Rag Bag

     I cut up my old clothes and towels for my brother-in-law Chuck.  He needs lots of rags because he works on cars.  At the Memorial Day picnic, Chuck mentioned that he needed a rag bag.  I asked him how big it should be - "about thirty six inches."
     This morning, I decided I felt like making a rag bag.  I called Chuck.  He answered the phone, not with "Hello," but with, "Speak your business woman."
     "What color do you want your rag bag to be?"
     "Any color.  It doesn't matter."
     "What color did you paint the garage?"
     "It's kind of a cream color."
     "Okay."
     "Bye"
     Chuck is a man of few words.
     Alrighty.  It should be about thirty six inches, and it can be any color.  I love carte blanche.   I decided to make a red bag.  Joann Fabrics has a section called bottom weights.  That's a new term for me.  They are kind of like poplin, kind of like duck, kind of like light weight denim.  They're sturdy.
     I washed and dried the fabric.  I cooked up a pattern and cut it out.  Then I took one piece to Al's Custom Interiors and Embroidery on Monmouth Road in Mt. Holly.  I decided Chuck's rag bag should be personalized.  By the way, Al's did a fantastic job.  They are friendly and polite, and I got same day service.
     Here's how it came together:

The front of the bag was done with two pieces, so Chuck can reach inside for a rag, while the bag hangs from it's draw strings.

Here's the back of the bag.

I put the front and back together, overlapping the two front pieces.

I stopped short sewing the side seams.  I turned the top down to make a casing for the draw strings.

Almost done

I used a big safety pin to pull the draw strings through the casing.

Voila!  A rag bag.