Hi, I’m Debbie Cook from Stitches & Seams, and I was tired of my bread looking like this after I got it home from the grocery store.
So I decided to do something about it and came up with my Bread Buddy (named by my son Alex). I hope you like it. I’m planning on making more of these for Christmas presents because they’re really quick, easy, and useful!
2 Coordinating Fat Quarters (featured is Fandango by Kate Spain, Sarabande Ole and Canto Ole)
Corrugated cardboard cut into eight (8) 4-1/8″ x 6-3/4″ rectangles (an old box works great!)
Sewable Hook & Loop tape (Velcro), about 4 inches each
Thread to match fabric and hook & loop tape
Scrap of fusible web
Other sewing/cutting supplies: Chalk for marking lines, pins, scissors/rotary cutter & mat, ruler, sewing machine, iron & ironing board/mat, washable glue stick
1. Cut both fat quarters to 18″W x 19″L.
2. From scraps, cut strap piece 2″W x 8″L. I used a scrap from each print. Set strap pieces aside for now.
3. On the 19″ sides of the cover and liner pieces, press under 1/2″ and then press under again 1/2″ to form a double-fold hem.
4. Edge stitch close to inside fold from the wrong side, or topstitch 3/8 from outside edge. Repeat on liner.
Set liner piece aside for now.
5. With right sides facing, stitch around the strap pieces with a 1/4″ seam allowance, leaving an area unstitched for turning. Clip corners, turn and press. Insert a scrap of fusible web into the hole used for turning and fuse closed.
6. Topstitch around the edge of the strap, about 1/4″ from the edge.
7. Attach a rectangle of the hook tape (scratchy side) to one end of the bottom side of your strap by edgestitching around the tape.
8. Use chalk to draw stitching guidelines onto the right side of the cover. Draw a horizontal guideline across the middle. (Fold the fabric in half and mark with a pin to get your center point.) See the diagram below.
9. Using a washable glue stick (or pins), attach the end of the strap without the hook tape onto the cover in the center of the quadrant shown, with the bottom edge of the strap positioned approximately 2″ from the edge of the cover.
Attach the loop (fuzzy) tape in the quadrants shown. The tape in the upper right of the photo below is centered in the space, allowing for a 1/2″ seam allowance on the right/raw edge. The tape in the bottom row is positioned in the center of the chalk lines, with the bottom edge of the tape positioned approximately 3-3/4″ from the bottom edge of the cover.
10. Topstitch the strap onto the cover, stitching in a square to secure it to the cover.
11. Switch your thread & bobbin to match the hook & loop tape and stitch the loop tape down onto the cover. Don’t forget to change your thread & bobbin back when you’ve finished.
12. Stack the liner and cover wrong sides together and pin the hemmed edges together to keep the fabrics from slipping.
13. Using the chalk lines as your guides, stitch the cover and liner pieces together, 1/8″ to the left and to the right of each guideline. This creates the “pockets” for the cardboard rectangles. When done stitching, brush away the chalk.
14. Fold the cover/lining unit so that the raw edges meet and right sides of the cover are together. Stitch all 4 raw edges together/closed in one pass, using a 1/2″ seam allowance. Press the seam allowances open.
15. Using a serger or zigzag stitches, serge/sew the seam allowances together and press to one side.
16. Turn cover right side out.
17. Insert one cardboard rectangle into each of the eight pockets, four are inserted from one side and the remaining four from the other side.
18. Before inserting a loaf of bread, attach the strap to the loop tape on the pocket directly across. (The other loop tape is used when folding the Bread Buddy for carrying empty.)
19. When at the store, hold the end of the bread bag and insert down into the Bread Buddy, as below.
19. The bottom of the bread will rest against the strap to keep it from sliding out.
Your bread is now safe for transport and won’t get squooshed when something rolls on top of it in the shopping cart or on the drive home.
To fold up an empty Bread Buddy, unfasten the strap from the end and flatten like this:
Fold the Bread Buddy vertically with the second piece of loop tape on the outside, like this:
Fold in half, like this:
Secure closed by fastening the hook tape end of the strap to the loop tape.
The Bread Buddy is washable – just remove the cardboard inserts first.
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed my first tutorial for the Moda Bake Shop!
Debbie Cook
{http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com}
modafabrics 