Craft: Personalised luggage tags

YOU WILL NEED

20 x 32cm map canvas fabric

12 x 24cm fusible interfacing

5.5 x 8.5cm clear acetate sheet

5.5 x 8.5cm thick white card template enlarged by 200%

STOCKISTS: Map fabric, £10.99 per metre, from shop4cotton.etsy.com; acetate sheets, £3 for five, Hobbycraft; mini suitcases, £20 for set of three, Barker & Stonehouse.

CUTTING OUT

using the template, cut four of the larger luggage-tag pieces from the fabric.

Cut four of the smaller luggage-tag pieces from the fusible interfacing.

For the strap, cut one strip of fabric measuring 5 x 25cm.

1 to make the strap, fold the strip in half lengthways and press. open out the strip and then fold the raw edges in to meet the crease. Fold in half along the original crease to conceal and press. topstitch along both long edges.

2 Fuse the interfacing to the wrong side of the luggagetag fabric pieces following the manufacturer’s instructions. make sure the interfacing is centred in the middle of the luggage-tag pieces.

3 Pair up the luggage-tag pieces, lining up the edges and pinning right sides together. sew around the edges with a 1cm seam allowance and on one of the pairs, leave a small gap for turning through. Clip the corners.

4 For the back of the luggage tag, take the piece with the turning gap and turn right sides out. Press and slip stitch the gap closed. using the buttonhole on the template as a guide, cut a small slit into one side of the luggage tag back, making sure not to cut into the other side.

5 slip both ends of the strap into the slit by about 2cm and pin in place. topstitch a couple of lines of stitching across the strap ends and through the luggage tag back to secure in place.

6 For the luggage tag front, use the template to draw the dashed rectangle on to one side of the interfacing. using a pair of sharp scissors, cut diagonal lines from the centre of the rectangle to each corner. turn the front tag right sides out and turn the cut pieces in on themselves to form a window.

7 slot the piece of acetate inside the front tag so that each edge is enveloped by the fabric. Pin and topstitch all the way around the inner edge.

8 using the buttonhole on the template as a guide, stitch a small buttonhole at the top of the front luggage tag.

9 Pin the front and back tags together with wrong sides facing and topstitch around the bottom three sides. Cut a piece of card to fit inside and write out your label. insert the card and then push the strap through the buttonhole to secure.