The Necessary Clutch Wallet- Border Option

Recently I started making the Necessary Clutch Wallet, an incredible pattern by the lovely Janelle of Emmaline Bags. Like any crafty person, I’m always trying to find the easy way (and quickest) to get things done and making bags/wallets/pouches are included in this! I thought I would share just how I do the border piece on the wallet in hopes it will help others who want to get things done faster! In order to understand this mini tutorial you will need the Necessary Clutch wallet pattern or it will not make any sense!

Before I get to far, I don’t use double sided tape like the pattern calls when I make mine. I prefer to use Heat n Bond iron on tape instead! It guarantees my fabric isn’t going to move anywhere and it won’t gum up your needles while you sew! You can buy Heat n Bond at any craft supply store and Walmart too!

You’ll need:

Heat n Bond or double sided tape

Your border interfacing cut out

Border piece

Both flap pieces and desired interfacing applied to it

Once you have your border interfacing piece cut out, cut small sections at a time of the Heat n Bond and adhere it to the INNER side of the border. Apply it all along that edge overlapping just slightly but perfection is not important and neither are the corners because the fabric will be clipped there anyways!

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You then want to place your interfacing in the centre of the border piece and clip the inner side. Carefully you want to iron it down onto the Heat n Bond. This also give you a smooth clean line on along the border as well!

Once done, place on top of your main flap piece and stitch along the inner side that you just pressed! You then want to place your inner flap piece and complete your flap as normal.

The border interfacing leaves the perfect amount of space for your seam allowance so you don’t have to worry about it being bulky with you turn it around and iron it flat! I then just top stitch around the entire flap which you can see in the photo below!

I find doing the flap this way makes it much easier and you don’t have to worry about lining up the piece after the flap is already made plus it gives you a nice clean edge to top stitch.

If you use this method I would love to know what you think! This wallet really is addicting to make and cannot wait to make more! Also if you become addicted like many of us, join the NCW Addicts Group on Facebook, a place we share our creations and other wallet tips!

*Looking for other uses of the Heat n Bond? Check out my post on “That’s what she Said” where I share how to make throw pillows with it!*

EDIT: Some of my fellow Necessary Clutch Wallet addicts have chimed in to share some tips about doing the border this way! Can’t get Heat n Bond where you are? Try using a fabric glue stick or quick dry fabric glue. The interfacing I like using for the flap border piece is Pellon Buckram. It’s stiff and give you a smooth clean edge to iron around! Another tip is if you are using double sided iron on interfacing, you can carefully iron the inner flap edges down easily too!