Make a Bag

1. Take a 20cm x 50cm piece of printed cotton and iron a rectangle of fusible interfacing to the wrong side. Pin a second 20cm x 50cm printed cotton shape to the first with right sides facing, then sew around all four edges with a 1cm seam allowance, leaving a 10cm gap in the middle of one short side. Turn through and press.

2. Fold in the raw edge of the 10cm gap then press with an iron before neatly oversewing the gap closed. Fold the short end of the fabric up by 17cm, then fold over the other end of the remaining material to create a flap and press. Pin and oversew both sides of the lower section of the bag with small stitches.

Create a Shoulder Strap

1. Cut the contrasting fabric into three 4cm wide strips. Sew the strips together to make one long pieces of fabric, then fold this in half lengthways and press. Open out, fold the raw edges into the middle and press again.

2. Tuck in the raw edges at each end of the resulting strap and secure the folds by stitching two lines of matching thread down each long side, 1mm from the edges.

3. Pin the ends of the strap to the sides of the bag so the seam is centred under the strap. Backstitch the strap in place with matching thread, following the machine line of stitching and passing the needle through the existing holes if possible for a neat finish.

Embellish with Pom Pom Trim

1. Cut a 50cm length of pom pom trim, then pin this along all three edges of the bag flap, trim the edging to size, and ensuring that the ends are tucked neatly underneath the flap.

2. Hand sew the trim into position using coordinating thread, taking care to only sew through the first layer of fabric so that no stitching shows on the inside of the flap.

3. Cut two, three pom pom pieces of edging from the leftover trim, then fold the ends in and stitch these to the strap ends at the bottom of the bag to create tassels.

Create a Cover Button

1. Cut a circle of fabric that is twice the diameter of your chosen fastening. Sew around the circumference of the circle in running stitch to gather up the edges, then slip the fabric over your chosen button before pulling the stitches tight and securing.

Decorate with Beads

1. Sew a selection of coordinating seed beads around the edge of the button, then pass the thread through all the beads again so that they all lay neatly in the same direction before fastening off.

2. Stitch a smaller decorative fastening to the top of the cover button if desired, then sew the gathers on the underside of the covered button to the flap of the bag with neat hand stitches to finish.