Make a strap adjustable with a slide buckle

Yesterday on QUILTsocial I used my Oliso M2Pro Mini Project Iron,  HeatnBond EZ PRINT FEATHERLITE 10 pcs – 22 x 28cm (8½″ x 11″),  UNIQUE QUILTING Clever Clips Small – 12 pcs, and UNIQUE SEWING Invisible Magnetic Snaps – Sew-On – 12mm (¹⁄₂″) – 2 sets to show you the easiest way to add a magnetic closure to a bag.

Today is my last post for the week and it’s time to finish the crossbody bag I’m making with the Ellipse Handbag Pattern from Among Brenda’s Quilts and Bags. In my post on Monday, I showed you 6 steps to use webbing and fabric to make a customized purse strap that is super strong and on Tuesday I used Odif OdiCoat Gel Coating – 250ml to make the strap waterproof . Today, I’ll show you how to make the strap adjustable by using UNIQUE SEWING Slide Buckle – Metal – 25mm (1″) – Silver – 2 pcs.

Step 1 Slide the buckle onto the strap.

So, the first thing I’ll do is to slide the buckle onto my purse strap. This is a 1″ buckle to go along with the UNIQUE Webbing 25mm x 10m (1″ x 11yd) – White that I used as the base of the strap. Holding the strap right side up I’ll slide the strap through the buckle so that it goes under the outsides of the buckle and over the middle part that moves.

Slide the buckle onto the strap.

Step 2 Fold under the end of the strap.

I want to secure the buckle to the strap so I’ll fold under the raw end quite close to the buckle and clip it in place.

Fold the raw end of the strap under and clip to secure.

Step 3 Topstitch the end of the strap.

I’ll use my sewing machine to topstitch the folded end to the strap. This will secure the buckle in place as well as hide the raw end of the strap.

Topstitch the folded end of the strap to secure it in place.

Step 4 Thread the other end of the strap through one ring.

Now I’ll take the opposite end of the strap and thread it through one of the UNIQUE SEWING Rectangle Rings – 25mm (1″) – Silver – 4 pcs that are already attached to the purse making sure that the right side of the strap is facing the outside of the bag.

Thread the other end of the strap through one of the rectangular rings.

Step 5 Thread the end of the strap through the buckle.

Next, I’ll take the loose end of the strap and thread it through the buckle so that it goes under the sides of the buckle and over the middle where the other end of the strap is stitched in place.

Thread the strap through the buckle, on top of the other end of the strap.

Step 6 Attach the end of the strap to the second rectangular ring.

Finally, I’ll take the end of the strap and attach it to the rectangular ring on the other side of the bag, making sure the the strap isn’t twisted anywhere and that the right side of the strap faces the outside of the bag.

Once again, I will fold under the raw end of the strap and clip it in place. Then I’ll topstitch it with my sewing machine like I did in Step 3.

Thread the strap through the rectangular ring and fold the raw end of the strap under.

And here it is – my completed crossbody bag. As you can see, the large pocket on the outside of the bag is just the perfect size for my Ireland travel guide. I wanted to make sure that whatever was in that pocket wouldn’t fall out, so before I sewed the outside pocket to the main part of the bag, I added two short straps and a UNIQUE SEWING Double Adjust Parachute Buckle – Plastic – 25mm (1″) – White.

The completed crossbody bag.

This was such a fun project and I learned a lot about bag-making. I’d like to thank Brenda Miller from Among Brenda’s Quilts and Bags for allowing me to use her Ellipse Handbag Pattern to make my travel crossbody bag.

I’m so happy with all of the products that I used for my bag – I think the UNIQUE SEWING Double Adjust Parachute Buckle – Plastic – 25mm (1″) – White, UNIQUE SEWING Rectangle Rings – 25mm (1″) – Silver – 4 pcs, UNIQUE Webbing 25mm x 10m (1″ x 11yd) – White, and the UNIQUE SEWING Slide Buckle – Metal – 25mm (1″) – Silver – 2 pcs all look great with the fabrics that I chose for the pattern. I use my Oliso M2Pro Mini Project Iron, Oliso TG1600 Pro Plus Smart Iron and UNIQUE QUILTING Clever Clips Small – 12 pcs for almost every project I make so it’s no surprise that they helped make this project fun and enjoyable. Using the Odif Odicoat Gel Coating – 250ml  to make the bag waterproof was so easy and I’m sure it will be helpful – I hear it rains a lot in Ireland. See you in October!

This is part 5 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 4: The easiest way to add a magnetic closure to a bag

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