I Spy Bag Tutorial

 I love I Spy bags. They are great for kids of all ages (heck I even find myself playing with it!) They are super easy to make as well.

 You will need:

-Fleece material (cut at 9 1/2" x 9 1/2" you can make yours bigger or smaller but I found this size to be just right)

- thin plastic for the see through window

- Stuffing Pellets (link here, & here)

- Small Items to put in your bag. Some examples: Safety Pin, Penny, Buttons of all shapes and sizes and so on (pictures of my full list are further down.)

- Scissors & Pins

 

1. To Start I used two coordinating fabrics for my bag. You could do the same or make it all one color. Cut out two squares at 9 1/2" x 9 1/2"

 

2. Cut out your plastic window as large as you would like. I cut mine at 4" x 4". 

3. Take the piece of fleece you want to be on the top and pin the plastic window to the wrong side of the fabric.

4. Straight stitch with a 1/4" seam allowance all the way around. 

5. Switch your stitch to zig zag and stitch around the outside edge of the plastic to reenforce the window. 

6. Turn the piece of fabric over so that you are looking at the right side of the fabric. Cut a small hole where the window is.

7. Cut out the fabric to reveal the window. 

At this point trim your edges so that you have a nice clean edge around the window.

8. Take both piece of fabric and pin them with the right sides together. 

9. If you have a serger serge around the edges. If you do not have a surger do a straight stitch all the way around (be sure to leave a hole to turn and fill it). Once you have done a straight stitch around, Do a zig zig just you did for the window. 

**Remember to leave a hole so that you can turn it right side out and fill it!***

What it should look like once it's surged or stitched then zig zagged. Clip your strings.

10. Flip the bag right side out and top stitch around the edges. This adds one more layer of reinforcement and also give it a nice finished look. 

11. Now it is time to gather your treasures and fill it up. I put in 50 items in each of my bags. You could do more or less. I think 30 is the lowest I would go.

12. I then wrote up a little list using a piece of cotton and a sharpie. You could forgo this step and print out a list and laminate it (which is what I did last minute on another bag.) On some I added the grommet and others I just stitched the string into the tag. (Instructions for grommets is on the package.) To make the tag simply write out your list. Cut a piece of fleece the same size and sew them together right sides together. Leave a small hole and turn it right side out. Turn raw sides of hole inside and place a string in the hole. Top stitch around the tag. Be sure to back stitch a few times over the string to make sure it won't fall out.

13. Once your bag is full and your tag is made. Turn in the raw edges of your hole and stick the other end of the tag's string into the hole. Do a straight top stitch along the opening to close it up. 

There you have it! Quick, simple and super cute!!!!