I first made this backpack as a Sounds Bag or Sensory bag for my grand-daughter. Her speech development had been impeded by some health problems she had as a baby, and I'd read about a Sounds Bag as a fun way to help a little one with language development. You can read my post here about the Sounds Bag.
Because its primary purpose was originally to help Jane play and develop her language, I wanted the bag to have easy access for her. She could take things out and put them back easily herself. The Indietutes design lends itself to easy opening, with an overlap top.
It was absolutely perfect for that purpose. However, the bag became her favourite thing ever, after it had served its original purpose, and she wanted to use it to take toys in the car and on other outings. I then found the weight of the toys she chose had a tendency to make the bag tip forward and fall open, so there was a risk of her losing things.
I found it very easy to add a zip (which by now she was well able to manage).
So for all subsequent bags, I added the zip in the first place.
How to make the backpack
For me, the great thing about this backpack is that it is very simple to make. It's suitable for a toddler, but I also scaled it up a bit for a 3-4 year old (Jane's cousin). It might not be well enough balanced or strong enough for an older child, or for a school bag with heavy books. But for a toddler or very small child, I think it's perfect, especially with the addition of a zip or other closure.
The first thing you need is the pattern. At the time of writing, the pattern link on the tutorial is not working properly, so you may need to email Charity (the pattern author) to get a copy. I have only got hard copy at the moment, but I've asked her for a new PDF, and if possible, for her to redo the link.
There are just 4 pieces and two (non-adjustable) straps. These are:
Top front }
} These two overlap to make the same shape as the back
Bottom front }
Back
Side (goes all round)
Two straps
The Indietutes Tutorial is very clear (at least, I think so). But she has answered all the questions posed by people in the comments at the bottom of the post, so if it is not clear to you, I would look through those. You will need to refer to the tutorial, as I haven't covered all the stages here. I've mainly shown what I did differently. One of the main things I did was to use some ready quilted fabric, which meant I didn't need to interface or line it.
If you are going to add a zip (recommended) or Velcro to close the bag, it's as well to do that near the beginning. On my first one, I did it later, which is possible, but it's easier to do it early on. Read this carefully, and look at the photos, because there are a lot of 'tops' and 'bottoms'!
First, I turned the hems and finished the bottom edge of the top front, and the top edge of the bottom front. I did a bit of fancy stitching, just rows of straight top-stitching, partly because I liked the look of it and partly because I wanted to make sure the double layer of quilted fabric laid flat.
In the next photo, I've already measured what the overlap needs to be to make the front and back match up. So, placing the top edge of the zip level with the right side of the top of the bottom front, I stitched the BOTTOM of the zip to the bag, leaving the top of the zip free.
Then, I laid the bottom edge of the top front right side out, on top of the zip, level with the very bottom edge of the zip. Now seen from the inside, I pinned the free edge of the zip (the top edge) to the inside of the top, maintaining the overlap. I stitched right through the zip and the top with its folded down edge.
You can probably see better how this looks on the picture below (now from the outside - the top of the bag is folded away from the camera here, with the zip open. By now, I've attached the top and bottom at the sides where they overlap.
It's a good idea from here on to leave the zip at least partly open, as you will need to turn the bag inside out at a later stage!
The sides / top / bottom of the backpack are made of one continuous strip of fabric made into a loop. I pinned one edge right sides together with the front of the bag, so the seam was in the centre at the bottom. (These photos are after the back is attached, but you can see the seam at the bottom.)
Next, I pinned the straps in place on the right side of the back.
As the backpacks were not going to be lined because of the thicker material, I needed to finish the insides. I wrote up in this post some tips for how to finish the efges and seams of double sided ready quilted fabric. Once the edges were finished, I turned it the right way out through trhe zip opening, and it was done!
This one, with the cup cakes, was the first one I made, and was so successful that Jane continued to use it until her younger sister inherited it. And now younger sister proudly carts it about with her. Fortunately, Jane doesn't seem to mind that her toddler sister has taken over some of her former possessions. She's grown up now, all of 5 and a half.
But soon enough her cousin Rose wanted one, too. She was a little older, and so she had one for her third birthday. I made this one a little larger, in what I estimated would be a size 3-4. I just drew round the original pattern pieces for front and back, and made the side piece a little longer to fit. As she also had a fancy dress costume for her birthday, and another costume hat, she decided to try them all on together. It is a little large for her at this stage, but at least it will last her a while.
So once again, thanks to Indietutes for her great pattern and tutorial, and for making her pattern available for free. (I will restore the link to it as soon as I can, once I have further information from the pattern author. In the meantime I can probably send a scanned copy of mine with measurements to anyone who needs it, bearing in mind that Indietutes should always be acknowledged as the author.)
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