These were super simple and in expensive!
Supplies
2 cute placemats (or one dish towel)
3 yards strapping material
about 7 x 7 inch scrap material for inner pocket
your sewing mating and thread
For the big ones I used two placemats each from Target! They were about $4 each. The smaller one (below) is just one dish towel which was $4.
In addition to the kitchenware, I used some fun, colorful strapping I found at Pacific Fabrics. I used 3 yards of each color and I think it was about $2.50 per yard.
Now least you think I came up with this all on my own, I generally followed this Placemat Tote Bag tutorial from Dana, at Made. I combined the placemat bag tutorial with the pocket tote tutorial and voila!
A Placemat Tote with a pocket inside.
First, I sewed the strapping on the outside of each side leaving a 24in loop on top for the handles. I placed the straps about 4in in from the side of the bag.
Next, I cut a rectangle of material, folded in the edges 1/4 inch twice and ironed. I sewed the top edged of the pocket material, then pinned it to the wrong side of the bag and sewed around the two sides and bottom edge.
Finally, I placed the two placemat sides wrong side together and sew around the three edges as close as I could to the edge. I was careful where the straps met up at the bottom and reinforced the top corners to give it some extra strength - hopefully for some towels and sunscreen for a fun summer trip!
Happy Summer!
