Selvage Edge Fabric into Drawstring Tote Bag

Is this one awesome bag or WHAT!?  I can't stop looking at it, I am so happy with it!  I'm like a little kid - just carrying it on my shoulder, even though I have nothing to put in it :)

This bag was made using SELVAGES.  A Selvage is the white strip of fabric, at the edge of the roll, that has info about who made the fabric, etc.  It is the part you usually cut off and throw away - but no more!  If you save them, you can make anything you want with them, and it looks so unique!!

I made this particular bag using a pattern from Crystelle Boutique - but the brilliant thing is -
you can make any bag (or any thing) you want using selvages!

Granted, it does take quite a few selvages to make a bag.  Just because I knew you would all be curious, I counted how many yards I needed to make this bag. 
Are you ready for it....
In needed 36 YARDS of selvages!  And I was very frugal! 
WOAH.  I did not expect that I would need so many!!  I cut the selvage off of every piece of fabric that I own, AND had my mom AND my sister send me their's as well!  And I barely had enough.  I thought for sure that I would be able to make a couple of bags with the gigantic pile I had set aside.  But, this bag was big, and selvages are small :)

(Now I cut them off as soon as I get new fabric, so I have nice long pieces - and I cut them at least 1" thick.  It looks great if there is some part of the actual fabric showing as well - adds some good color)

Each selvage was about 1" wide - but when you overlap the raw edge with finished edge, in order to sew them down, each strip shows only 1/2" to 3/4".  Selvage Edge Boutique has a great tutorial on how to do this:

As you can see, it takes quite a few selvages to make squares of 12" x 16" fabric like you see below (and I overlapped and sewed them as close to the edge as I could possibly get) - but they look so cool when you are done!  I made them this size because that is what I needed for my pattern.  Whatever you want to make, start by cutting muslin to the correct pattern size, and sewing the selvages to that.  You can then follow your pattern, sewing just as you would with any piece of fabric. 

I used really bright, colorful fabric for the lining, because I thought it complemented each tiny bit of color in the otherwise mostly white selvages. 

So, here is my plea to all my family and friends -

IF YOU DON'T WANT THEM,

SEND ME YOUR SELVAGES! :)

I am totally addicted now, but it will be a LONG time before I have enough selvages to make something else at the rate I buy fabric :)

And if you would like - in exchange, I will make you a little selvage tissue holder!  How cute is that!? ;)

(feel free to email me at craftyladylindsay[at]gmail.com)

Let me know if you have made something using selvages!  Now that I have discovered this medium - I would love to see more!

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