Sewing pattern review: Sweetpea Pods by Lazy Girl Designs

As I think I mentioned in my previous zipper tutorial post, I ordered the physical Sweetpea Pod (LGD135) pattern from Etsy before it was available online at Craftsy. I had already made project bags like the Becca Bags are, and the only thing that would've been new was the zipper technique. So at least the Sweetpea Pod pattern had a different design to use. I haven't really searched free tutorials for a pouch shaped this way, so I don't know if they exist and how unique this design is. 

But this is my honest review (as a beginner in sewing) of the Sweetpea Pods by Lazy Girl Designs: 

The pattern arrived from the US in a week, as a letter. The day it arrived was the day I noticed that the pattern was now available as a PDF pattern download at Craftsy. I don't know how many days it had been there, but after I had ordered anyways. I could've saved a couple of dollars on shipping costs, but that's life. The physical pattern is printed 2-sided on a larger sheet of paper that is folded to get 3 pages of instructions + the back & front.

The pattern is only for the instructions ("rotary cut project"), there is no actual pattern included. The whole pattern is about the instructions. I know a basic square might seem a bit silly to include as a pattern, but I don't have the equipment to easily make accurate rectangles/squares that are larger than the A4 paper size, so it would've been nice to have. And simplicity goes both ways - doesn't seem impossible to add a 10" square at the backdrop of the instructions, considering the instructions are printed on a bigger folded sheet.

Here are the Sweetpea Pod pouches I made (it's convenient to make two at a time). My pods are slightly smaller than the pattern instructs, since I used a smaller template. The zipper I had was also shorter than in the pattern, so it was better to make a smaller pouch anyways. And I think that in this case smaller is cuter!

For the top stitching to create a look of "faux piping" (though you can't really see it in my pouches). I used a grey thread for the top to match the exterior fabric and a green thread in the bobbin to match the lining.

It's not in-your-face obvious from the cleverly staged promotional pictures that the "raw" (though zig-zagged) edges of the seams are visible inside the pouch, i.e. not hidden between the liner & exterior fabric. I can see them from one of the promo pictures now that I know to look for them. Granted, they only really show if you fully open the zipper and the pouch is relatively empty. But that's another disappointing aspect of this pattern - I sort of expected a more professional finishing. No, I don't know how feasible it is to make this shape so that all the seams are invisible, but as a paying customer that's not my job either. If I could figure it out on my own, I wouldn't be using a pattern.

Raw edges don't really look fancy. The seams in my other bag are much more visible because I didn't change the sewing thread from grey to green after doing the topstitching, but that's entirely my own mistake!

Positives:

• The pouch is cute!
• The pattern is quite clear with photos and written instructions
• The pouch is easy to make
• Now also available online

Neutrals: 

• Using only one side of the zipper tape gives a nice look, but the "trick" that is described to apply the puller, isn't that exciting.

Negatives: 

• Raw seams/edges inside the pouch. Since the pattern is not free, I simply expected more finesse in the details.
• In my books, quite expensive, but seems to be in line with other purchasable patterns. 
• Rotary cut project means no ready-measured pattern.
• The promotional pictures are somewhat misleading, or, showing you only one side of the truth. Instagram photos of finished objects also only aim to look the best, so no one is going to post a picture showing that part of the pouch. 

Honestly, I was ultimately more interested in the Becca Bags because I wanted to make knitting project bags that looked like that (I just started sewing them so I want to try to make different kinds to see what I like the best). I'm glad that I purchased the Sweetpea Pods design rather than the Becca bag for a couple of reasons: 

1. There are plenty of free tutorials for zipper pouches, and you can easily adapt a Becca Bag style zipper (using only one tape) to use with those instructions. 
2. None of the photos of the Becca bag show the inside / bottom of the bag. It had bothered me before (like any collection of photos that only truly show the same one side of any item on sale), but with the hands-on experience with the Pod pattern, it got me even more suspicious. 
3. This post confirms my suspicions, there are similar raw edges in the Becca Bags as well: "I don't like raw edges that are zig zagged on the inside of my bags if I can help it. The Becca pattern called for that type of seam for the bottom and side." 

I have actually already made a "Becca" bag. But I automatically made the improved version because I used the free tutorials (linked in my zipper tutorial) to create bags without visible raw edges. It requires some mental gymnastics at first, but then it gets easier after you've done one. I don't think a paid pattern should cut corners like that, but that's just my opinion. I have now seen some instagram photos that show the raw edges at the bottom of the Becca bag. It doesn't look that terrible I suppose, at least if you do the finishing stitch with a serger / overlock machine. But raw edges are still vulnerable to fraying and small pieces of fabric lint/thread coming out of the seams, or for example key rings getting stuck and snagging a thread. 

A thought I had was that the lazy in "Lazy Girl Designs" refers to the design itself. It doesn't mean that the pattern provides the customer the laziest route to creating awesomeness.

My final opinion as a customer is that you should buy the Sweetpea Pods pattern if you like the cute design, not for the specific technique used to attach the pull.

Photo tutorial: Adding/attaching a zipper pull to zipper tape

I've been sewing some project bags for myself lately. I've come across many good tutorials that I've tried to mix and match to find what works for me the best. I'm starting to have an idea of what I like and don't like.

I came across the Becca Bags by Lazy Girl Designs. It's now available at Craftsy. What's curious about it is that it only uses one side of the zipper tape, and it looks nice because there's only one side seam. I ordered the physical Sweetpea Pods pattern from Etsy before it was available online at Craftsy. I figured that at least it's slightly different than just the basic bag shape for which there are multiple free tutorials (some linked at the end of this post). I'll do a separate review post of that.

