I don’t usually know what I’m doing when I sew, but I do like to experiment. That’s how I came up with this My Little Kitty Backpack DIY (yeah… My Little Pony was on in the background when I named this, hee). It works perfectly for my little preschool girl. She asked for a kitty backpack, and that’s what I tried to make (sorta has a raccoon feel, but she loves it). Below I’ve attempted to share how I made it. Mostly I just guessed and it worked.
Supplies:
– 1/2 yard duck cloth
– 1/2 yard pretty fabric
– 1/2 yard oil cloth
– 1/8 yard of dark grey felt
– 1/8 yard of white felt
– One teensy piece of pink felt
– A small piece of blue yarn
– 1.5 yards of one inch wide belting trim
– 2: one inch wide strap adjusters
A quick how-to:
– First a note: all of these sizes can be adjusted and changed to make the perfect backpack for you. This size fits my little 3.5-year-old nicely. PLUS, I freehand cut the curves/eyes/nose/tail. PLUSandalso: I have totally taught myself to sew and make up all sorts of sewing terms, since I’m usually guessing how to make somethin’. What I’m trying to say: these instructions are crazy.
Fabric cuts:
– Interior of the backpack: Cut two 12″ wide by 13.5″ high pieces of oil cloth.
– Outer section of the backpack: Cut out two 13″ wide by 14″ high rectangle fabric pieces of both the duck cloth and pretty fabric.
– Pocket: Cut out a 6″ x 6″ piece of duck cloth and pretty fabric.
– Cat tail: Cut a 10″ by 12″ piece of duck cloth. Freehand cut 5 piece of dark grey felt.
– Cat face flap: cut a 13″ wide by 7″ high piece of duck cloth and oil cloth. Freehand cut 4 pieces of duck cloth in triangle shapes. Freehand cut 2 white fleece triangle pieces. Freehand cut two 2 inch circles of white felt. Freehand cut two 1 inch circles of dark grey felt. Cut a cute little piece to make the nose for the kitty, from the pink felt.
– Backpack straps: Two 11″ by 6″ pieces of oil cloth.
What I did:
– Place the interior of backpack oil cloth right sides together. Sew a 1/2 inch seam around the two 13.5″ sides + one 12 inch side. On the 13.5″ sides, only sew up to 12.5 inches (the extra inch will be folded back and sewn).
– Pin the wrong sides of the duck cloth and pretty fabric together, from the exterior backpack cuts. Repeat with the other exterior backpack fabric.
– Fold the edges, about 1/2 inch fold, of the cut pocket fabrics in and stitch. Pin the pocket into the center of one of the exterior backpack pinned pieces. Sew the pocket on.
– For the cat face flap: grab the cut cat face flap fabric pieces, sew the eyes and nose onto the duck cloth. Stitch the little mouth (in the shape of an upside down “v”). Place the right side pieces together freehand sew a curve (to make the cat face shape). Trim the extra fabric, then flip the inside out.
– Sew the triangle ear pieces together. Flip inside out.
– Freehand sew a cat tail shape. Trim and flip inside out.
– Grab the exterior backpack and sewn interior backpack pieces. With the pretty fabric facing out (and the interior backpack piece in the center), fold in the edges of the pretty fabric and pin to the sewn oil cloth. Pin two 12″ pieces of the belting trim to the bottom of the backpack. Pin the tail in between the belting pieces. Sew the two long sides and and the bottom of the backpack.
– Fold the backpack strap oil cloth into 1.5 inch sections (right side facing out) and pin. Add a small 4 inch piece of belting strip to the base of each strap, loop into the back of the strap adjusters, and pin to the strap. Stitch the strap/belting strip together.
– Fold in the fabric on the top of the backpack. Pin the cat face flap, straps, a 6 inch loop handle, and ears to the top. Sew, and you’re done!
It’s not the most perfect sewing project, but it turned out very cute and my kiddo loves it!
– Chelsey
