unzipped. Sew shut the two sides.

8. Make a box
A) Pinch the corners out, according to your desired shape. The bigger the triangle, the boxier the makeup bag. I measure 1″ from the tip of the triangle to the inside to make sure each corner was equal. B) Sew the corners, creating a triangle. C) Snip off the corners, about 1/4″ away from the seam.

9. Flip it inside out, and you’re done! Bravo!

I have to admit, this makeup bag looks like it belongs on a shelf in a store! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
Thank you, threebears for the inspiration.