Powerful stitch for making pouches, hidden / binding stitch tutorial

Have you ever find it amazing to see the beautiful odd shape pouches or stuff toys in the Japanese patchwork magazine or books.  And I am sure a lot of us will wonder how do they make it so neat and beautifully.  The secret is to use hidden stitch.  Running / hidden stitch is very powerful stitching technique for binding pieces with odd shape, and to close an opening too. 

If you are able to master this stitching technique, you will find that making crafts and bags will become more fun and challenging in the future. 

Here is some guideline for you.  Running stitch is basically consisting of even stitches which run back and forth between 2 pieces of fabric, without overlapping them.

The following steps are used to close an opening.  

Arrange your fabrics and secure them with some pins.

Put a knot at the end of your single thread, sew from the starting point of the opening.  

Then in the sequence of A, B, C, D,E,F as shown in the photos below.  The stitches need to be even so that it will cause any ugly stitch results when you pull the thread. 

All you need to do is to 'run' your needle between the 2 pieces of fabrics as shown in the photos below.

 After 'running' a few stitches, pull the thread to bind the fabrics together. 

So after you have done your running stitch, how do you hide thread then ?

 Towards the finishing, insert the needle between the two pieces of fabrics.

  

Then loop the thread counter clockwise over the needle and pull it through (picture below).

Then make a  knot at the thread.  

Insert the needle to the fabric again (at the ending point of the stitches), then pull the thread, when the knot, pull the thread slightly hard until you hear the 'tick sound', you will see the knot is hidden inside the fabric.  Cut off the remaining thread on the fabric.  Done!!!

Here is my latest project using the technique above, , a Carriage Pouch .   The carriage is not made from the spell of the fairy God mother from a pumpkin tough, it is made from the heart of Story Quilt.  Now it is rushing to send Cinderella to the ball now

This It is a present for my Japanese friend, Emi Miyase san ^v^.  I really have to thank her all those years, for her support and care.  Thank you, Emi chan.  I will be sending this pouch to you really soon ^v^

** Pattern will be available soon 

Designing pattern for the carriage pouch

It may look easy to draw the idea on a piece of paper but when coming to designing the pattern, it has a lot to concern from the size to color to back side of the pouches etc. 

The idea of my carriage pouch is going to be simple to make yet colorful, like those beautiful Japanese illustration.  Also, I am going to use laces, ribbons and ribbon flowers (maybe) in this project. 

I am going to use neon like colorful fabrics and the green check print retro fabric and different size of ribbons for my project. 

18/3/2014

The shape of my carriage pouch is ready.  I am just so happy with the result, this is exactly what i want.  Feel like the curtain is being blown by the wind.  I will stop for today.

A special pouch for a special friend, Emi Miyase san ^v^

I am so thrilled when my Japanese friend, Emi, who sent so many lovely gifts for me to mark our friendship for so many years.  She even made me a very cute piggy pouch that warms my heart completely.  

I really can't thank her enough.  The only way I can show my utter appreciation is to make a very unique gift, just for her.  

Though i was inspired to make a pouch like this but what to make then ?  I did some sketching and I kept looking at the piggy pouch to see what come out from my mind.  Sometimes you can sit for whole day and never get any idea coming your way.  So, I did an hour of line dance (totally addicted  to it) .  Maybe the exhaustion help to 'spark some light' in my mind and there comes my idea , a carriage !!!  This idea is pretty fresh, not many people are making carriage pouch i think ^v^..  (giggle)