Combining Interfacings for bag-making

Interfacing is key to creating the right structure in handmade fabric bags. Often, we're using fabrics that were designed for drape or softness, and we need to make them have rigidity or at least a bit more body. For flexible (rather than rigid) structure, the combination of interfacing and wadding can be the answer.

Lighter fabrics need to be "flattened" with interfacing before a "plumping" layer of wadding is applied, otherwise the effect is merely puffy (the fabric is still floppy).

Sometimes this means that you'll be spending at least as much money on your interfacings as you have on your fabric. It really is worth the investment if you don't want to cheapen the look of your good fabric by using inferior support materials. (You can tart up cheap fabric with good interfacing and you can equally ruin good fabric with bad interfacing - the fabric takes on the properties of the support).

Through many trials and errors, I've learned a few interfacing combinations that work for me. I'd really recommend that you try a few as well - the more you test, the more you'll understand, and the better your ability to guess the likely outcome of any interfacing choice in the future.

When I want to add a bit of extra body to quilting weight cotton fabric, I use the combination of either medium-light or medium-heavy interfacing and light fusible wadding. The interfacing is fused in place first, followed by the wadding.


When in doubt, test both combinations on the same fabric....
You'll see and feel the difference and be able to choose which you prefer.

You may prefer the stand-up structure of the heavier (640) fusible wadding - combined with either of the above interfacings, and you may choose different interfacing combinations for different components of the same bag.

Another combination I truly, deeply love.... (I know, I'm gushing again...) is Vilene S320 and H640 (medium weight) fusible wadding.

The Vilene S320 fuses like a dream and gives a really flat finish but remains very flexible.

With a layer of 640 wadding, it holds its shape beautifully, yet is still light and flexible. I tried to show the flexibility in photos, but it didn't show it..... so I did a quick little amateur video (complete with a tripod-bumping incident) to demonstrate.

For the rest of the bag, I used different interfacings in different combinations....

Medium-light interfacing and light wadding on the strap, Vilene S320 (no wadding) on the facing and medium-light interfacing on the o-ring loops.

Of course, all this would be different on a different fabric and bag. It's really a matter of using the interfacing that will create the properties you want on each individual bag bit.