Free Knitting Pattern: Lowlands Bag

Inspired by a recent trip, the Lowlands Bag is the perfect size to hold a magazine, an iPad and /or a small craft project - see more pictures here. Using fairly straightforward techniques, it's not difficult to make, but is a little bit fiddly. If you're new to knitting colour work or in-the-round, or if you haven't lined a bag before, you will be able to do it as long as you take your time and look up any techniques you're not familiar with. Written instructions are provided in full below and you will also need the downloadable chart which is available as a free PDF via Ravelry.

You will need:

  • A copy of the colourwork chart - get it HERE
  • 1 x  Scheepjes Mini Nooodle in Black - col 000 (MC)*
  • 1 x Scheepjes Mini Nooodle in White - col 009 (CC)*
  • 8mm circular knitting needles at least 90cm / 36" long
  • Stitch marker
  • Set of plastic bag handles
  • Fabric scissors
  • Needle for sewing in yarn ends
  • 60 cm x 40 cm medium weight cotton fabric (lining), extra if adding a pocket  
  • Sewing thread and needle 
  • Optional: Sewing machine for seaming the lining and adding a pocket, if required

Techniques: 

  • Judy's magic cast on
  • Knitting in the round on circular needles
  • Knit & Purl stitches
  • Basic colourwork, using a chart
  • Binding off
  • Basic sewing skills

Instructions:

  1. Using MC, cast on 60 stitches (30 sts on each side of the needles)
  2. Knit four rounds. For the first round only: work into the back of the stitches on the second needle 
  3. Work rounds 1 to 41 from the colourwork chart, ensuring to twist/carry the yarns into the sides of the bag. Note that the floats carried along the wrong side of the work will be hidden by the lining so they do not need to look perfect from the wrong side and they result in a lovely double thickness fabric which provides padding for 'portable tech'
  4. Using MC, knit four rounds
  5. Bind off 10 stitches
  6. For the handle: (K10, turn the work, p10) twice, bind off these 10 sts, leaving a 30 cm tail
  7. Rejoin yarn and bind off 20 stitches
  8. For the second handle: (K10, turn the work, p10) twice, bind off these 10 sts, leaving a 30 cm tail
  9. Bind off remaining 10 sts
  10. Sew in any yarn tails
  11. Sew the handles firmly in place using the long yarn tails, as pictured below 
(Why oh why did I lay it on the fluffy carpet before taking the pictures?!?)

Making the lining: 

  1. Measure the lining against the knit bag and cut the fabric a little bigger than the bag to allow for seaming
  2. Optional: If you wish to add a pocket (to your own specification), add it before the next step
  3. With right sides together, seam around the open side and bottom of the lining to create an open-topped pouch (make sure your magazine/ipad will fit in the lining before you sew!)
  4.  Trim off any excess fabric in the seams to reduce bulk
  5. Place the lining into the bag (still with the right sides together)
  6. Measure the excess/seam allowance around the top of the lining, and fold into place so that it sits neatly around the inside of the bag and is not visible when the bag is closed - ironing the fold will help to keep it in place
  7. Pin the lining evenly around the bag opening 
  8. Hand stitch around the lining using small even stitches
The bag is now ready to accompany you on your own adventures! 


*Scheepjes sponsored this post but the yarn choice, colours and design are all my own. When I designed the bag, I stated that Mini Nooodle yarn was only available from Dutch stockists, but am pleased to report that UK and other countries will be able to order from Wool Warehouse later this week, (I noted that their Royal Mail delivery charges to the USA are almost the same as domestic postage!!!). This yarn is great for this project - it is uniform in width, feels soft and while flexible, it does not stretch. In other words, it holds it's shape well when the bag is in use. 

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