DIY Tote Bag from a Tea Towel in Less Than an Hour

Learn how to make a DIY tote bag from a thrift store tea towel. This project is easy, cute, and budget friendly! Makes a great gift idea.

Skills Required: Beginner. The sewing is very simple, so if you’re just starting out with a sewing machine, you’ll be able to tackle this project.

If you’re a vintage and thrift store lover like me, chances are you have a sizable stash of favorite items that rarely see the light of day. You’re either short on space to display them, or you’ve been holding out on using them for just the right occasion (like china settings) so they won’t be ruined.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from thrifting for nearly two decades, it’s that I can’t bring all the pretty things home, and if I do, I need to put it to use or pass it back along.

So, to go along with my unofficial resolution of paring down my vintage stash this year, I’m putting one of my favorite vintage tea towels to good use by sewing it into a tea towel DIY tote – perfect for a project bag or making a run to the farmers market!

This tea towel would have made a perfect wall hanging, but I just don’t have a good space for it in my house. I love the bold flower print, and it’s 100% linen with finished edges – and it’s from the year my husband was born, so I couldn’t not bring it home with me.

But the thing is, I bought it like two years ago and I haven’t done anything with it! Time for a change. Here’s how I turned a tea towel into a tote.

Sew a Tote Bag

To make your own tea towel tote to take to the grocery store, you’ll need:

• One gorgeous tea towel
• Sewing machine
• Scissors
• Something to use for the straps. I used 1 1/2 yards of pretty yellow braiding, although webbing is perfect for a tote too.

Start by folding your tea towel in half with right sides facing each other.

I made my DIY tote bag with boxed corners, and instead of measuring and sewing off triangles, you can simply take the folded bottom edge and push it up between the front and back of the fabric, creating a kind of pleat.

Here’s what it looks like from the side.

Pin along each edge, making sure the folds line up at the bottom of your bag.

Zig zag stitch in a straight line along both sides. Your DIY tote bag is almost complete.

Then pin and stitch your handles into place. You can make them as wide or far apart as you like. If you’re using webbing, I recommend sewing it on with a boxed “X” to provide more support, the braiding was a little thick and finicky, so I just zig zagged back and forth a few times.

Flip it all right side out and you have your DIY tote bag! I just adore the fold that’s created with the boxed edges like this, like a pretty little envelope! This is such a cute cottagecore craft idea.

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This tea towel bag is so simple and quick, it makes a great last-minute gift idea. If you want more tea towel ideas, check out the other tutorials:

Floral Coloring Book Tea Towel

Fruit Stamping on Tea Towels