If you love ruffle pouches, you’ll love this new design! It has front pockets with a beautiful quilted finish and the cutest ruffle border. Best of all, it is very easy to make and perfect for beginners.
A front ruffle pocket gives you extra storage space while also adding a fun, feminine touch—because we can never have too many pockets!
With my step-by-step tutorial, you’ll be able to make this pouch that’s perfect for storing makeup, stationery, sewing supplies, or everyday essentials.
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Whether you’re making these pouches for yourself or as a handmade gift, this project will make you want to sew many of these pouches in a variety of colors and fabrics.
Oh, and the great thing about this pouch tutorial is that I created a printable pattern cutting template which you can use to cut fabric easily and quickly. It comes with a printable guide to this tutorial, so you can keep it handy while sewing.
Finished Pouch Size: 19.5 cm x 14.5 cm (7.68″ × 5.71″)
dIY Ruffle Pouch with Front Pocket
supplies
- 1 x Ruffle Strip – 35 cm x 7 cm / 13.78″ × 2.76″
- 2 x Pocket Fabric – 22 cm x 10 cm / 8.66″ × 3.94″
- 2 x Fabric – 22 cm x 16 cm / 8.66″ × 6.30″
- 2 x Lining – 22 cm x 16 cm / 8.66″ × 6.30″
- 1 x Pocket Batting – 25 cm x 12 cm / 9.84″ × 4.72″
- 2 x pouch batting – 25 cm x 18 cm / 9.84″ × 7.09″
- zip – 19 cm / 7.48″
- Zipper Tabs – 6 cm x 4 cm / 2.36″ × 1.57″
If you want high quality, Ad-free version This sewing guide, with step-by-step instructions included below each picture and printable template cutting, Get the printable PDF guide here!
Video tutorial
Instructions
01-02. Begin by placing one of the pocket pieces (right side facing you) on top of the pocket batting and pin in place. I then used a ruler and fabric pen to mark the spacing to create a diamond quilt pattern, or you can quilt as desired.
03. Start from the right side of the fabric and sew along the marks.
04. To complete the diamond pattern, I marked the fabric on the opposite side.
05. Go to the sewing machine and repeat the stitching process along the marked lines until you have completed the quilting.
06. Cut the excess lining from the fabric batting.
07. The quilted pocket should look like this.
08-09. Now repeat the first few steps on the rest of the pouch pieces. Place the fabric pouch piece on the accompanying batting, mark the lines accordingly and head to your sewing machine to complete the stitching. Then, trim the excess batting from the sides.
10. Let’s get the zipper ready for our ruffle pouch!
11. Place the open end of the zipper into the machine and stitch back and forth until the two ends are joined.
12. Take your first zip tab piece.
13. Fold one end of the zip tab in half.
14. Place the zip on the side of the folded piece.
15. Fold the other end of the fabric over until it meets the edge of the zip.
16. Fold the fabric over the top of the zip until it forms a pocket suitable for the zip.
17-18. Sew the fabric over the zip and you’ve just made your first side zip tab.
19-20. Repeat the process on the other side of the zip that we secured in place earlier. Once sewn, trim the edges of the zip tab to match the edge of the zip.
21-22. Fantastic! The zip is now complete, so we can move on to stitching the ruffle strip attached to the front pocket of the ruffle pouch. Hold the long rectangle right in front of you.
23-24. Fold the material in half and try to align the edges as much as possible. Use an iron to flatten the material (optional).
25. At the left end of the strip, fold a piece of material together and hold it in place.
26. Count this way you should see. As you sew, you will repeat these folds and stitches. This will create a ruffle. Watch the video guide if you need a refresher.
27. Let’s start sewing the ruffle from one end to the other. Fold the fabric as shown in the previous step and stitch along the side of the strip where the two pieces of fabric meet. Then, stop and make the next fold.
28. Lift the zipper foot, fold the front of the fabric, lower the foot and sew again. You can also change the direction of the fold. Repeat this process until you reach the end of the strip. For a stronger and more gathered ruffle, make folds that are closer together.
