Lingerie sachets - what they're for and how to make one.

As I spend my holidays in Scotland, and travel there by car, I've never had to worry about luggage and, consequently, take far more clothes than I'd actually wear (I like to have options). So my Mother would tell you anyway, she's very good at compiling her ensemble for a trip, without the huge suitcase!

One of the things we both use when doing our packing are lingerie sachets. You don't need to stick to putting your underwear in them either. I use them for leggings and cami-tops as well. One of their great advantages is that you don't need to unpack their contents once you get to your destination. You take out what you need, put things back, or in your laundry bag if they need washing. If you have a laundry bag everything that needs washing when you get home is all in the same place.

Anyway, back to lingerie sachets. Another advantage of these, is that when it comes to the time to do the packing to go home you just have to pack the sachets.

A lingerie sachet

How to make a lingerie sachet.

I created a pattern, out of greaseproof paper, to make the cutting of the fabrics easier. You can make the sachets any size you want, but mine are as follows:

• width = 35cm
• overall length = 65cm
• length of side = 50cm
• length of envelope flap = 15cm
• end of envelope flap = 5cm.

To make the pattern easier, you could leave off the envelope shape and just have a flap, in that case you just need the pattern to be an oblong 35cm wide and 65cm in length.

Next - cutting out the fabric. You will need two different types of fabric, one for the top, and this could be anything as long it's not too flimsy, and a lining fabric. I've used a vintage glazed chintz, called Egremont, which just happens to be the area of Wirral that I live in, for the top and curtain lining for the inside.

Pattern pinned to fabric.

Place your pattern on your top fabric. You need to remember, when doing this, the way the pattern runs on your fabric and how it will look when the sachet is complete. Choose the way you prefer, nothing's right or wrong. Using your pattern cut out one of your top fabric and one of the lining.

Sewing - place the two pieces of fabric together, right-sides facing, and pin. You can either hand sew or machine sew the two pieces of fabric together. Start on the bottom edge and sew all the way around, but leave a 4cm gap between the start and end of your sewing.

Using the gap, turn the sachet inside out so that the right-sides are now on the outside. Hand sew the gap closed.

Next, fold the sachet, as seen in the above picture, making sure that you're level across the top where the flap begins. To join the two sides you could either, use a sewing machine to run a line of stitches as close as possible to the edge, bear in mind that the fabric could be quite thick on the edge. Or, by oversewing the two sides of the together by hand.

Turned out sachet

Turn the fabric the right way around, and it should look like the picture above. The next thing to do is add a press-stud and a button.

Position of press-stud

I used an 11mm press-stud. Sew the 'pointy ended' on the inside of the envelope flap, in the middle and about 1.5cm from the edge. Locate, on the front of the sachet, where the receiving side of the press-stud should go and attach.

Choose a button to go on the front of the flap. This button is just there for show, and to hide the stitches from the press-stud, so attach so that it hides these.

Et voila - a completed lingerie sachet.

If you don't want to make your own, you can buy the ones I've made from my Folksy Elsie May and Bertha shop.

TTFN
Louise