Bag Feet Tute #1

There are lots of ways of doing bag feet. The simplest would be to just buy the feet at an online site such as here and here.
But if you are inclined to do your own feet, here is one of several methods I have used.
I chose this particular method as I wanted a really small bag foot. The bag is feminine and small and I just wanted to keep the bottom from hitting. I settled on a tiny shank JHB button. The gold was in keeping with my embroidery and the size was just right. You will need 4, duh, but I found most buttons come in threes so you may have to spring for an extra card. Also needed will be some tiger tail beading wire. To use it will require a large eye needle. I used a large chenille needle. A clear acrylic ruler and seam gauge will be helpful also.

On the inside of the gusset piece I measured accurately to find the center of the gusset. After establishing the midpoint I measured out equally on each side of the midpoint and drew a line with sharp pencil and ruler. A clear acrylic ruler is great for this. Then on that line I measured down equal amounts so that all four points of the rectangle (future home of the feet) were equidistant from the center along the length and the width. If you click to enlarge you can see this a lot more clearly. Double check with your ruler on this. The bottom of the bag is reinforced with an extra scrap piece of Decor Bond. Make sure that the positions for the feet are far enough from the seamline to prevent any distortion when sewing. Once that is all double checked it is time to thread the large eyed needle with a length of tiger tail, about twelve inches. Thread the needle but just insert the other end of the tiger tail into the shank of the button. Push the needle thru the marked spot for the foot, coming from the right side. Once thru, take the needle off and thread the other end that is still on the right side. Now bring that end up thru the marked area but a few threads away from the first stitch. Take off the needle and put aside. Take the tiger tail, pull the button tight to the bag, and tie the tiger tail into a square not, really tight. Snip the tiger tail to about a half inch length and move to the next marked spot for a foot. The tiger tail is as strong as you can imagine, like a fine cable. It ties into very tight knots, so you can see why it is used for beading.
I hope this gives you an alternative to the high cost of bag feet as well as an option for when the design requires an application out of the ordinary. I will post some other ways to do bag feet later on. ....Bunny