DIY: Sew a Fabric Wallet

LeDonna has a cute little fabric wallet that someone made for her that she uses all the time - I traced it to make a rough template, and set about figuring out how to make myself one. I used these colorful cotton scraps of material I have left over from making the boho sling bags (click here for that post) and I didn't add any interfacing, so it is very thin and lightweight. I might attempt one out of sturdier fabric in the future but for right now this seems perfect. 

This doesn't take very much material - you only need two pieces of fabric the same size for the outside and the inside wall (I'm calling the yellow dotted piece the inside "wall" because the pockets are going to be sewn to that piece, then sewn to the outside piece), 3 smaller pieces for the pockets, and a bit of velcro to hold it closed. 

My finished wallet is 5 3/4" x 4 1/2" and has three inside pockets. It's a little wider than it needs to

 be, but I feel like if I pack it full I'll want the little extra room for it to expand. 

To make it this size cut:

I used an old gift card to gauge how big the pockets needed to be

2 - 6 1/4" x 5" rectangles - I did a flower print for the outside, and coordinating yellow dots for the inside.
1 - 5" x 3" deepest pocket rectangle
2 - 5" x 2 1/2" for the other two pockets

step one and two

1. Turn down the top edge of a pocket 1/4", iron to make a nice crisp fold, sew along the top edge to hem. Repeat with the other pockets for a total of three top hemmed pieces.
2. (photo above) Lay one of the narrow (2 1/2") pockets on the longer (3") pocket about 1/2" down from the top edge of the 3" pocket. Sew only the bottom of the 2 1/2" pocket to the 3".  You want the pockets to be offset about 1/2" so when you put cards in the slots they are layered instead of all being on top of each other. You'll see what I mean in a minute...

step three

3. Now lay the third 2 1/2" pocket piece on top of the first two, lining up the bottom edge with the bottom edge of the 3" piece. You can now see how the 3 pockets are staggered about 1/2" down from each other. Lay all three pockets on top of the inside wall fabric (the yellow dotted material in this example) all right sides are up at this point. Sew around the outside edges of the pockets and inside wall - you don't need to sew the yellow dotted material where there isn't any other material connecting to it. See the above picture for reference.

step four

4. Pin the right sides together of both large pieces. Sew together leaving a small gap where you'll be able to turn the wallet inside out.

step five

5. Turn the wallet inside out thru the gap, I use a bamboo skewer to get the corners as flat as possible.

step six

6. Iron the entire thing, get it as crisp and flat as you can.

step seven

7. Topstitch the top half of the wallet where the two large pieces joined together, this will sew the gap closed in addition to giving the bag a flatter and more finished look. Don't topstitch the bottom half of the wallet where the pockets are.

step eight

8. Sew a small piece of velcro to the inside flap and top of bottom pocket to keep the flap closed.

LeDonna's - the inspiration for my wallet

3.8.18: wire-wrapped ring
3.8.17: Andes mint cookies
3.8.16: easy art for St. Patrick's day decor


Happy moment ~ a nice surprise in the mail from my sissy, with a note that made me laugh