29. This is how the completed strip looks at this point.
Let’s attach the strip to the quilted front pocket of the pouch that we sewed earlier.
31. Place the ruffle strip along the top edge of the quilted pocket piece. The folded end of the ruffle strip should be facing down.
32. Using a seam of 0.5cm or less, stitch the two pieces together along the edges. Make sure they are securely sewn together.
33-34. This is how the front pockets and ruffle should now look. Cut extra pieces from the sides of the ruffled strip to match the pockets.
35-36. Take another piece of unused pocket fabric and place it over the finished ruffle pocket piece. The pattern side of both pieces should be facing each other.
37-38. Pin so that you secure the two pieces together as carefully as possible.
39. Once you have the two pieces pinned together, we can stitch the top edge. Using a 1 cm seam, stitch the top edge together.
40. Trim the edges slightly to make the piece neater.
41-42. Unfold the joined piece, fold it so that the ruffle rests on top of both pieces and the batting side is now inside the two patterned fabric layers.
43. Pin the pieces together on the sides and bottom and head to the machine.
44. Add a top stitch to the pocket piece.
45. Next, let’s attach the ruffle pocket piece to the front patterned pouch piece we prepared earlier.
47-48. Place the ruffle pocket on top and align with the front quilted piece. Use pins to secure them together.
49-51. Sew around the two sides and the bottom of the pieces. With this step, we have now created the front pocket.
52-54. Fold the same piece in half and mark the midpoint. Now, grab the zip, fold it in half and mark the center point on both sides. Use a marker to indicate a point or scissors to cut a small piece.
55. Flip the zipper over, laying it flat on the front (right side of the zipper facing in). The center point of the material and the zipper should be aligned.
56-57. Grab the lining piece and place it on top of both the zip and the front, making sure the top edges are all aligned. The lining should be placed on the opposite side. Pin to secure the pieces together.
58-59. I turned the lining over to show what it would look like once stitched. Use a 0.5cm seam and join the pieces together in a single line.
60. Open the piece and fold the lining to the back as shown above.
61. Let’s go back to the machine and sew the top stitch.
62-63. Once the top stitch is complete, lay it flat on the table and grab the other quilted piece and place it face down. Align the piece with the top edge of the zip.
64. Hold the pieces together and rotate them around.
65. Grab the second piece of lining with right sides facing in and align it with the top edge of the zip. Pin in place and let’s sew!
68. Unfold the lining piece and the patterned fabric piece.
69-70. With the patterned side facing you, go to the machine and sew the top stitch along the zipper line.
72. Lay the ruffle pouch flat on the table and open the zipper. Make sure the zip stays open for the rest of the steps.
73-74. Turn the right patterned piece so it meets the other. This will reveal the back of the lining piece which should now be facing each other.
next to lining (as indicated), mark a small opening and do not sew this section. Now, let’s go back to the machine and start sewing on the lining piece from the first marked end (watch the video if unsure).
75-76. Open the sides of the pouch to reveal the zipper tab. Push the zipper tab down toward the patterned fabric piece. Repeat on the other side.
77. Mark the end point of the zipper tab and use pins to secure the fabric in place.
80. Once sewn, cut the corners.
81-82. Use the unstitched opening to pull the right side of the pouch through the opening.
83-84. You can use your fingers, the back of a pen, or a ruler to open the corners.
85-86. Fold the raw edges of the lining where the open/unstitched piece is and then sew closed.
87. Place the lining back into the pouch, and you’re done! You’ve just sewn a trendy and unique ruffle pouch with pockets!
And there you have it – your ruffle pouch is complete!
They are also perfect for gift giving, and you can easily make several of these pouches in different sizes if you want.
I hope you enjoyed following along with this tutorial and found the steps easy to follow. If you make your own ruffle pouch, I’d love to see it—feel free to share your finished project and tag me @craftsonfire on Instagram or leave a comment below so I can admire your beautiful work.
If you’d like to try another easy sewing tutorial, here are a few I recommend next:
DIY Ruffle Pouch Tutorial (Cute Gift Idea)
DIY Zipper Pouch with Zipper Tabs
