Round Rainbow Zipper Pouch

I could create rainbows all day long and put them on everything. I also love creating little handy bags that I can use to carry all the things. Today I’m sharing the cutest bag of all, a round clam shaped bag or the clam zipper pouch, with a fun eclectic rainbow. The making of a rounded pouch is actually very simple and quick to do but because I had to have a rainbow featured on it, it did take a little longer than normal but it actually was very therapeutic for me. I loved picking out the rainbow fabrics and figuring out how to make this rounded bag the right shape and size.

Here is a video tutorial on how you can make the rounded zipper pouch. To learn how I made the rainbow continue to read on.

How to create the rainbow fabric for your rounded zipper pouch:

1. On a large piece of card stock I traced half of a large plate to get the exact rounded shape I wanted. It was a little smaller than I wanted for my rainbow so I measured out from that line 3/4” to get the largest color, red.
2. Working my way in from the original line, I measured in 3/4” to create each arch of color. I had 9 different fabrics I wanted to use so I found 3/4” was the right amount to fit them all into the arch. If you made a larger arch you could add more colors or make each piece larger.
3. Once I had all my arches measured out I then started by cutting out the whole rainbow pattern and cutting it out of the red fabric. I cut out 2 of every color to create 2 rainbows for the bag.
   
   Down below is a photo of what my rainbow pattern looked like. I laid this on top of the red fabric and cut the whole thing out.

4. Once I had the red fabric cut out, I cut off the first arch (labeled #1 on the patten) on the pattern. Then it was ready for me to cut out the next piece of fabric which was a brighter red/orange. I did this for every color until I got to the end of the arches.
5. After all the pieces of fabric were cut out I layered them one by one and sprayed them with a quilting spray to hold them in place while stitching. I found this easier than pins because it held the fabric in place perfectly and didn’t shift while I was sewing. Make sure to measure where to lay your pieces after they are sprayed. You want to have 3/4” of the bottom color still showing to give the rainbow effect.

6. After a layer was put in place I top stitched around the edge of that arch. I continued doing this for every layer until I got to purple.

7. When both rainbows have all the layers sewn in place, I then placed the rainbows right sides together and sewed across the bottom straight edge. This created the shape I want for the bag, a long oval shape.

8. To get this to be exactly like the shape I need for the rounded zipper pouch I needed to cut out some of the middle section. If you watch the video you can see I cut out 2” squares. For the size of this bag and the fact that I’m not cutting out fabric on the fold, I cut out a piece of paper 3” x 6” and placed it on either edge of the bag, centering it over the seam we just sewed. I then cut out that shape from my rainbow fabric. Below is a photo of what it looked like after being cut out.

9. Now your fabric is ready to become a rounded zipper pouch. After cutting out the lining fabric and stabilizer you are ready to start sewing in the zipper. You can find the rest of the directions for how to make this bag in the video above.

The first thing I had to do was figure out how many colors I wanted in my rainbow and in what fabric. I didn’t want it basic but I also didn’t want it to be too crazy. Going through my fabrics was so much fun! All I needed was fat quarters which I organize by color anyways so it worked out really well. Once I had them all picked out then came the part where I had to figure out how big I wanted the rainbow to be and how I was going to create it. I didn’t use a pattern I just kinda went for it! I love how it turned out but if I did it again I would probably try to make it so all the colors are seen on the front of the bag. (the purple is not seen when the bag is sitting upright) But with that being said I love how it’s all just rainbow on the outside and nothing else.

For the inside of the round pouch I chose a rainbow striped fabric that I just love! I’ve been saving it to be a binding for a quilt, cause you can never have too much color or rainbows on a project. I have plenty of it and I’m so glad I chose it for this project. It’s the perfect finishing touch to the bright colorful bag I was hoping for. For the inside of the rounded pouch I added “walls” of fabric on the sides so that when it is fully unzipped everything is still contained in the bag. It finished off all the raw edges and really gives a finishing touch to the inside of the bag.

I love all the details for this rounded rainbow pouch. From the frayed edges to the little white daisies in the yellow fabric to the tab on the side, I really love how bright and cheery this bag turned out. It’s important to me to create things that bring me so much happiness and sunshine and rainbows do just that for me. Color brings me a lot of cheer and hope. I hope that no matter your style or aesthetic you are able to make things that bring you so much joy. It might not be rainbows or color but instead could be neutrals or all black, but you should always create things that bring you happiness. I’ll be creating a video tutorial showing how you can make your own rounded zipper pouch in the coming week so stay tuned for that addition.

Happy Sewing Friends!