Oh, I know...I said, "come back this week and..." we'd be chatting about flowers and we will. VERY soon. All kinds of little posies and fun ways to use them! BUT I realized I had this cute little treat bag and with the Easter holiday just weeks away - yikes! Thought I'd share it first so you could crank a few out for your wee ones! It's a pretty quick project - an hour or less!

Designed to hang on the back of a chair but you could easily add a full length strap to this little carrot bag and turn it into a cute Easter purse.

Materials needed include orange and green fabrics plus additional for the lining {scraps or fat quarters would suffice}, some heavy fleece interfacing {again, some scraps or single fat quarter is enough}, 24" of velvet ribbon.

I made two different versions. Options are: 1) A green leafy top as one piece and standing up OR a green leafy top that lays down and is cut into strips. 2) Plain carrot OR decorative stitching on carrot to add texture. 3) Ribbon handle stitched into the bag OR ribbon handle stitched on the outside of the bag.

Ready? Here goes...

1) Print the pattern. I've designed this to be printed on a legal size sheet of paper. Click on the picture and then print.

Cut 2 from your orange exterior fabric. Cut 2 from your lining fabric. Cut 2 of your interfacing - cut your interfacing at least 1/4" smaller than your orange exterior fabric. Additionally, Cut 1 from the green fabric 21" x 6".

2) Fuse your interfacing following manufacturers instructions to the wrong side of the orange exterior fabric. If you wish to add the decorative stitching, do this now. Stitch randomly back and forth, slightly curving.

3) With right sides facing, pin your two orange exterior pieces together and using 1/4" seam, stitch around the long edges leaving the top of your carrot open. Turn right side out. Do you want your ribbon handle sewn into the bag with no excess hanging? Now is the time to stitch the handle on - match raw edge of ribbon to raw edge of bag and stitch ribbon at each side seam. If you like the look of the ribbon on the outside with some excess hanging, then the ribbon handle is added at the end.

4) With right sides facing, bring your two short ends of the green fabric together and stitch together making a tube. Your tube is 6" high.

Next, fold green fabric, wrong sides facing, in half as shown. Now your tube is 3" high.

With right sides facing, pin your green tube to the orange exterior fabric around the top, raw edges matching. Start by matching the seam of the tube to the seam on the carrot and pin. Next, finding the center point of your tube, pin that center point to the other seam. Then, randomly tuck and create pleats and gathers with your green tube until it fits around the top of your carrot. Pin in place and stitch green tube to carrot.

5) With right sides facing, pin your two lining pieces together and stitch leaving your carrot top open as you did the exterior AND leaving a 3" opening along the side towards the bottom for turning. Leave lining turned wrong side out.

6) With lining turned wrong side out and orange exterior fabric turned right side out, take your orange exterior and put it INSIDE of the lining so that you now have right sides of the fabric from the exterior carrot and the lining facing. Pin all around top. Stitch.

7) Next, pull your carrot exterior through the hole you left open in the lining. Stitch lining closed.

8) Push your lining down into your carrot. IF you have chosen to have a leafy green top stand up as one solid piece, well, then you are done! Handle? If you choose to have your handle on the outside, then stitch it at your side seams on the exterior of your bag now.

IF you have chosen to have a leafy green top that is cut into strips, randomly cut but not all the way in! Leave about an 1" uncut. Topstitch around the top edge? Up to you...I topstitched the carrot with the cut leaves. I did not topstitch the one with the solid leafy part.

Easy wasn't it? Now, fill them with treats and hang them on the back of your child's chair after they have gone to bed and wait for the squeals of delight when they wake up in the morning! Why wait for Easter! Make it a fun Springy Saturday morning treat tradition all through Lent.

Have fun making these for your wee ones! I'd love to see what you stitch up! Share them over on my Flickr page or on the Two Peas facebook page. Have your kids make one of these, a Baxter Bunny to put inside your carrot!

Next time - blooms and blossoms!

xoxo,

Trish