Make a Beach Bag Organizer

Beach time is super important here in a resort town.

My girlfriends and I send many emails back and forth trying to arrange the

perfect day for the beach.

This year it is Wednesday.

 It's a standing time and day....all are welcome and each of us has taken turns

 bringing visiting friends and relatives to Beach Day. 

I'm fairskinned so I burn easily. 

I always have the umbrella which has become the point of reference 

when everyone is searching for the group.

Everyone brings their own cooler of snacks but we all share. 

Not having little ones has made it nice for the majority of us

 and the days of dragging buckets, shovels, tubes, etc is over.

 Now we have pre-teens and teens so the major focus is food and lots of it!

Of course my daughter now has a 3yr old so Mimi (that's me)

 doesn't get to just sit and chat anymore. 

Mimi is always being called to come and see something of  great importance

....sigh.....

he's just so cute I can't miss anything!

Beach bags and I do not get along. 

They are big black holes where things disappear.

 I waste too much valuable socializing time digging around in there looking for 

my sunglasses, 

my reading glasses, 

my chapstick, etc. 

My book pages get crunched up and filled with sand. 

Collected shells and stones get tossed in there scratching up my sunglasses.

 I carry a big insulated cup but it always tips over.

This year I decided to do a project that I planned to do last year but never got around to.....

a beach bag organizer

I started with a flannel backed plastic tablecloth.

I loved the colorful, cottagey print!

Measure the inside circumference of your bag and add an inch

Measure the depth you want. I made mine the full depth of the bag.

Cut out two pieces of tablecloth the length of the circumference and twice the depth.

Set one piece aside. Fold one piece in half lengthwise with the flannel sides together.

Mine was 42 " long (circumference) by 20" high (twice the depth)

Now fold the long, doubled piece you have in half crosswise.

Put it inside the bag to check the fit. Trim the end if needed 
and sew the two ends together making a circle.

Take the second long piece, fold it lengthwise and then crosswise.
Mark the spot where it folds crosswise and then unfold it. 
Each half of this long piece is one pocket side of your insert.
Cut it in half crosswise.

Sew around the three open sides of the small pieces.
I used a zigzag stitch.

Using the side seam of the large piece as a guide, 
attach each pocket piece to either side of the side seam 
so you have a starting point.

Once attached, flatten out the large piece with the two pocket pieces inside and mark where the opposite side of each pocket piece should attach. 
The pocket pieces are just a tiny bit larger but attach the sides anyway, 
the excess will be used up in a minute.
Don't attach the bottom yet. Mark where you want pockets and sew from the top to the bottom at each mark you make.
I made two large pockets on one side to hold books and magazines 
and four pockets on the other side.
When you've sewn each pocket "sleeve" then sew the bottom closed....
if there is excess fabric, just make some small gathers...
it will just make your pockets more full at the bottom which allows things that are larger, 
like bottles, to fit better.
Here I'm putting it in the bag to check where the ties go 
and you can see the stitching for the pockets.

Add your ties

This took about an hour...a nice Summer project!

I'm all ready for our first Beach Day.....
I know, it's July already but we've all been busy!

I think it came out really cute......
don't you?





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