I had ordered a zipper by the meter and I'm so smart that I had to google how to separate the zipper tapes from each other (spoiler: you just pull them apart!). I found this video on Youtube by The Zipper Lady: 

There are two methods shown in the video. The first method works without tools, and is very similar to the "trick" in the Lazy Girl Design's Sweetpea Pod pattern. The second method in the video is what I really took liking to, and you either need an extra set of hands or a fork. Because the video is blurry, I had difficulties seeing what exactly was being done with the fork. So I decided to make a photo tutorial!

What you need: 

1) Zipper tape
2) A zipper pull that works with the zipper (obviously)
3) A third hand* or a fork you can bend approx. 90 degrees
4) Something that keeps your fork upright. (In my case: the bed frame & mattress - not pictured above).

* A third hand usually comes with a fourth one, but is not required. In my case, my hubby kindly provided the service but I also wanted to see how to do this alone. I think that using the first method in the video OR a third hand are the most robust methods, since you're not relying on the size of the fork's prongs and the hole in the zipper pull to match. But this is about the fork.

Instructions:

1. separate the zipper tapes by simply pulling them apart. Also, if you don't have a bent fork, bend a fork at a nice ~90 degree angle. (I sacrificed a cheap Ikea fork). I don't have pictures of these processes.

2. Slide the zipper pull on one of the prongs/tines of the fork. There's a hole in the pull of the zipper pull that can accommodate a tine. Note that the zipper pull is upside down.

3. Prop the fork up so that it's quite steady and doesn't slide downwards or to the sides. As I mentioned, the first working thing I could find was the space between our bed frame and quite a firm mattress. 

Alternatively, you can just use a hand and skip the fork thing. Ask your person providing the extra arm to hold the zipper pull upside down, nice and steady. (It's easier to hold it steady when it's upside down since you can grab the pull of the zipper pull).

4. Feed the zipper tape evenly into the puller. Use your both hands so you get them in as evenly as possible. Note that you need to feed the tape teeth facing down since the puller is upside down!

5. Now just pull the tape some more and watch the miracle of zippering happen. Once your zipper pull is properly on the zipper tape, you can remove the zipper from the fork.

6. Now you're DONE! You have successfully attached the zipper pull to your zipper tape to make a functioning zipper.

7. Notes and thoughts: 

• Obviously, usually your zipper is attached to a piece of fabric. 
• Knowing how to add a pull back to your zipper enables you to switch the colors around or use just one tape of your zipper (like in the Lazy Girls Design). I suppose this is the main idea behind this.
• With this method, you also can cut away the stoppers of your regular zipper to remove the pull, attach the zipper tapes to your fabric without the pull - attaching the zipper tape is as simple as sewing any two fabrics together (though, if your zipper has enough extra length, you can just have the pull outside the project and it won't bother you there either)
• Then just add the zipper pull before you sew the seams that close the zipper.
• Because, or, if you add the zipper pull after attaching the tapes to your fabric, you want the ends of the tape to align as evenly as possible. That's why it's important to apply the zipper as evenly as possible (see step 4). In other words, directly using the first method in the video will result in your pieces being in about 1/4" misalignment if you cut 1/4" off the other tape. The "trick" in the paid pattern addresses this particular issue, or you can use the fork / 3rd hand method.
• If you only need to make a zipper from a by-the-meter zipper, alignment doesn't matter as much and your main objective is just to get the zipper pull on the zipper. You can do that by misaligning the zippers as much as you want, though less is more economical of course. 
• Using only one tape of the zipper is only really practical with by-the-meter zippers & pulls since you need two pulls for each long length of zipper. In the pouch below I used a 35 cm / 14" that I had purchased not with this project in mind, and naturally didn't have an extra pull. So I took the puller of a similar purple zipper because the separate pulls I had weren't the same brand and didn't work. And now I have a purple zipper completely without a puller. I need to purchase some very short (i.e. the cheapest) zippers to be able to use that.

Here are some good, free tutorials for zippered pouches I've come across:

• Open wide zippered pouch: DIY tutorial by noodlehead - I like this method for the zipper end, specifically the "tail". Functionally the best, and no bulky corner seams at the zipper. I did notice that I really should mark the distances where to turn the zipper away from the seam etc, to have them line up nicely. But I was lazy. There's also a link to a size chart kindly provided for small, medium and large pouches!

• Full access zipper pouch tutorial by Jedi Craft Girl - This is very similar to the "open wide zippered pouch". I actually can't remember which one I used, but I think it was the open wide one. They do create the boxed corners differently. It's always good to have options.

• Zippered handbag - cosmetic bag tutorial - This one has the instructions to make the pouch from two pieces of fabric (one and one interior), so no bottom seam. I had difficulties with the somewhat sparse "photos only" instructions, and on the other hand there are way too many similar pictures of the finished bag, but it's a nice reference to combine with other ideas.

• Zippered purse with a flat bottom by Sew Together - This is a bit different, I haven't tried this yet. I think I prefer the project bags to have a wider opening with the boxed corners that this one avoids (click on the link to see what I'm talking about). Also, I think I prefer cutting out basic can't-really-mess-them-up-rectangles. But the tutorial's good anyways!

• How to sew a zipper pouch tutorial by Melly Sews - I really struggled with how many, if not all, tutorials skipped the details on how to sew the seam where the closed end of the zipper is. I think this had the best answer I could find. The image tutorial is good and adds additional support to the video tutorial.

I apologize if the tutorials I linked are on websites that are full of ads, I use an adblocker so I don't see them. And note: I haven't sewn in years. It tells a lot that I spent many hours trying to figure out why my sewing machine was not working properly, only to realize that I had threaded incorrectly. Oops.